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PM2 roles

Appropriate Governance Body (AGB)

The Appropriate Governance Body (AGB) is the entity responsible for the strategic planning and portfolio management. In terms of projects, this is the body with the authority to approve a project, agree its stated objective and release the funding required to implement it. As a key decision-making body, this group comprises members from the requestor and provider side of the project.

Responsibilities:

  • Defines the corporate and business domain strategy.
  • Agrees to and implements a portfolio management framework to achieve the strategic objectives.
  • Identifies, evaluates, and authorizes programs and projects for implementation.
  • Monitors and controls portfolio delivery performance.
  • Optimizes and manages portfolio resources and benefits.

Project Steering Committee (PSC)

The Project Steering Committee (PSC) comprises the necessary roles to meet the project management goals, providing a balanced mix of requestor and provider side representatives.

Responsibilities:

  • Champions the project and raises awareness of it at a senior level.
  • Guides and promotes the successful execution of the project at a strategic level, keeping the project focused on its objectives.
  • Ensures adherence to the organization’s policies and rules (e.g. IT governance, data protection, information security, document management, etc.).
  • Provides high-level monitoring and control of the project.
  • Authorizes transition between phases unless this is performed by the Appropriate Governance Body (AGB).
  • Authorizes deviations and scope changes with a high project impact and has the final say on decisions.
  • Deals with escalated issues and conflicts.
  • Drives and manages organizational change related to the project’s outcomes.
  • Approves and signs off key management milestone artefacts (i.e. Project Charter, Project Work Plan).

Project Owner (PO)

The Project Owner (PO) is the client of the project, and as such sets the business objectives and ensures that project outcomes are in line with business objectives and priorities. The Project Owner (PO) is accountable for the overall project’s success, and later becomes the owner of the project’s outputs (product or service).

Responsibilities:

  • Acts as the project champion, promoting the project’s success.
  • Chairs the Project Steering Committee (PSC).
  • Provides leadership and strategic direction to the Business Manager (BM) and Project Manager (PM).
  • Sets the business objectives and accepts the Business Case for the project.
  • Owns the business risks and ensures that project outcomes are in line with business objectives and priorities.
  • Mobilizes the resources necessary for the project from the requestor side, in accordance with the agreed budget.
  • Regularly monitors project progress.
  • Coordinates the resolution of escalated issues and conflicts.
  • Drives organizational change and monitors proper evolution and change implementation.
  • Approves and signs-off on key management milestone artefacts (Business Case, Project Charter, Project Handbook, Project Management Plans, Business Implementation Plan, etc.)

Business Manager (BM)

The Business Manager (BM) represents the Project Owner (PO) on a daily basis within the project and helps in defining the project’s business objectives via the Project Initiation Request, Business Case and Business Implementation Plan. The Business Manager (BM) collaborates closely with the Project Manager (PM) and coordinates client-side activities and roles (e.g. user and business representatives), ensuring that the project’s deliverables fulfil the business and user needs.

Responsibilities:

  • Guarantees cooperation and an efficient communication channel with the Project Manager (PM).
  • Coordinates the Business Implementation Group (BIG) and acts as a liaison between the User Representatives (URs) and the provider organization.
  • Ensures that the products delivered by the project fulfil the user’s needs.
  • Manages the activities on the business side of the project and ensures that the required business resources are made available.
  • Decides on the best way to introduce business change or re-engineering actions, when needed.
  • Ensures that the business organization is ready to accommodate the project’s deliverables when they are made available by the Solution Provider (SP).
  • Leads the implementation of the business changes within the user community.
  • Coordinates the schedule and delivery of any user training (and production of related material).

Project Support Team (PST)

The Project Support Team (PST) is an optional role that consists of the people responsible for providing support to the project. Its composition and structure depend on the needs of the project. The Project Support Team (PST) is often composed of representatives from various horizontal services or units.

Responsibilities:

  • Provides administrative support to the project.
  • Defines requirements for reporting and communication.
  • Administers Project Steering Committee (PSC) meetings and drafts related reports.
  • Supports the Project Manager (PM) in planning, monitoring, and controlling the project.
  • Advises on project management tools and administrative services.
  • Manages the project documentation (versioning, archiving, etc.).

Business Implementation Group (BIG)

The Business Implementation Group (BIG) sits on the requestor side and consists of representatives of business and user groups. Coordinated by the Business Manager (BM), it is responsible for planning and implementing the business changes that need to be made for the organization to effectively integrate the project deliverables into its everyday work.

Responsibilities:

  • Analyses the impact of the project’s implementation on ongoing operations, existing business processes, staff and organizational culture.
  • Participates in the design and updating of affected business processes.
  • Prepares the affected business area for the upcoming change.
  • Advises the Business Manager (BM) on the organization’s readiness for change.
  • Embeds the project deliverables into business operations and implements the organizational change activities that fall within the project’s scope.

Solution Provider (SP)

The Solution Provider (SP) assumes overall accountability for project deliverables and represents the interests of those who design, manage, and implement (or outsource) the project’s deliverables. The Solution Provider (SP) usually has a management position in the functional hierarchy of the organization undertaking the project, and therefore often works with the Project Owner (PO) in defining the project’s business objectives.

Responsibilities:

  • Assumes overall accountability for the project deliverables and services requested by the Project Owner (PO).
  • Mobilizes the required resources from the provider side and appoints the Project Manager (PM).
  • Approves the objectives of any outsourced activities and deliverables and becomes accountable for the contractor’s performance.

Project Manager (PM)

The Project Manager (PM) oversees the project on a daily basis and is responsible for delivering high quality results within the identified objectives and constraints, ensuring the effective use of the allocated resources. More widely, the Project Manager’s (PM) responsibility also includes risk and issue management, project communication and stakeholder management.

Responsibilities:

  • Executes the project plans as approved by the Project Steering Committee (PSC).
  • Coordinates the Project Core Team (PCT), ensuring the effective use of the allocated resources.
  • Ensures that project objectives are achieved within the identified constraints, taking preventive or corrective measures where necessary.
  • Manages stakeholder expectations.
  • Oversees the creation of all management artefacts (except the Project Initiation Request, Business Case and Business Implementation Plan) and secures approval from the Project Owner (PO) or the Project Steering Committee (PSC).
  • Ensures the controlled evolution of products delivered, through proper change management.
  • Performs risk management activities for project-related risks.
  • Monitors project status and reports to the Project Steering Committee (PSC) on project progress at regular predefined intervals.
  • Escalates unresolvable project issues to the Project Steering Committee (PSC).
  • Liaises between the directing and performing layers of the project.

Contractor’s Project Manager (CPM)

The Contractor’s Project Manager (CPM) leads the contractor’s staff working on the project, planning, controlling and reporting on the production of outsourced deliverables. Working closely with the Project Manager (PM), the Contractor’s Project Manager (CPM) ensures that all work is carried out on time and to the agreed standards, guaranteeing the successful completion and delivery of subcontracted activities.

Project Manager Assistant (PMA)

For large projects, the Project Manager (PM) might find it useful to delegate some management tasks to an assistant. This Project Management Assistant (PMA) can work on a range of coordination and supportive tasks as assigned by the Project Manager (PM), and acts as the Project Manager’s (PM) backup in meetings, etc. However, the Project Manager (PM) remains the person responsible for all project management tasks and deliverables. The Project Management Assistant (PMA) may also be part of a Project Support Team (PST) and assigned to the project.

Project Core Team (PCT)

The Project Core Team (PCT) comprises the specialist roles responsible for creating the project deliverables. Its composition and structure depend on the project size and type (e.g. IT project, policy development project, etc.) and is defined by the Project Manager (PM) based on the project’s needs.

Responsibilities:

  • Participates in developing the project scope and planning project activities.
  • Carries out project activities based on the Project Work Plan and schedule.
  • Produces project deliverables.
  • Provides the Project Manager (PM) with information on the progress of activities.
  • Participates in project meetings as needed and helps resolve issues.
  • Participates in the Project-End Review Meeting during the collection of Lessons Learned.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the role of the Project Steering Committee (PSC) in PM²?

The PSC provides strategic oversight, authorizes phase transitions, approves major changes, resolves escalated issues, and ensures alignment with organizational policies and project objectives.

How does the Project Owner (PO) differ from the Project Manager (PM) in PM²?

The Project Owner (PO) represents the client, owns business outcomes, and ensures strategic alignment. The Project Manager (PM) oversees day-to-day execution, delivers within constraints, and manages project artifacts and team performance.

Can PMPeople support all PM² roles and responsibilities?

Yes. PMPeople enables clear role definition, real-time collaboration, document sharing, and approval workflows that align with PM² governance—supporting PO, PM, PSC, SP, BM, and other roles across requestor and provider sides.