By aligning the Project Manager to a scale of maturity five levels:

Level 1: Technical Manager

• Qualifications/Experience in a technical discipline
• Superficial understanding of project management principles
• Ad-hoc use of some project management tools

Level 2: Project Management Awareness

• Some basic training in project management
• General knowledge of project management terminology
• Acknowledgement of the need for standard processes
• Regular use of core project management tools

Level 3: Project Focussed Project Manager

• Formal studies in project management
• Recognition of the need to pro-actively manage
• Adoption of standard templates and processes

Level 4: Integrated Project Manager

• Formal qualifications/award in project management
• Consistent use of standard methodology
• Pro-actively manages all aspects of the project
• Consistently applies general management skills to the internal and external project environments

Level 5: Continuous Improvement

• Acts as mentor/coach to the project team
• Regularly participates in professional development activities
• Actively contributes to the organisation’s continuous improvement process.

Other Roles and Responsibilities within a Project

Program Manager

• Accountable for the project and other projects that might be run concurrently
• May act as the Project Sponsor or Project Champion

Project Sponsor

• Is the lowest level in the organisation with authority to start and stop the project (aligns with Delegated Authorities Policy)
• Provides the funding and resources for the project
• Authorises or rejects scope changes
• Is the first escalation point

Line / Functional Manager

• Supports project staff
• May facilitate the provision of budget and resources
• Is not necessarily the Project Sponsor

Project Team Members

• Contribute specific skills project to support the project delivery
• Often provide technical input within the project
• Are governed by the leadership structure administered by the Project Manager

Operations Staff

• Support the Project Manager through Administrative Assistance as required.
• Perform an ongoing role across multiple projects.
• Often provide support in areas such as accounting, human resources management, general administration and IT support.

Just a history, the project management carrier started its development in the 50s and 60s as the perceived need to maintain a strong defence capability during the Cold War. The aim was to establish the importance of the USA in Space research and capacity. The need to develop increased ‘speed to market’ for consumer goods increased the complexity of project requirements, which grow in the influence of ‘people power’ and the impacts on project delivery, which flatter management structures within organisations and helps the development of faster and easier global communications, which resulted in the establishment of virtual project teams with members dispersed across the globe. These developments meant that traditional functional management structures with specialist managers overseeing specialist teams were no longer appropriate to deliver complex projects.