In project management, resources almost always refer to employees. I.e. human resources. And allocation almost always refers to scheduling tasks they will work on. Hmmm, is that all there is to it? (watch the video below)
Define Resource Allocation: Using people and objects in projects on a shared or recurring basis.
So no… employees are not the only resources you can allocate to your project. Got a tractor? Using it for landscaping? Then it is a shareable resource that you must schedule use for. In other words, only one landscaper crew can use it at any given time. It can’t be used by two crews at the same time, right? After all, it’s just one tractor. If two crews need tractors at the same time, then you need two tractors.
And no… scheduling tasks is not all there is to allocation. But yes, scheduling shareable resources is often necessary, as described above. Consider a load of manure, used by those landscaping crews above. You’ll have to split that bad-boy load up. You can’t have all the crews fighting for their “fair share” of the poo, can you? So you allocate a percentage to each crew. You guys get a little poo, and you other guys get some too.
That’s resource allocation.
Consider this video for an overview of resource allocation:
http://www.stdtime.com/videos/resourceallocation.htm
Now consider what the snarky little Kat has to say about resource allocation.