Questions tagged [roles]
This tag is for questions about what is part of a role on a project, for example what the a planner does, what a lead does, etc. This tag can also be applied to questions about methodologies, such as Scrum, where the question involves individual roles in that methodology. In that case, also tag with the specific methodology.
121
questions
116
votes
14
answers
16k
views
How to Avoid Micro-Managing a Software Development Team? [closed]
I've managed a few projects over the last few years, and one of the biggest challenges I face is avoiding becoming a micro-manager. I worked with a team once where I worked with a group of software ...
- 9,537
81
votes
11
answers
32k
views
Why can't the ScrumMaster and the project manager be the same person?
How a ScrumMaster does compare to a traditional project manager, and can either role coincide with the role of product manager or project sponsor / project owner?
- 819
25
votes
9
answers
70k
views
What's the exact definition of "Program Manager"?
I'm still confused with the title 'Program Manager' after I went through this site and searched over threads. Actually I haven't seen many 'Program Managers' in practice.
Is it a regular role in ...
- 351
23
votes
5
answers
4k
views
Transitioning into a project management role [closed]
Many project managers start out as strong individual contributors, and end up as accidental project managers (filling in while the project manager is away, filling a need where a project manager is ...
- 2,955
22
votes
6
answers
3k
views
What role is there for a PM on an Agile project?
Back before agile was everywhere, having a PM on all but the smaller projects was considered essential. Now, only the largest projects have people assigned to just in a PM capacity.
I guess I have ...
- 321
21
votes
9
answers
85k
views
What's the difference between a project lead and a team lead
I'm a developer and I'm working in a small IT firm. I want to know what are common differences between a project lead and a team lead.
My background: in our company we have only lead programmers and ...
- 313
21
votes
8
answers
2k
views
Is Software Architecture still Relevant in Agile ?
Agile focuses on developing workable codes from small user stories. Pair programming encourage developers to pair up, actively engage with one another to come up with the best solution for the problem....
- 513
19
votes
7
answers
13k
views
What are developers expected to do during testing in the latter half of each Sprint?
When you are using the Scrum framework, a Sprint cycle involves development and QA. At the end of the Sprint the tasks worked upon and tested are showcased and released.
Typically, for a team of 3 to ...
- 648
19
votes
4
answers
2k
views
How to appropriately balance project activities with support tasks
I have a small team of experts (12 staff) who do great project work. Unfortunately, their expertise makes them the go-to individuals on support tasks as well. The inability to focus on projects ...
- 1,978
19
votes
9
answers
125k
views
What are the differences between project leader and project manager
Is there any difference between a project leader and a project manager? Is their involvement different in any aspect?
What are the tasks performed by project managers? What are the tasks performed ...
- 623
19
votes
6
answers
2k
views
What personality traits suggest that a person should move towards project management?
I've just started as an intern for a big company, so this obviously doesn't immediately apply to me. I love programming, however, I'm still considering potential career paths I may be most suited for....
- 461
18
votes
7
answers
1k
views
At what point should a company decide to introduce a project manager role?
What criteria should a software company use to decide if they need to introduce a project management role into their team? From what I have seen, most companies start out with no project managers, ...
- 426
17
votes
6
answers
1k
views
How to transition away a bad developer?
The situation is: A developer has apparently been working on an important project for a year and hasn't been able to get the product in a commercially usable form.
Im sure there a plenty of ...
- 1,300
17
votes
7
answers
10k
views
Whats the difference between a project manager and an IT manager?
What is the difference between these roles and where is the crossover? Is it possible to be both in particular jobs?
- 1,300
16
votes
6
answers
4k
views
Will Project Managers Disappear in a Scrum World?
In a Scrum team there is no role of a project manager. Does that mean that project manager jobs will eventually disappear? What is a project manager supposed to do when organization starts to shift ...
- 163
16
votes
7
answers
47k
views
In Scrum, what role is responsible for changing team composition?
I am a team member in a Scrum team. This morning I had a discussion with my Scrum Master where I said that I needed a two people from another team to be a part of my team. I said I would like to ...
- 263
16
votes
3
answers
9k
views
In an agile consultancy, is the Client the Product Owner?
I'm interested in understanding how agile project management differs between a single product-focused team and a digital agency or software development consulting firm.
For starters, in a situation ...
- 680
16
votes
1
answer
1k
views
How to resolve leadership conflicts in project?
How to resolve conflicts in project when:
No roles are clearly defined (eg. no project charter).
Project manager is sluggish / incompetent.
Technical people feel like more competent than PM.
Bit of ...
- 779
15
votes
4
answers
3k
views
How to keep WIP down with swarming in Agile/Scrum teams?
We are practicing swarming in our Agile/Scrum teams. However, keeping WIP (Work in Progress) down continues to be a challenge. I am familiar with the theory, but I have some questions about the ...
- 11.1k
14
votes
4
answers
4k
views
Should the Product Owner dictate what info the UI needs to display?
I hope someone can help me understand one part of the role of the Product Owner (PO).
In my company, we have a PO that is responsible for the Product Backlogs of all our products. I work as a UX ...
- 143
14
votes
6
answers
6k
views
Should a Scrum Master also perform a functional manager role?
We're trying to plan for agile transformation soon, and one of the main sticking points in this is organizational structure. Management's expectation is to have a Scrum Master perform all normal ...
- 335
14
votes
4
answers
1k
views
Product Owner depending too much on the team
I am a Scrum Master for two different teams. The product owner of one of the teams left recently, so we have a new product owner. The team is fairly experienced with the product. Since the product ...
- 671
13
votes
7
answers
2k
views
Are there alternatives to "resource" for describing tech staff on projects?
I am a full-time developer; almost everywhere in project management we are listed as resources. Are there better terms to use other than resource?
I feel term resource has a connotation of being ...
user81107
13
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Project management and research
What are the pros and cons of incorporating a project manager into a research team? If anyone has any experience doing so, do you have any suggestions about how to make the program manager as ...
- 712
12
votes
2
answers
492
views
Can somebody be his/her own Scrum Master in a programming company?
If a programmer in a small company wants to be his own Scrum Master, and Scrum teams are supposed to be self-organizing, does that mean no one can manage him? If that's true, then:
How can he manage ...
12
votes
3
answers
9k
views
What's the ideal ratio of roles on an agile team?
I work in a large company that is in the process of transitioning to Agile. I suspect our ratios for the various roles are way off, especially for the technical writers. What is the ideal head-count ...
- 121
11
votes
6
answers
5k
views
Do we really need project managers? [closed]
My friend from UK - Richard Newton - has published a very interesting article which tries to answer this question. However, I don't think he managed to look at all the angles and give appropriate ...
- 285
11
votes
2
answers
3k
views
What are the definitions and distinctions between Project x Program x Portfolio x Product Managers?
What are the definitions, distinctions and relationship between the following roles?
Project lead
Project Coordinator
Project Manager
Program Manager
Portfolio Manager
Product Manager (optional)
...
- 8,728
10
votes
8
answers
3k
views
Project Management and sales activities
Recently my company insists that the PM should be strongly engaged in sales activities like writing offers, negotiating with clients, supervising the sales process.
Sometimes it happens that the PM ...
- 585
9
votes
8
answers
15k
views
How to convince an employer you're worth more than you're being paid
Perhaps not the best wording of a question title, but it more or less sums up what I'm trying to ask. Basically, say you work for a company and do x, y and z to improve various aspects of the company; ...
- 321
9
votes
4
answers
407
views
Right Resources For First Time Managers
My question is more of a management than a technical one. My boss gave me my first team project. I'm used to writing code by myself. This project will require that I manage a team including myself and ...
- 191
9
votes
1
answer
4k
views
How should technical writers fit within a Scrum team?
I think my company could benefit from adding a technical writer to the team; making sure our output is unified and of a high quality. For our current project we need to produce a range of documents, ...
- 155
8
votes
6
answers
914
views
Does a business analyst fit into the Scrum framework?
Question
Let's consider a software development project made for an external customer. The development company (the vendor) has the usual positions and specialists: developers, testers, business ...
- 2,729
8
votes
7
answers
2k
views
Is Scrum Master a "management" position?
I am studying the Scrum framework and I am trying to be ready for the Scrum Master certification.
I think that I understand the role of the Scrum Master but there is a question that seems to pop up ...
- 81
8
votes
1
answer
264
views
What is the difference between the project manager and business analyst role?
I am bit confused between the role of project manager and business analyst. What is the basic difference between the two?
- 83
7
votes
8
answers
2k
views
Should the same person do the testing who did the development?
Background
We have 50 employees who are working on different projects in a team of 3-4 people. In my firm the testing is done by the developers. We have 2 or 3 products with a large code base that we ...
- 71
7
votes
7
answers
2k
views
What makes a great planner?
I would like to become better at planning in my role as PM and would like to know what makes a great planner?
I was told efficiency is an important attribute and im not sure if this is correct.
- 1,300
7
votes
3
answers
6k
views
Splitting PM responsibility between technical lead and non-technical PM on an agile project?
In practical terms, how do you suggest that a technical lead (me) work with a non-technical PM who is responsible for multiple projects? How should dependencies between stories, and external ...
- 170
7
votes
3
answers
228k
views
What is an engagement manager - what does (s)he do?
Could anyone please give me a role description of an engagement manager? I think it should be the person internally responsible for getting a deal.
The more detailed the better. References are also ...
- 293
7
votes
1
answer
353
views
Project Manager, profession or role?
I'm curious if the project manager is best considered to be its own profession, or a role within some other context.
From what I've read there is a wide range of project types and I find it hard to ...
- 81
7
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Project leadership of engineering team
A team of engineers (software in this case) needs to be lead. Leadership can involve:
Architect - Leads "design in the large" issues, such as what components to use
Lead engineer - A peer leader, ...
7
votes
2
answers
1k
views
How can the role of QA maintain the alignment between the Business and IT?
In my previous organization there was a disconnection between the Business Operations and IT that always impacted the final derivable.
For some reason, the Business intent was not accurately ...
- 2,758
6
votes
5
answers
5k
views
Can one person be both Scrum Master and Architect at the same time?
Is it OK if the Scrum Master and Architect is one person? I clearly understand why it's bad idea to combine Scrum Master and Product Owner roles: conflicts of interest, SM cares about development, PO ...
- 171
6
votes
5
answers
794
views
Can the Scrum Master role directly modify the Sprint Backlog?
Our company is migrating to Scrum. I've been thrust into the role of Scrum Master (with no formal training—but I'm working on that). Our team doesn't have a Product Owner due to the structure of our ...
- 221
6
votes
2
answers
14k
views
What are differences between Project Manager, Project Expeditor and Project Coordinator?
What are differences between these positions in matrix organization structure?
There is no "Project Expeditor" in this question and it is not related with matrix organization structure.
- 87
5
votes
4
answers
1k
views
What's the role of a Resource Manager in Agile?
The following exchange took place in the comments to an answer to another question How do I manage development with testing and get proper reporting in JIRA?, which seem to highlight a different ...
- 6,793
5
votes
5
answers
5k
views
What's expected from different career levels for a Scrum Master?
Every career has juniors, intermediates, seniors, gurus, and whatnot. I'm looking for what separates the different levels so I know how to structure a career path within a company.
Ideally I'd like to ...
- 473
5
votes
3
answers
294
views
Team member frequently disregards "small" requests
I am the PM for a smallish-medium software development team at a large IT services company. One of the developers is knowledgeable and generally a nice guy, but has a tendency to ignore "small" ...
- 699
5
votes
5
answers
531
views
How does a Scrum Team handle traditional BA responsibilities?
Linked Question
This question was proposed by the participants of the discussion of the previous, more general question.
Question
The business analyst's work often implies a kind of waterfall-ish or ...
- 2,729
5
votes
3
answers
1k
views
How to get a dev team to use TDD and CI?
I'm a software development program manager who has experienced many of the benefits of test-driven development and continuous integration. But some of the dev teams I work with don't follow these ...
- 311