Part 11: Project Team

A project team’s compositions vary with the needs of the project

  • All teams have a Project Manager who is the leader
  • The Project Manager’s authority can vary

Other Members could include

  • Project Management Staff
    • Team that performs management, scheduling, budget, reporting, and risk management
    • In some organizations, the PMO handles this role

  • Project Staff
    • Carry out the work
    • Depending on the size of the project, there could be no staff or thousands of staff

  • Supporting Experts
    • Develop/execute the project management plan
    • Includes people from finance, management, logistics, legal, engineering, and quality control
    • They provide expertise to advise the Project Staff or Project Management Staff
    • Experts can work on the project full-time, or called in when required
    • Experts may work for the organization full time or can be contractors

  • User/Customer Representatives
    • Users and Customers ensure/validate project results
    • Advise the project team on requirements
    • It’s important to consult with the customer throughout the project.  This way, you ensure that the result meets the customer’s needs.  In case of a misunderstanding in the project’s requirements, it’s easier to correct mistakes early on.

  • Sellers
    • Provide components/services for the project
    • Can play a significant role; sometimes the sellers (subcontractors) perform most of the project work

  • Business Partner Members

  • Business Partners

Composition of the Project Team depends on culture, scope, and location

A Project Team can be Dedicated or Part-Time

  • Dedicated
    • All/most of the team members work full-time on the project
    • Mostly found in projectized organizations

  • Part-Time
    • Team members remain in their existing organizational (functional) role
    • They work on the project on the side

Partnership-Based Project

  • A Partnership-Based Project is a joint venture/alliance between two or more organizations
  • One organization is the leader and assigns a project manager
  • Partnerships provides flexibility at a lower cost
  • Project Manager has less control when there are multiple organizations

Virtual Team

  • When members are in different geographic areas, a virtual team can be set up
  • Must use collaborative tools & technology to communicate (example video conferencing, e-mail, SharePoint)
  • Project Manager must accommodate diverse cultures/languages/work hours, especially when members are in different countries