The key principles in brief:

A project involves stakeholders from various organizations and branches who take on specific roles, e.g. as project manager, project sponsor or customer.

The project role describes the task assignments (who does what), responsibilities (who decides what), and authorities (who authorizes what) the project stakeholder has, analogous to a company's job description.

The project roles are used by the project manager as building blocks for the project organization.

A project organization is minimally composed of the following project roles:

project committee (with project sponsor, customer, and supplier)
project manager
project team member (with user and specialist).

Depending on the size or type of project, additional project roles are required.

Literature:

PMBOK:	Chapter 2.2: Project Stakeholders Chapter 9.1: Organizational Planning
ICB:	Chapter 22: Project Organisation

Drill-Down:

What project roles does a project require?

Developed with the ZHW Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Winterthur.
Copyright © 1999-2005 by STS Sauter Training & Simulation SA. All Rights Reserved.

	Who does what in the project?
	How does the customer participate in the project?
	Project roles and estimating?
	What is the project committee's role?

Developed with the ZHW Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Winterthur.
Copyright © 1999-2005 by STS Sauter Training & Simulation SA. All Rights Reserved.

How do I apply project roles?

Compile a list of project roles required for the project, including a brief description for each, by applying the experience from a previous project or a project management methodology. Only in exceptional cases should you define the project role yourself.
Use the project roles as building blocks to compose the project organization.
Define the organization breakdown structure (OBS), i.e. the project organization (see diagram).
Assign stakeholders to each project role, taking into account their capabilities.
Brief each stakeholder in his/her project role (task assignment, responsibility, authority).
Document the project organization and project roles in the project plan.
In a matrix organization, indicate the % availability of the stakeholder.
Review the project organization at the start of each project phase and modify it if necessary.

The above example of a project organization applies only to a small project. In addition to managing the project, the project manager is also the contact for all technical and professional project issues.

How do I structure the project organization for larger projects?

In larger projects, the project manager must concentrate on effective project management and needs, therefore, to relinquish responsibilities to other stakeholders.

Delegate responsibilities for parts of the project according to the work breakdown structure.
Assign new project roles such as "subproject manager" or "team leader", respectively.
Integrate the delegated project roles in the project organization.
Delegate the management of these subprojects to appropriate stakeholders.

In practice, there is usually some stakeholder qualified to take on subproject management in addition to his/her technical responsibilities.

Developed with the ZHW Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Winterthur.
Copyright © 1999-2005 by STS Sauter Training & Simulation SA. All Rights Reserved.

Project organization and roles for standard software implementation

At NOVO, a mid-size company, a new solution based on standard software is to be implemented involving the logistics and finance departments. Executive management has assigned responsibility for the project to the finance department. The SSW standard software will be supplied by the company CONSULT. The designated project manager proposes the following project organization (project roles in bold):

Project organization and roles for software development outsourcing

Value-added retailer BANCAS, a software developer for regional banks, has decided to outsource the software development to the system house WINDIA in India.

Executive management stipulates that all essential know-how must remain with BANCAS, not only to ensure support and future developments but also to be able to replace the subcontractor if need arises.

The project manager puts forward the following project organization (project roles in bold) for the development of the securities application:

	Don't reinvent the wheel, use project roles!
	Ensure that the stakeholder is qualified for the project role! If necessary, designate an alternate stakeholder or allow extra time for appropriate training!
	A stakeholder takes on a project role but has no time to delve into it!
	The project committee cannot make decisions because the project role is not represented by a stakeholder with proper authority!

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Good luck!

Test: Project Roles and Project Organization

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		Project Roles and Project Organization
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