CS3007

This page provides some brief guidance on team structures/organisation. For more information on teams and team-working - see the material distributed during the week 1 team building sessions.

The first order of business for any group of individuals who have to work as a team: agree on and setup a team organization.

Remember that the principle ideas upon which teams are based are: achievement of a goal and division of labour. Considerations when setting up a team organization include:

• Size of team.
• Nature of project.
• Abilities of team members.
• Time commitments.

What makes a team successful?

• Realistic goals.
• Having a clear understanding of the goal or goals.
• Workable division of labour.

Any team (regardless of structure) needs a leader. Team leader responsibilities include:

• Defining and setting goals.
• Establishing group organization.
• Delegating responsibilities.
• Setting deadlines and monitoring progress.
• Motivating team members.
• Ensuring necessary resources are available for the team.

Possible organizational structures include: democratic, chief programmer, hierarchical.

Chief Programmer Team Structure

Chief Programmer:

Designs software, implements critical parts of the software, makes all major technical decisions and delegates work to other team members.

Assistant Programmer:

Consults chief programmer on technical matters, provides liaison with customer and serves as backup to the chief programmer.

2-5 Programmers:

Implement design, document code and carry out testing.

Administrator:

Takes care of day-to-day project administrative details.

Librarian:

Maintains program listings and other documentation.

Toolsmith:

Adapts existing software tools and produces customized tools to needs of team.

Hierarchical Team Structure

Compromise between the democratic and chief-programmer structures.

Project Leader:

Responsible for major decisions, assigns tasks, participates in evaluations and performs technical duties as a member of a technical group.

Technical Leader:

In charge of one or more separate aspects of system development. Reports directly to project leader and communicates with other technical leaders. Technical leaders can themselves be members of other technical group(s).