It wasn't until I got involved in software development management a decade ago that I started hearing the word "resource" used in reference to people. I'd hear statements like:

    "We have 5 resources on that project."

    "The QA contractor is assigning 4 resources."

    "We're hiring 2 more resources this quarter."

Over time, I've promoted this usage of the word from pet peeve to minor pejorative to anti-pattern.

A resource can be measured, divided, moved, sold, exploited, traded. You are a person. Would you like to be measured, divided, sold, exploited, and so on?

I didn't think so.

Calling people "resources" objectifies them. It implies having or needing a certain control over them. It implies currency: I'll give you one resource, you give me two. You are a person. Are you an object? Can others truly control you?

The word isn't without merit, it's simply misguided. My approach paraphrases something Dale Emery told me once:

"The resource is people's willingness to dedicate their energy on your behalf."

Think about it. Consider an example...

Suppose another division has agreed to transfer a guy, let's call him Mike, to your Agile team. Mike had been dedicated, motivated, energetic and diligent, but his contribution on your team is so-so.

Does Mike still count as "one resource"? Did he count as one before? Does this question even make sense? It totally blinds us to the real issue, that Mike the human being was willing to dedicate a lot of energy on behalf of his previous division, but not so this time.

As long as you have people deliver business value (through the construction of software), you're going to have to stop counting them.

You will have to stop counting them because they are not robots or desks or staplers. You never even paid them the same money anyway. It's the same twisted thinking that built up the cheap-labour premise of offshoring. It's the same thinking that has given companies an easy finger on the downsizing gun.

And if you're into Agile, you might want to consider that famous line from the Manifesto:

"We value individuals and interactions over processes and tools."