The project manager is the ultimate responsible authority for the successful completion of the project. They establish the critical success factors and take responsibility for achieving them.
Usually the project manager inherits criteria that the project must work with, such as budget, stakeholder concerns, and so forth. These are codified within the project charter (i.e above the project). But everything else is then planned by the project manager. They create the expectations within the project management plan and must ensure those expectations are met. The project management plan contains the project schedule, budget, stakeholder needs, communication requirements, risk analysis, and anything else that is considered a part of the project plan.
The project management plan is approved by the project sponsor and hence becomes the official project plan.
During project execution the project manager performs monitoring and controlling work such as earned value analysis, quality audits, risk analysis and so forth to ensure the project stays on track. Any deviations from the project plan must be recorded in a change log and re-approved by the project sponsor. This includes the two most important items for most projects, the schedule and budget.
Once the project is complete the project manager must close the project, creating as-built plans, closing contracts and establishing warranties and so forth.
The following are 27 roles and responsibilities of the project manager:
- Writing the project management plan
- Directing and managing project work
- Initiating project changes
- Developing a project budget
- Monitoring the actual spent
- Dividing the project into tasks
- Creating the schedule
- Monitoring schedule progress
- Determining resources
- Procuring resources
- Negotiating contracts
- Determining the project team roles and responsibilities
- Acquiring the project team
- Developing the project team
- Determining the project scope
- Preventing unauthorized scope change (scope creep)
- Identifying stakeholders
- Managing stakeholder expectations
- Communication with stakeholders
- Creating project updates
- Determining quality standards
- Quality control
- Quality audits
- Identifying risks
- Analyzing risks
- Developing risk response plans
- Closing the project
