file is: group-structure.html 1.1
Group Structure

All groups:

  • Project Manager / Director -- Must SHOW UP. Responsible for all others being responsible. Usually first to arrive, last to leave. A hard job often not appreciated, because it is not possible to please everyone.

    Watch out: Be careful of confident big talkers that do not put in the time. It is VERY hard to change the project manager, because the project manager is the one responsible for solving management problems.

  • Implementation Manager -- Must be exceedingly RELIABLE, realistic, and technically savy. Must work with others. Must work with an implementation team. Must be absolutely unyeilding about letting in bad code that could put the group at risk. This is a large project and must get contributions from a technical TEAM. All other group members, in the degenerate case, are expendable, so this is a crucial responsibility.

    Watch out: The worst nightmare is to have an implementation manager who does not respond to email, tersely says, "Do not worry about, I'll get it done," and then disappears for a week. This is VERY scary, and exceedingly difficult to work around. Some "techies" just like to play, but do not build what the group has prepared for, or is highly unrealistic about the scope of the project to be implmemented. Remember, if the project does not run, everyone fails.

  • Planner. If the planner is not technically strong, organized, and effective, chaos reigns.

    Watch out: If the planner is weak, there will be no plan. This is a hard job.

  • Design team manager. With an elegant design the project will flow. With a bad design all aspects of the project will be unsatisfying. In the worst case a flawed design can guarantee failure. There are presentation resposbilities because the design must be given in the demos.

  • Presentation manager. Upwards of 700 hours worth of work will be funneled into a twenty minute demo. Need we say more about how important this job is? Must review the work of others and be tough when they need improvement. Must insist on rehearsals, and MUST CHOREOGRAPH BACKUP PROCEDURES.

  • Requirements manager. Defines the goals for the whole group effort. Must manage a team, with Wolf, Thief, editor, author, liason, negotiator, and so forth.

    Watch out: Ordinarily the requirements would be completed in the first phase, and then followed by the design work, but because of time constraints here we must work in parallel. So, the group needs someone that can do much work early in the quarter.

  • Webmaster. Responsible for the central, physical, hub of the group. Many of the specifications for the demos include a substantial component on the web.

    Watch out: If the site is not maintained almost daily, chaos reigns.

  • Testing manager. The project MUST run on the day it is due! There is also much room for expansion in this job: a formal testing plan, collecting of formal user testing, and usability testing, a testing plan for extensions to the system, and as part of maintenance procedures.

  • Documentation Manager. Reponsible for the final documentation, that the documentation at the webstite meets demo specifications, and, from day one, that the TIME LOGS are on line and up to date for all group members.

    Watch out: The project booklet is an important articfact that you will take with you from this course, potentially useful in many future situations. Find someone reliable to spearhead this effort well before it is due.

Large groups:

  • Two, or three teams that can meet independently, and are tightly bound in themselves, more losely bound to other teams. Can be divided by task similarity, geography, schedule, or...?
  • Team leaders/managers, one for each team, as above.
  • Project Director, responsble for the coordination of all project teams, and also a member of one of the teams. This should be the most dedicated member, and with the time and energy to serve a large group. The project manager on caffeine. Must be highly organized and available. Must have technical competence, and strong people skills.
  • Communications Liason. Work with the project director. Responsible for the well-being of group commnication, and also a member of one of the teams. May require website management, calendar publishing, phone calls to difficult group members. Delivers a weekly report to the group on the state of communication. Group members having difficulty commnicating with someone, or some other "faction" bring their problems to you.