The Occasional PM: Team Structure

  Talent Management   Teams   ProjectsAtWork  

In part five of our six-part series, we consider team structure and recommend a co-manager model that pairs the OPM with a client, business analyst or subject matter expert. This model facilitates meaningful stakeholder involvement while addressing the OPM’s challenges of juggling multiple responsibilities and sharing resources with competing priorities.

This is the fifth in a series of six articles devoted to the Occasional Project Manager (OPM).

There are two separate roles in every OPM project that must be represented in the OPM project team. The best way to provide this representation is through a co-manager model. One manager is the OPM; the other is the customer, client, business analyst (BA) or subject matter expert (SME). So one co-manager is process-related and the other is product-related. These two managers often have equal authority in the decision processes that arise during the project life span. However, final authority rests with the project sponsor who is typically the customer, client, BA or SME. This team structure is essential for establishing and sustaining meaningful client involvement. Ownership and implementation problems are greatly reduced from having used a co-manager model.

There will be cases where the project is very simple and of short duration. In those situations the project team might consist of the OPM collaborating with SMEs and …

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