Project Roles, Their Methods, and Work Artifacts
The concept of "role" is used more often in professional activities than in personal life[1]. In the workplace, the conversation is mainly about project activities, so the term "project role" is used. A project role is a role performed by an agent (a person or any other agent with intentions) in a given project[2]. Alternatively, it is performed by an agent who somehow influences or is connected to the system being created in the project. You could say that project roles are concerned with something. They have a specific subject of interest in relation to the system.
In systems thinking, project roles are divided into external and internal roles.
Internal or team project roles are those performed by members of the project team and all co-executors[3]. All roles carry out corresponding methods and produce certain work artifacts. For example, component suppliers carry out the practice of supplying, as a result of which components should appear in the warehouse. All internal project roles are part of the extended enterprise; these roles conceive, create, and support the operation of the system—they repair and maintain it, as well as handle its disposal.
For the automobile system, internal project roles include the plant manager, design engineer, assembly line worker, service station specialist, marketers, repair technicians, designers, testers, component suppliers, decommissioners, and so on. All of them work according to specific methods (practices) and create their own work artifacts. The performers of these roles are employees of a large team that works with the automobile system at all stages—from conception to decommissioning.
External project roles are those that interact with the finished system. These external project roles may be part of the supersystem, the super-supersystem, or the environment. This means that the roles influence the system, or the system influences these project roles. They also perform practices and have their own work artifacts[4]. For the automobile system, external project roles include the driver, passenger, pedestrian, environmentalist, and many others. Other examples of external project roles are: client, competitor, tax inspector, hacker, thief, and so on. At the same time, clients of the system should be divided into several roles that are specific to each system and/or field of activity. For example, a client[5] could be a payer, operator, unpacker, etc. Try to identify the methods and work artifacts of these roles.
A person[6] in a project role makes corresponding decisions and is responsible for them. Or, as they say, puts their "skin in the game." The consequences of these decisions result in changes in project activities—that is, in how the project role changes the world[7].
Actions by a person that do not lead to changes in the physical world are not considered actions of a project role. You cannot say that a person is playing a role if they do not create formal work artifacts for which they are responsible (for example, by signing or otherwise putting their skin in the game). If a person fully carries out a practice that results in a work artifact, such as a balance sheet with their signature, then you can say they are playing the role of accountant. The appearance of a work artifact approved by a project role, in one way or another, changes the physical world[8].
Nevertheless, all these considerations are applicable to personal projects. ↩︎
If the executor is an inanimate object, we do not use the term "project role," but simply "role." ↩︎
Project team members and co-executors are those who are also agents. ↩︎
It is not recommended to call them by generic terms like "client" or "user." It is better to refer to them by the roles they identify with, which also clarifies their methods. For example, if we sell automobiles, the external project role is not "client," but "driver" or "owner." ↩︎
For any system, you can identify a client, so to describe their actions more precisely, you need to define the role more specifically. Do not stop at the generic mention of "client" that applies to all systems. Behind the term "client" lies a large number of specific roles that must be considered when working with the system. ↩︎
Do not confuse the description, the role of the driver, and the user profile, which is often used in marketing. The latter describes the performer of the role (the person). ↩︎
For more details, see the section "Roles of Analysts and Engineers. Positions" in the textbook "Systems Thinking." ↩︎
At the very least, taxes will be paid. ↩︎