resource management tools solve critical issues

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Resource Management Tools Solve Critical Issues

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How Professional Services Firms Can Optimize Resource Management And Planning With A Purpose-Built Solution

FORRESTER OPPORTUNITY SNAPSHOT: A CUSTOM STUDY COMMISSIONED BY MAVENLINK | APRIL 2021

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Overview

As companies have advanced in their digital transformation, many have added additional resource management (RM) and planning tools to their technology stack. However, professional services firms struggle to find purpose-built solutions that adequately meet their needs. This pushes them to rely on a variety of tools for resource management, and most are built for other purposes or they are inefficient and inadequate, like spreadsheets. As a result, these firms have processes that are bogged down, and they can only complete basic administrative tasks with them instead of accomplishing strategic objectives.

Companies struggle to draw on data they already have, allocating the appropriate internal resources, and harnessing the power of strategic solutions. Using a purpose-built resource management solution solves these critical issues and allows firms to focus on future strategic tasks.

Key Findings

Decision-makers know purpose-built resource management tools would bring big benefits, but they still rely on ineffective, outdated solutions like spreadsheets and tools built for other purposes.

Top challenges include a lack of organizational support, fragmented tools, and an inability to turn data into insights. These barriers inhibit the real power of resource management applications.

Purpose-built tools bring transformative benefits like increased customer satisfaction and revenue. Mature organizations are already using these tools for strategic functions rather than for baseline administrative tasks.

Overview

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RESOURCE MANAGEMENT TOOLS SOLVE CRITICAL ISSUES

Overview

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RM technology is as a critical necessity for professional services success. Many (72%) of decision-makers from firms without a purpose-built solution say having a resource management and planning solution would drive material benefits for their organization.

Firms struggle to realize these benefits because they are limited by their technology stacks. Many use outdated technologies, tools, and processes rather than those that serve their evolving needs. In an analysis of the tools used for RM at organizations, spreadsheets were used the most, while over one-third of decision-makers say their organization doesn’t have any tools at all.

Companies rely heavily on applications built for other purposes, such as project management, CRM, and enterprise resource planning (ERP). This means that most professional services firms are still constrained by inefficient, ineffective approaches to resource management that materially impact project and financial performance and client satisfaction.

Outdated Tools Hinder RM Benefits

Tools In Use For Resource Management End Planning

Least optimal and most widely used

Tools built for other purposes

More optimal and least widely used

Spreadsheets 50%

Enterprise resource planning tools 46%

We don’t use any resource management and planning tools at all. 36%

Human capital management tools 35%

Project management tools 22%

Homegrown/DIY tools 21%

Professional services automation tools 16%

Base: 367 resource management decision-makers at professional services firms in the US, Canada, or the UKSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Mavenlink, March 2021

72%say that having a resource management and planning solution would drive material benefit for their organization.

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Current State

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Current Resource Planning Tools Leave Professional Services Organizations With Major Challenges

The technology industry has underserved professional services firms, leaving them with suboptimal utilization of legacy professional services automation (PSA) tools that are siloed within projects and not compatible with ERP/CRM applications in use. Lacking the right solutions has led to resource management challenges like getting organizational support (72%), working with fragmented tools (66%), and being unable to turn resource management data into actionable insights (64%). Only 25% of decision-makers strongly agree their resource management solution meets their organization’s needs, and only 16% strongly agree their organization has the data necessary to make informed staffing decisions. It’s difficult to prove the value of fragmented tools, making it even more difficult to obtain organizational support.

Resource Management Challenges For Organizations(Showing “Very challenging” and “Extremely challenging”)

Base: 367 resource management decision-makers at professional services firms in the US, Canada, and the UKSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Mavenlink, March 2021

Limited organizational support for effective resource management

Fragmented tools

Lack of integrated technology stack

Inability to turn resource management data into actionable insights

Siloed view of resource management for allocation/capacity only

Lack of common definitions/understanding of our resource data

Limited access to resource management data

72%

66%

65%

64%

55%

53%

41%

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Current State

5 Implementation Plans For Critical Tools

Base: 367 resource management decision-makers at professional services firms in the US, Canada, and the UKNote: Percentages may not total 100 because of roundingSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Mavenlink, March 2021

Expanding/upgrading implementation

Planning to implement

Implemented, but no plans to expand or upgrade

Interested, but no plans to implement

IMPLEMENTERS OPPORTUNITIES

Financial human capital management

32% 30% 26% 10%

Enterprise resource planning

31% 26% 28% 13%

Human capital management tools

31% 30% 26% 12%

Resource management and planning tools

17% 14% 50% 17%

Project portfolio management

13% 11% 45% 28%

Professional services automation

7% 10% 32% 41%

Increased Adoption Of Resource Management Tools Will Address Hurdles

The majority of professional services firms do not have purpose-built resource management solutions, but decision-makers intend to find one to address their firm’s critical issues. In fact, more have plans to adopt resource management and planning tools (50%) than any other category, and another 17% plan to upgrade or expand their organization’s current implementation. Planned growth in the space highlights that current applications such as ERP and human capital management are not working to fill their resource management needs. Sixty-four percent of decision-makers expect their organization to increase its budget for PSA tools. That’s more than for project management tools (54%) and ERP (45%), highlighting the potential benefits of well-deployed professional services operational applications.

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Challenges

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Implementation Challenges With Tools That Aren’t Purpose-Built

Even though decision-makers say their companies plan to invest heavily in resource management tools, it remains challenging to effectively adopt and leverage it to its fullest extent. This points to the need for purpose-built tools with the expertise to support change management and effective adoption. Internal barriers that stand in the way of the obvious value realization include change management, lack of budget, and needing the time and effort required to select a vendor and to instrument the tool. When applications are inflexible and not purpose-built, companies often revert to using spreadsheets and other ineffective tools to try to fill those gaps, and this creates even more challenges than it solves.

Top 4 Barriers Inhibiting PSA Adoption

Base: 184 resource management decision-makers at professional services firms in the US, Canada, and the UK that are not PSA usersSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Mavenlink, March 2021

Change management associated with updating ongoing processes

or workflows (52%)

Lack of budget (49%) Time and effort required to select a

vendor (41%)

Time and effort required to instrument

a new tool (34%)

Unawareness that this technology existed (34%)

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PSA Adoption Increases Client Satisfaction, Forecasting Capabilities, And Revenue

With planned adoption of professional services automation tools at a high level, big benefits are on the horizon for many organizations. These profound benefits span both internal and external advantages by impacting both clients and internal operations/financials. Decision-makers from organizations that have adopted a PSA tool report improved client satisfaction, better forecasting, and increased revenue. As critical times have exposed the need for professional services automation, companies cannot afford to be left behind without this critical application.

Top 5 Benefits of PSA Adoption

Base: 367 resource management decision-makers at professional services firms in the US, Canada, and the UKSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Mavenlink, March 2021

Improved client satisfaction and advocacy

58%

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257%Achieved greater forecast confidence and transparency

55%3

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49%5

Increased revenue

Improved project staffing results

52%

Improved profit margins

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Benefits

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Purpose-Built Tools Move Companies From Basic HR Tasks To Holistic Resource Management

Today, organizations primarily use resource management tools for HR-related issues such as managing skill sets and careers. However, these HR tasks are just the baseline of what purpose-built resource management tools can accomplish — not where the maximum value lies. With the rise of purpose-built tools, organizations will be able to move past this limited use of administrative tasks, and will be more focused on holistic RM across any size of resource pools and time horizons.

In the next two years, many professional services organizations are planning to use RM tools at a much more holistic, strategic level, such as informing hiring needs and matching future demand. Professional services leaders already use RM tools for these strategic objectives, while laggards are planning to invest and catch up in the next two years.

How Organizations Conduct Resource Management And Planning Today Vs. In 2 Years

Base: 183 resource management decision-makers at professional services firms in the US, Canada, and the UK that are PSA usersSource: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Mavenlink, March 2021

To build and maintain optimal teams over the

project lifecycle

To match future demand to resource

and hiring needs

To inform hiring needs quarterly

To develop and maintain detailed skill

sets for resources

To identify career-building opportunities

for employees

Today In 2 yearsFUTURE, HOLISTIC USAGE

CURRENT, BASIC HR USAGE

63%

27% 22%

45%

15%34%

54%38%

62%

28%

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Conclusion

Purpose-built RM solutions deliver better outcomes by:

• Improving strategic planning by supplying a complete view of resources. Having transparency into resources measures current ability and informs future staffing. This optimizes allocation decisions and increases responsiveness for future projects.

• Improving operational efficiency and effectiveness. Having better resource management tools allows teams to move past spreadsheets and outdated tools to adopt more efficient approaches. With sustained use, professional services leaders find increased customer satisfaction, operational efficiency, and revenue.

• Solving short-term problems while focusing on long-term value. Resource management users move past basic administrative functions to a more holistic approach, including informed staffing and matching future demand.

Project Director:

Emily Drinkwater,

Market Impact Consultant

Contributing Research:

Forrester’s Application Delivery & Development research group

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MethodologyThis Opportunity Snapshot was commissioned by Mavenlink. To create this profile, Forrester Consulting surveyed 367 resource management decision-makers at professional services firms in the US, Canada, and the UK. They hold titles of director or above in Tech, Ops or related roles at companies with between 100 and 2,500 employees. The custom survey began and was completed in March 2021.

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Demographics

100 to 499: 26%

500 to 999: 35%

1,000 to 2,499: 39%

Technology: 33%

Business/professional services: 30%

Advertising/marketing: 23%

Architectural/engineering services: 14%

US: 69%

Canada: 16%

UK: 16%

C-level: 14%

VP: 36%

Director: 50%

GEOGRAPHY

RESPONDENT TITLE

COMPANY SIZE (BY EMPLOYEES)

INDUSTRIES

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resource management tools solve critical issues

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