Creative agency resource management: planning next week's work

What's resource management in a creative agency?

It's the weekly job of matching client work to people and their hours, so nobody is buried and no deadline gets missed by surprise. You look at what's coming, who can do it, and how much free time each person has.

In a small creative agency, that plan can live with the owner or a project lead. It covers:

• Every client job due in the coming week
• The skills each job needs, such as design, writing or development
• The hours each person has after meetings and time off
• The jobs that can wait if the week runs over

The plan only works if you're honest about hours. A person who's booked for every hour has no room for client changes or a rush job.

When the work won't fit, something has to move off your plate. In one owner's view, you pass on the technical and support tasks first, and hold on to strategy, copy, sales and client care for now.

A plan tells you when people are busy. For the number that says you're full, see the agency utilization rate.

As you add people, it also helps to know who reports to whom. For drawing the org chart, see marketing agency org charts.

How does marketing agency resource management work week to week?

Once a week, list next week's work by client, match it to people and their hours, and flag what's over. Then decide what to do about the overage before the week starts, not in the middle of it.

1. List the work. Write down every job due next week, client by client.
2. Size each job. Note the hours each piece needs, using what similar jobs took before.
3. Assign it. Put one name on each job.
4. Add up each person's hours. Compare the hours you gave them to the hours they have.
5. Flag what's over. Mark every person, and every day, where the hours don't fit.
6. Decide. Move a date, cut scope or add help, and tell the client if a date moves.

Here are the parts of a weekly resource plan:

A project tool can hold this plan, or a simple sheet can. For choosing project software, see how to choose agency project management software.

When the plan won't fit, there are three moves: move a date, cut scope or add help. Adding help comes in a few forms, each with its own cost. To compare them, see Which way to add hands fits my agency, and what does each cost?

Here's how one agency handled it. Charisma Ink is an agency for accounting and fintech firms. It handles their PR, ghostwriting, influencer marketing, digital marketing and book publishing. It had been working with a series of contractors. It moved its project tracking, its Amazon filing for book publishing and much of its design work to DeskTeam360, with a project manager keeping track of the jobs. Its owner now feels sure enough to say yes to new work.

That outside help is one team. A North American account manager leads it, with a team leader beside them. Next come 2 developers, 2 designers and 2 technical Virtual Assistants, and the founder joins on 2 weekly group calls. They're the same team, working in one office.