User representative

Description

The user representative represents the users and their interests in the project, manages the unambiguous specialist solution requirements agreed with the specialist areas as a stable basis for implementation, and is responsible for the specialist success of the development. The user representative is the contact person for both the developers and the stakeholders, constituting a binding communication channel within the project organization. The user representative is appointed by the project sponsor and is managed by the project management, but is autonomous during solution development in specialist and solution-specific questions and decisions within the budget.

Under the agile approach, the user representative serves as an interface to the development team. In such cases, the role holder assumes specialist responsibility in the development team by additionally assuming the role of product owner, familiar in the agile environment. All detailed tasks and responsibilities in the agile development team are defined by the agile method used.

Responsibility

  1. Responsibility for the solution
  2. Establishment of all solution-specific requirements
  3. Responsibility for the solution requirements
  4. Maintaining transparency and making solution requirements available to all those involved in the project
  5. Contributing the complete specialist requirements and functionality coordinated with the specialist areas and customers; representing stakeholder interests
  6. Maximizing the added value of the development work (maximizing the value of the solution)
  7. Ensuring the scope of goods/services and the specialist success of the solution
  8. Involvement of stakeholders in solution development according to the stakeholder list
  9. Compliance with ISDP requirements
  10. Responsibility for communication with the development team (interface, agile )

Powers

  1. Can access all required information
  2. Decision on the characteristics of the solution including the quality requirements
  3. Definition of the acceptance criteria
  4. Collaboration with stakeholders and development team
  5. Participation in defining requirements and concluding SLAs

Skills

  1. In-depth knowledge of the specialist area
  2. Knowledge of project management and of HERMES
  3. In-depth knowledge of traditional and agile development management
  4. Knowledge of the development management, design, and specification methods and practices
  5. Basic knowledge of business administration
  6. Knowledge of the project environment
  7. Knowledge of the core organization's requirements in terms of operation of the application (e.g. for procurements, financing, controlling, security) or in terms of application of the project
  8. Ability to establish, formulate, evaluate, and prioritize requirements and prepare change requests
  9. Good writing skills
  10. Abstraction and simplification ability
  11. Ability to work in a team, to communicate, and to resolve conflicts
  12. Visionary thinking
  13. Assertiveness
  14. Natural authority

Relationships

TableĀ 22: Tasks for which the user representative is responsible and other roles involved in creating the outcomes
Module Task Responsible Outcome Involved in creation of outcome
Project steering Decide on execution release Project sponsor Execution order Project sponsor, Project management, User representative
Decide on phase release Project sponsor Phase release milestone Project sponsor, Project management, Project committee, User representative
Decide on release Project sponsor Release checklist Project sponsor, Project management, User representative , Quality and risk manager
Release milestone Project sponsor, Project management, Project committee, User representative
Decide on project discontinuation Project sponsor Project discontinuation checklist Project sponsor, Project management, User representative , Quality and risk manager
Lessons learned Project sponsor, Project management, User representative
Project closure milestone Project sponsor, Project management, User representative , Project committee
Decide on closure phase release Project sponsor Closure phase release milestone Project sponsor, Project management, Project committee, User representative
Project management Manage and control project Project management Work order Project management, User representative , Project support
Minutes Project management, User representative , Project support
Solution requirements Project management, User representative
Detailed specifications Project management, User representative
Manage and inform stakeholders Project management Stakeholder interests Project management, User representative
Draw up project execution order Project management Execution order Project management, User representative , Project support
Manage changes Project management Change request Project management, User representative , Business analyst, Project support
Change status list Project management, User representative , Project support
Solution requirements Project management, User representative
Agree on and steer goods/services Project management Evaluation report Project management, User representative , Project support
Deal with problems and benefit from lessons learned Project management Lessons learned Project management, Project sponsor, User representative
Perform quality assurance Project management Review report Project management, User representative , Project support
Prepare phase release Project management Phase report Project management, User representative , Project support
Prepare release closure Project management Release report Project management, User representative , Project support
Prepare project closure Project management Lessons learned Project management, Project sponsor, User representative
Project foundations Prepare procurement analysis User representative Procurement analysis User representative , Project management
Prepare study Project management Study Project management, User representative , Business analyst, IT architect, Project support
Stakeholder list Project management, Project sponsor, User representative , Business analyst, Project support
Carry out prototyping Developer Prototype realized Developer, User representative , IT architect
Decide on next steps Project management Next steps checklist Project management, User representative , Quality and risk manager, Project support
Study Project management, User representative , Project support
Next steps milestone Project management, User representative
List of management project decisions Project management, User representative , Project support
Procurement Prepare call for tenders User representative Tender documentation User representative , Project management
Decide on call for tenders Project sponsor Tender checklist Project sponsor, Project management, User representative , Quality and risk manager
Tender milestone Project sponsor, Project management, Project committee, User representative
Issue call for tenders Project management Offer Project management, User representative , Operations manager , Developer
Tender documentation Project management, User representative , Project support
Evaluate tenders User representative Evaluation report User representative , Project management
Tender report User representative , Project management
Decide on contract award Project sponsor Contract award checklist Project sponsor, Project management, User representative , Quality and risk manager
Contract award milestone Project sponsor, Project management, Project committee, User representative
Draw up agreement Project management Agreement Project management, Project sponsor, User representative
Organization Establish organizational requirements Business analyst Situation analysis Business analyst, User representative
Organizational requirements Business analyst, User representative
Advocate stakeholder interests User representative Stakeholder interests User representative
Draw up organization concept Business analyst Organization concept Business analyst, User representative
Business model description Business analyst, User representative
Process description Business analyst, User representative
Organization description Business analyst, User representative
Implement organization Business analyst Process description Business analyst, User representative
Organization description Business analyst, User representative
Activate organization Business analyst Organization activated Business analyst, User representative
Product Prepare solution requirements User representative Situation analysis User representative , Business analyst
Solution requirements User representative , Business analyst
Advocate stakeholder interests User representative Stakeholder interests User representative
Design product concept User representative Product concept User representative , Business analyst
Carry out prototyping Developer Prototype realized Developer, User representative
Decide on product concept Project management Product concept milestone Project management, User representative
Realize product Developer Detailed specifications Developer, User representative , Business analyst
User manual Developer, User representative
Product developed or adapted Developer, User representative , Business analyst
Activate product Developer Product activated Developer, User representative , Business analyst
IT system Prepare solution requirements User representative Situation analysis User representative , IT architect, Business analyst
Solution requirements User representative , IT architect, Business analyst
Advocate stakeholder interests User representative Stakeholder interests User representative
Prepare solution architecture IT architect System concept IT architect, Business analyst, User representative , Developer
Carry out prototyping Developer Prototype realized Developer, User representative , IT architect
Decide on solution architecture Project management Solution architecture milestone Project management, User representative
Realize system Developer Detailed specifications Developer, User representative , Business analyst, IT architect
System concept Developer, Operations manager , IT architect, User representative
User manual Developer, User representative
System developed or parameterized Developer, User representative , Business analyst, IT architect
Activate system Developer System activated Developer, Operations manager , User representative , Business analyst
Tests Design test concept Test manager Test concept Test manager , Tester, User representative , Operations manager , Business analyst, Developer
Realize test infrastructure Operations manager Test infrastructure realized Operations manager , User representative , Business analyst, Test manager
Conduct test Test manager Test concept Test manager , Tester, User representative , Operations manager , Business analyst, Developer
Deployment organization Design deployment concept User representative Deployment concept User representative , Project management, Business analyst
Project management plan User representative , Project management
Realize deployment measures User representative Deployment measures realized User representative , Project management, Business analyst
Decide on preliminary acceptance Project management Acceptance report Project management, User representative , Operations manager , Developer, Quality and risk manager, Project support
Preliminary acceptance milestone Project management, User representative
List of management project decisions Project management, User representative , Project support
Execute deployment measures User representative Deployment measures carried out User representative , Project management, Business analyst
Decide on acceptance Project management Acceptance report Project management, User representative , Operations manager , Developer, Quality and risk manager, Project support
Acceptance milestone Project management, User representative
List of management project decisions Project management, User representative , Project support
IT migration Decide on acceptance of migration Project management Acceptance report Project management, User representative , Operations manager , Developer, Quality and risk manager, Project support
Migration acceptance milestone Project management, User representative
List of management project decisions Project management, User representative , Project support
IT operation Design operating concept Operations manager Service level agreement Operations manager , Project sponsor, Project management, User representative
ISDP Decide on ISDP concept Project management ISDP concept milestone Project management, User representative
Implement ISDP concept User representative ISDP measures realized User representative , Project management, Operations manager , ISDP manager, IT architect
ISDP concept User representative , Project management, Operations manager , ISDP manager, Developer
Transfer ISDP concept ISDP manager ISDP concept transferred ISDP manager, Project management, User representative , Operations manager
ISDP concept ISDP manager, Project sponsor, Project management, User representative , Operations manager , IT architect