Project Team Roles: Responsibilities, Benefits, Management

Project team roles describe the various roles and responsibilities that make up a structured team that works on a project. 

Structuring a project team the right way can help businesses streamline project operations and ensure they hit their project goals.

Project team roles are assigned by setting clear responsibilities and defining a reporting structure.

When your project team’s roles and responsibilities are not clearly defined, your project is at risk of work duplication, missing the deadline, and going over budget.

In this article, we’ll look at the key roles that make up a project team, the benefits of well-defined project team roles, and how to manage a project team.

What is a project team?

A project team is a group of people who work together on a particular project, task, campaign, client, or initiative. The project team members have shared objectives and goals but work on different tasks, milestones, phases, and deliverables within the project.

Project teams are important because they streamline complicated projects by assigning responsibilities and clear duties to different individuals, simplifying communication channels, and ensuring alignment between the team and its goals.

Structuring a project team requires members who represent groups that either contribute to or are affected by the project. Teams are often cross-functional, with members from different teams and departments within a business or organization.

A project team differs from stakeholders because it directly contributes to completing a project, whereas stakeholders are impacted by or influence the project either positively or negatively.

Project teams can include employees and external contributors such as subject matter experts (SMEs), freelancers, and other third parties. Sometimes, teams will consist partly of part-time members involved in only specific parts or phases of the project, while others work on it full-time.

Next, let’s look at a project team’s key roles.

What are the major roles of a project team?

Team structure can vary across project teams according to different needs requiring different roles. However, most project teams consist of the five roles below:

1. Project manager
2. Resource manager
3. Business analyst
4. Project team member(s)
5. Project sponsor

Project team roles have different duties and responsibilities, bringing different skills to the project.

Let’s look into each of these roles in detail.

1. Project manager

A project manager is responsible for daily project operations and helps guide the project toward successful, timely, and on-budget completion. They are the leader of the project team.

In small-scale projects, project managers oversee every team member. In large projects, team leaders report to the project manager with their own group of project team members.

The project manager’s responsibilities are:

• Creating the project plan
• Determining the project schedule
• Outlining the project scope
• Managing budgets
• Hiring project team members
• Delegating project tasks
• Overseeing all deliverables
• Coordinating and communicating with senior management, project stakeholders, and any relevant third parties

2. Resource manager

Resource management is a vital part of any project, so a good resource manager is crucial. On smaller projects where a standalone resource manager isn’t required, the project manager will take on this responsibility as well.

The key duties of a resource manager are:

• Identifying the right individuals for the project’s needs
• Allocating resources
• Monitoring and managing resource utilization and capacity
• Optimizing resource utilization throughout the project duration, ensuring successful project completion

3. Business analyst

A data-driven approach to project management and completion is important as it helps define, streamline, and organize project requirements. That’s why project teams need a business analyst.

A business analyst is responsible for:

• Gathering the technical requirements from all team members
• Ensuring the team has the right tools and technology
• Making recommendations for new tools
• Defining the project’s goals
• Solving problems relating to equipment
• Continuously improving solutions and systems
• Documenting project requirements

4. Project team member(s)

Project team members are sometimes referred to as the project delivery team. Different project team member roles could include copywriters, SEO strategists, graphic designers, software engineers, product managers, and more. 

The project delivery team’s responsibilities will differ depending on their individual roles and the project. They are responsible for the deliverables that affect the project outcome, so responsibilities often include:

• Flagging roadblocks to the project manager and maintaining communication channels
• Working towards the project’s goals and objectives
• Collaborating with other members of the project team
• Sticking to deadlines to ensure the project stays on schedule

5. Project sponsor

The project sponsor works closely with the project manager and champions the project from a high level. Their main responsibilities are to remove any obstacles that could slow down or halt the project’s progress and to approve all major tasks, deliverables, resources, tools, and other project components.

Additionally, they are responsible for:

• Defining the vision
• Getting executive leadership buy-in
• Approving project budget and expenses
• Making and/or signing off on critical decisions.

These are the five main roles on a project team, but many teams have several other roles, particularly on large, complex projects.

What other positions can be found in a project team?

Other roles that sometimes appear in project teams include:

• Project committee
• Customer representative(s)
• IT professional
• Program manager
• Subject matter expert
• Executive sponsors
• Project coordinator
• Steering committee
• Functional manager
• Quality assurance professional 
• Team leader

Different roles can be found in a project team based on the exact needs, objectives, and skills required to complete the project.

Project team role examples

Visualizing a project team can be confusing. We’ve put together some real-world project team examples to help make it clearer.

Content marketing team

• Project sponsor: Head of marketing
• Project manager: Content marketing team lead
• Resource manager: Content marketing team lead, content marketing coordinator
• Business analyst: Content marketing team lead, content marketing coordinator
• Project team members: Content strategist, SEO content specialist, technical SEO specialist, content creator, copywriters, content editors, publisher, graphic designer, social media specialist, PPC specialist, outreach specialist

Software development team

• Project sponsor: Head of engineering or chief technical officer
• Project manager: Product owner, scrum master
• Resource manager: Product owner, scrum master
• Business analyst: Product owner
• Project team members: Product success manager, product manager, backend developer, frontend developer, full stack developer, quality assurance engineer, database engineer, DevOps engineer, site reliability engineer, UI/UX designer, software architect

Web development team

• Project sponsor: Client
• Project manager: Web development project manager
• Resource manager: Web development project manager
• Business analyst: Web development project manager
• Project team members: Web designer, UI/UX designer, frontend developer, backend developer, product manager, quality assurance engineer, architect, technical SEO specialist, copywriter

Responsibilities of project team roles

As seen in the previous section, there is often some overlap between roles, and some people may wear multiple hats. With the different responsibilities intertwining, it can become difficult to keep track.

Let’s look at an example of an in-house marketing team launching a new product.

Project Sponsor

The project sponsor is usually the top executive who initiates and owns the project. In this example, it’s the chief executive officer (CEO). The project sponsor’s responsibilities are:

• Ensuring the launch is aligned with the company’s strategic objectives
• Approving all project plans, budgets, and expenses
• Assigning resources and support
• Acting as the escalation point for critical issues

Project Manager

This person oversees project execution and manages the team, workflows, and tasks. For our example, it’s the product marketing manager. They’re responsible for:

• Liaising between the sponsor and the project team
• Developing the product launch plan and timeline
• Setting the milestones and deadlines
• Establishing the project’s critical path
• Ensuring the product launch stays within budget and on schedule
• Monitoring project progress and adjusting if needed

Resource Manager

This team member ensures the team has all the resources for the product launch. In this case, it’s the operations manager. Their role covers:

• Using the project scope to establish the best project team roles and the individuals to fill them based on their area of expertise 
• Planning and allocating resources, including staff, freelancers, external consultants, equipment, software, and budget
• Tracking resource utilization and billable hours and managing time, budget, and resource constraints

Business Analyst

This individual is responsible for analyzing business needs, ensuring the product launch aligns with those needs, and enabling data-driven decision-making. For this example, it’s the marketing analyst. Their role entails:

• Conducting market research to establish customer preferences and needs
• Analyzing data to create sales and market impact forecasts
• Providing the team with insights and recommendations based on their data analysis
• Refining launch strategies with the project manager, informed by data analysis

Project Team Members

This group of individuals is responsible for executing the different aspects of the product launch. They report directly to the project manager. The roles that make up the project delivery team and their responsibilities include:

• Product manager: Ensures product meets market needs, defines product success, provides training to sales teams, and develops product positioning and messaging.
• Marketing specialist: Develops and executes marketing campaigns and coordinates with social media, email, outreach, pay-per-click, and content marketing teams to generate buzz.
• Graphic designer: Designs visuals for marketing campaigns like social media graphics, blog infographics, banners, and ad creatives.
• Content writer: Writes compelling copy for press releases, email outreach, social media copy, product descriptions, and other marketing materials, working with the SEO expert to optimize content for search.
• SEO expert: Conducts keyword research, optimizes product pages, establishes SEO strategy, and monitors SEO performance.
• Public relations specialist: Develops and distributes press releases, coordinates interviews, manages media relations, and organizes launch events and press conferences.
• Sales manager: Develops sales strategies alongside the product manager, gives input on sales tools and required materials, and trains the sales team on the new product.
• Customer support manager: Prepares support documentation, updates knowledge base, brings customer support team up to speed so they can handle inquiries and issues, and monitors post-launch customer feedback.

The next section will examine the benefits of clear project team roles.

What are the benefits of defining project team roles?

Clearly defining project team roles has several benefits that contribute to successful project completion. They include:

• No confusion or risk of work duplication: As every team member knows their role and responsibilities, there is no risk of task overlap or duplicated work. 
• Increased accountability: When expectations are clear, team members feel encouraged to take ownership of their responsibilities, tasks, milestones, and deliverables. 
• Better budgeting: Each team member can account for the cost of their responsibilities, making it easier to work out, set, and stick to a budget.
• Better structure: Defining project roles creates a structure and flow of responsibilities, creating space for improved collaboration, problem-solving, communication, and, ultimately, better teamwork.
• Easier performance reviews: Managers can better assess their team’s performance on a project when they have well-defined roles.

We’ll look at the best way to manage a project team next 👇

How can you manage a project team?

Managing a project team isn’t just about overseeing project activities. Getting management right is vital so the project doesn’t go astray.

We’ve put together some steps you can take to ensure your project team succeeds.

1. Assign roles and responsibilities

Each member’s responsibilities must be clearly defined and set, and every person should be aware of their responsibilities and those of their teammates. 

Here, a RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) matrix helps establish the flow of responsibility for different tasks.

Once you decide who will fill each role, you can assign those roles via your project management software.

Toggl Plan lets users create a new team for specific projects, add the relevant team members, and assign tasks on the Team Timeline. You can also create milestones to help keep your project on track.

The Team Timeline gives you a high-level overview of the deliverables each team member is working on and whether or not they are on track to meet their deadline.

It also greatly helps with resource allocation and utilization, as you can see at a glance if your team is overloaded or has more capacity.

2. Host regular team meetings

Team meetings help ensure project alignment and maintain momentum, so it’s important to have them regularly. They bring the team together to communicate any updates, issues, progress, and successes.

Create a structured meeting agenda and schedule asynchronous daily check-ins and weekly stand-up meetings to keep up with any challenges and stay updated on progress.

3. Ensure effective communication

Aside from meetings, your team needs effective communication channels to collaborate, request help, and share ideas asynchronously. Email and Slack are great communication tools, as are your project management tools.

With Toggl Plan, users can leave comments on tasks and @mention other users in the workspace to quickly and effectively communicate any feedback, issues, or guidance.

4. Regularly monitor project progress

Checking the project’s progress is important in team management. It lets members know how the project is going, and managers can make changes and assign more resources if needed.

Toggl Plan’s Project Progress Overview breaks down task progress into a percentage so users can quickly see if they’re on track and how far they are from project completion. If Toggl Plan is integrated with Toggl Track, users can see how their tracked time compares to the project’s estimated time.

Manage projects with ease with Toggl

Project teams are vital for business operations. Clearly defined and managed project team roles help ensure everyone knows their responsibilities as they work toward a shared objective. 

However, managing a project team without the right tools is difficult, especially on lengthy or large-scale projects.

That’s where Toggl Plan comes in.

Toggl Plan allows users to communicate quickly and asynchronously and provides project managers with an intuitive, user-friendly way of assigning roles and tasks and tracking project progress. Sign up for Toggl Plan and see how to improve your project team management processes today.