What is Project Organization?

Project organization will vary based upon the nature of the project. Factors influencing organization include:

• Complexity of the Project
• Organizational Culture
• Project Manager Characteristics
• Project Team knowledge and skills
• Organizational Organization & Resources

Another characteristic is the span of control. This concerns the reporting structure and the number of individuals reporting directly to the project manager. 

What are the Primary Functions of the Project Team? 

The primary functions integrated as part of the project include: 

• Sponsor
• Project manager
• Controls
• Procurement
• Technical management
• Quality
• Administration

What is the Project Sponsor?

The project sponsor represents the organization undertaking the project. The sponsor is generally the point of contact for the project team to define the project, establish project scope, and acquire the necessary resources to complete the project. 

What does a Project Manager Do?

The project manager coordinates all of the tasks, processes, and resources associated with a project and monitors progress and achievement of project objective. At the end, the project manager is responsible for project completion, reporting, and deliverables. The project manager also provides leadership and creates a project culture. 

The functions and responsibilities of the manager will vary depending upon the project. 

What is Project Control?

Project control is an element of the Monitoring and Control Phase. Project control entails both planning and execution functions. It entails monitoring the progress of the project to identify deviations in cost, scope, etc..

 This may require adaption of the project in any particular function. Finally, it entails reporting critical information to stakeholders. 

 The project controls function generally includes the following:

• Estimating
• Tracking costs
• Analyzing trends and making projections
• Planning and scheduling
• Managing change
• Tracking progress against schedule

The project team generally reports information on each of these activities to the project manager for purposes of identifying deviations from expectations. 

What is Project Procurement?

Procurement involves securing the physical resources necessary to complete the project. This generally means equipment and supplies. 

In small projects, this is generally carried out by the functional areas of the parent company. In large complex project, there will need to be dedicated staff on the project team for this function. 

Procurement generally happens from the following sources: 

• Commodities - Purchase of non-specialized goods, generally off the shelf. 
• Vendors - This is the purchase of  custom goods or services that are made for the organization or specific project. 
• Partnership - This involves the coordinated use or resource and concerted activities with the partner. Generally, there are shared goals, and aligned work processes.

The process for procurement will vary, but often involves requests for proposals or bids from vendors/suppliers. 

What is Technical Management?

The technical management of a project  concerns the technology used in the project (not the project management software).  The nature of the project and the nature of the technological implementations of the project will vary considerably. So, the requirements will vary based upon the novelty (newness) of the technology and the teams familiarity with the technology. 

What is Project Quality?

Project quality concerns the extent to which the execution of project activities (processes) and achievement of project objectives meets industry standards and client expectations. 

The activities and objectives should be laid out in the project plan in a manner that complies with industry standards and stakeholder expectations. The project manager is accountable for project quality as identify in the plans. 

What is Project Administration?

Project administration generally concerns the planning and control of the administrative functions necessary to carry out the project. The primary administrative functions generally include:  

• Accounting services
• Legal services
• Property management
• Human resources (HR) management
• Other support functions found in most organizations

Any of these functions could be carried out by the project team or by the parent organization in support of the project. 

In either scenario, the project manager is charged with the difficult task of coordinating the efforts of these administrative groups.