Who's Who in Project Life.
And why they keep talking to you.
Suddenly you're surrounded by people with unfamiliar job titles. Some want information. Some want decisions. Some just want a meeting. This guide helps you work out who does what—and what you can reasonably ask in return.
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Free, no sign-up required. The complete guide is below.
First, a useful warning
Project titles are not universal. Different organisations use different names, and one person may cover several roles. Treat these as clues, not rigid rules. If you're unsure, ask what someone is responsible for on this Project.
The Project Manager
What they do: Keeps the Project organised, coordinates work and tracks progress, issues and decisions.
Why they might need you: They may need information, estimates, updates or a decision from your Business area.
Why you might need them: They can clarify priorities, deadlines, dependencies and what you are actually being asked to deliver.
A useful question: “What do you need from me, and by when?”
The Project Sponsor
What they do: Provides senior backing and helps secure decisions, priorities and resources.
Why they might need you: They may need to understand the Business impact or resolve something beyond your authority.
Why you might need them: They can help resolve competing Business priorities or decisions that are beyond your authority.
A useful question: “Who can make this decision if it affects our day-to-day work?”
The Business Analyst
What they do: Explores how work happens now, what needs to change and what the solution must support.
Why they might need you: They need your real-world knowledge, including awkward exceptions and workarounds.
Why you might need them: They can help translate your experience, concerns and ideas into requirements the Project can work with.
A useful question: “Would it help if I showed you how this works in practice?”
The Subject Matter Expert (SME)
What they do: Brings specialist knowledge of a process, service, system or rule. You may be the SME.
Why they might need you: They need accurate detail, examples and warnings about what could go wrong.
Why you might need them: They can explain specialist rules, processes or constraints you do not know; if you are the SME, seek another expert when the question is outside your area.
A useful question: “Am I advising on this, or am I expected to approve it?”
The Business Representative or Ambassador User
What they do: Represents the needs and experience of people who will use or be affected by the change.
Why they might need you: They may ask you to test ideas, review proposals and gather colleagues’ views.
Why you might need them: They can help you understand how a proposed change affects other colleagues and bring their views into the discussion.
A useful question: “Who else should we involve before we say this will work?”
The Technical or Delivery Team
What they do: Designs, builds, configures or integrates the technology and other changes.
Why they might need you: They need clear examples, constraints and timely feedback—not just a wish list.
Why you might need them: They can explain what is feasible, demonstrate options and identify technical limitations before commitments are made.
A useful question: “Can we walk through a real example together?”
The Tester or Test Lead
What they do: Checks whether the proposed solution behaves as expected and meets agreed needs.
Why they might need you: They may need realistic scenarios, test data and help spotting practical problems.
Why you might need them: They can help you turn real Business situations into useful tests and explain how problems will be recorded and followed up.
A useful question: “What should happen when things do not go to plan?”
The Change, Training or Communications Lead
What they do: Helps people understand, prepare for and adopt the change.
Why they might need you: They need to know who is affected, what people must learn and what may worry them.
Why you might need them: They can help you prepare colleagues, find training materials and communicate what is changing and when.
A useful question: “What will colleagues need to know before this goes live?”
Three things to establish early
- Who can decide? Being asked for your opinion is not the same as being authorised to approve something.
- Who should be consulted? Your experience matters, but you may not speak for every colleague or Business area.
- Who owns the next action? A friendly conversation is not always a clear commitment.
Try this: “Just so I understand, am I providing input, making a recommendation or being asked to approve this?”
Remember
You don't have to learn everyone's job. You just need to understand who can help, who needs your knowledge and where decisions belong.
You don't need to become a project manager.