HP Enterprise Services Uses Optimization for Resource Planning

The main responsibility of resource and delivery managers at Hewlett-Packard HP Enterprise Services HPES involves matching resources skilled professionals with jobs that project opportunities require. The previous Solution Opportunity Approval and Review SOAR process at HPES addressed uncertainty by producing decentralized project staffing decisions. This often led to many last-minute subjective, sometimes costly, resource allocation decisions. Based on our research, we developed a decision support tool for resource planning RP to enhance the SOAR process. It optimizes matching professionals who have diverse delivery roles and skills to jobs and projects across geographical locations while explicitly accounting for both demand and supply uncertainties. It also embeds capabilities for managers to incorporate tacit human knowledge and judgment information into the decision-making process. With its 2009 deployment in Best Shore, Bangalore operations of HPES, the RP tool’s significant benefits include reduced service delivery costs, increased workforce utilization, and profitability.

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