When multiple projects compete for the same talent, it’s not about who shouts the loudest — it’s about who plans the smartest.
Lessons From Ice Cream Wars
As a child, I learned an important lesson about fairness from sharing ice cream with my brother. He would finish his quickly and then demand a share of mine — often successfully, because he cried louder.
In business, resource battles can feel the same. Projects with the loudest advocates don’t always deserve the most attention, but they often get it if priorities aren’t clear.
Competing Projects, Limited Experts
In my early career, running three projects at once meant constant battles for scarce technical experts. Later, as head of a PMO, I was on the other side — allocating resources across the entire portfolio.
The difference was stark: as a project manager, I had to fight for my team; as a PMO lead, I had to make tough trade-offs based on strategy, not noise.
The Key: Integrated Resource Planning
The real solution lies in building a transparent, integrated resource plan. This goes beyond scheduling—it requires aligning people, skills, and capacity with business priorities.
Key Principles:
- Blend permanent and contract talent to balance flexibility with long-term capability.
- Link resourcing to sales/CRM to anticipate demand and customer needs.
- Invest in upskilling so capability keeps pace with business cycles.
- Use portfolio-level schedules so all project managers see the bigger picture.
Communication Builds Ownership
Resource planning cannot be a silent back-office activity. Continuous communication with the business is vital to obtain the necessary buy-in and so everyone understands:
- Why certain projects get priority
- How risks are managed
- Where trade-offs are made
This turns resourcing into a shared responsibility — not a zero-sum game.
From Ice Cream to Strategy
So, instead of: “I ate mine, now I want yours,” organisations need to learn how to share resources fairly and strategically.
It’s not about short-term wins for individual projects — it’s about long-term success for the business, the market, and the customer.
When decisions are based on data, strategy, and customer engagement, projects don’t just compete — they complement each other.
Takeaway
Resource challenges won’t disappear, but with integrated planning, clear prioritisation, and open communication, you can turn resource conflicts into opportunities for collaboration, teamwork and growth.
Barbora Muzikant, founder of BM Project Management, has proven her ability to drive multiple strategic organisational transformations through decades of practical application and business leadership. Discover how she can help your organisation. Phone: