role of the TL

Role of the TL.
Task Leaders (TL's) are effectively the front line in project management. They are often appointed on the basis that they have specialist knowledge of an area of work which they are then made responsible for. However, this is often less important than leadership ability, communication skills and tenacity - which is useful in the progress chasing function of this role. The TL will usually be in a position of authority over a project team, or some section within a team. For this reason they may well be called a team leader, or something similar - but the role of the TL remains the same. Where this is the case, they should have supervisory skills and their appointment should be decided by the manager that they will report to. In other scenarios TLs may be responsible for the production of discrete products in which case they are not necessarily attached to a particular team. Each sub-project manager is responsible for compiling and collating progress information in relation to their sub-project, and they will rely heavily on TLs to supply this in a structured and timely manner. In smaller projects the TLs will report directly to the project manager.

Selection of TLs.
The role of the TL requires good organizational and communication skills. The promotion of staff to any management position on the basis of their professional or technical competence but with no regard to their management ability is likely to create a frustrating environment for their peers. Not only can the appointment of technical specialists lead to the creation of a poor leader, it can also render their technical skills increasingly obsolete or create a shortage of technical skills in their department. In recognizing that an acknowledged expert and valuable team member is not suited to the specialist demands of this role and by-passing them to appoint a more junior colleague, great care will need to be taken to avoid creating resentment and dissatisfaction. In some cases this will not cause problems as experienced technical personnel are often quite happy to occupy senior technical roles and have no desire to be appointed to positions of leadership.

Sub-project Management.
On large or complex projects, which are divided into sub-projects, the project manager should work with the project owner to appoint the sub-project managers and to define their responsibilities. Thereafter, the sub-project managers will report directly to the project manager. The sub-project manager is responsible for compiling and collating progress information in relation to their sub-project. This information should be detailed in regular progress reports which are forwarded to the project manager. TLs are usually appointed on the basis that they have specialist knowledge of an area of work. They should have supervisory skills and their appointment should be decided by the manager they will report to. The sub-project manager is responsible for composing the detailed content of the sub-project plans; this work may require the assistance of project office staff. The sub-project manager should also work with the TLs in drawing up the detailed plans pertaining to their sub-project. At the sub-project level the quality control and quality assurance procedures are the ultimate responsibility of the sub-project manager. Quality issues include the approval of product descriptions and their associated quality criteria as well as scheduling quality reviews. Where a project does not justify the appointment of sub-project managers the specific responsibilities of that role should all be undertaken by the project manager.

Sub-project Key Communications.
The sub-project manager will need to maintain clear communications with other management bodies, appropriate to the project environment. The sub-project manager should present the project manager with regular progress reports and alert them to any significant deviations from the underlying plans. They should also assist in the preparation of any remedial plans that may be required. A key responsibility of the sub-project manager is to manage the project teams, through the TLs, monitor progress and resource utilization and initiate any necessary corrective action. Where a project office is being used, the sub-project manager should liaise with them to ensure the sub-project is fulfilling its business and technical objectives.

Sub-project Planning.
The sub-project manager should be responsible for composing sub-project plans and detailed plans. The detailed plans are constructed by working closely with the TLs and other members of the project team. They should attend all project reviews that include the area of work that falls within their sub-project. A project review provides a snapshot of the progress of the project, and following this the sub-project manager should produce a progress reports that is then forwarded to the project manager. They should ensure that all quality reviews are held as planned. These reviews analyze the content of the products and documentation against their pre-determined quality criteria.

Role of the Project Office.
The project office will represent a central project function for the organization as a whole. It should contain personnel who have expertise in skills such as: project estimation, productivity analysis, organization standards, quality assurance and configuration management. The optimum size of the project office should be determined by considering functional requirements in the light of administrative and budgetary constraints. When appointing staff to the project office it should be remembered that the training of good personnel may take weeks or even months. The introduction of a coaching or mentoring approach to the training of new project office staff may well pay dividends - bringing them up to speed more quickly. A typical project office may comprise between six and twenty-five members, whereas the total project team may be over a hundred strong. For large projects, especially those with a high profile or risk, it may be beneficial to include a full-time representative from each department that is playing a major role in the project.

Another important function is the collection, analysis and dissemination of information about past, present and future projects. This should help to ensure that lessons learned are put to good effect in subsequent projects. In this role the project office may be used to compile an historical database of past project performance, comparing planned and actual performance in areas such as: resource estimates, quality and business goals, timescale estimates and organizational standards and methods. If the project office consists of a significant resource then it may be advisable to place it under the control of a project office manager, alternatively it may be managed by one or more project managers.

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