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Configuring project roles

Not everyone on the project will need to add all the document types or send every kind of correspondence.

Project roles help control who can create what and what choices and options are available.

Projects roles control, at an organization level, what people can do, resulting in better choices and decisions.

Time

60 mins

Difficulty

Easy

Project Stage

Any

Using the Play

The aim is to agree on what roles should be used on the project. Having more choices is almost always a bad idea and means people are more likely to make the wrong choice.

Keep it simple and make sure you are managing your communications and documentation efficiently.

 
This Play will...

Get you off to the right start and help you decide what project roles you need and how to get them set up.

 

Why you need this Play

Who needs to send RFIs? Who needs to add and distribute drawings? Who needs change the status of certain documents from "For Review" to "For Construction"? One thing's for certain, it won't be everyone.

That's where project roles come in. They'll help you control who gets what. They are the simplest way to improve consistency and make managing the project information much easier.

 

Who needs to be involved?

This Play only requires a few key people and preferably the Aconex Project Administrators. You'll need to understand what companies or organizations are using the project and their role - e.g. are they a contractor, consultant, subcontractor etc.

This will help you determine which roles need setting up in the project.

Be mindful of having too many opinions. Groups of 4-5 tend to work best. More people means more discussion and fewer decisions. You can get feedback on decisions made with a wider audience later on. 

 

Preparation

Not too much prep on this one. It would be good to get a list (e.g. in a spreadsheet) of all the organizations on the project. This will help you assign a role to each one and also provide a record of how the roles were set up.

You can use the spreadsheet to document what items are added to each role.

What you'll need...

You can run this play in-person or virtually. Whiteboards are great and easy to use in-person, but there are virtual options available via platforms like Zoom.

Whatever method you choose, make sure you capture all the decisions and ideas (e.g. photos or screen grabs) as it's easy to forget what was said even a few hours later. 

This play is easy to use and follow, but, sometimes you might need additional help or advice. That's where our Professional Services team can help you get the most from Aconex.

Step-By-Step

  • 1Get familiar with project roles (10 mins)

    Making sure everyone is on the same page. 

    Start by watching this video that provides a simple overview of project roles. It'll help the group get on the same page and better understand what decisions need to be made.

  • 2Determine the types of organizations working on your project (15 mins)

    Here's where you'll get into deeper discussions.

    Go through your list of companies and assign them a role. Start off with the following list of roles:

    ~ Client/Owner
    ~ Consultant
    ~ Contractor
    ~ Subcontractor

    These role names are not seen by anyone else, so they don't need to perfectly match the actual role - we're really just defining broad role categories.

     

    If there's a question mark around matching a role to a specific company, then it might require an additional role. But, you only need a new role if the mail, document or status types, need to be different.

    When you've got your confirmed list of roles, carry on with the next step.

Consultant Tip

Don't over think this step. Fewer roles mean less administration.

  • 3Decide what the default role gets (15 mins)

    Making sure everyone gets something.

    A default role is automatically assigned to new organizations that are added to the project. They'll get whatever mail and doc types, and statuses, are added to that default role.

    We recommend the default role has the absolute minimum added to it. That way any new organizations don't automatically get more than they need. If required, you can then assign the organization to the correct role when you're ready.

    If you're uncertain what to do, we suggest the following:

    1. Have a role called "Basic"

    2. Give it the "Report" document type

    3. Give it the "General Correspondence" mail type

    4. Give it the "Draft" document status

    5. Check the "Set as Default" box and save the role

    You can set this up at the end of this play.

Consultant Tip

Having a default role is a useful safety net because you're not going to be able to assign each new organization a role as soon as they join the project.

  • 4Confirm the roles (5 mins)

    Time to make some decisions.

    You now know a little more about project roles. Now's the time to make sure the list is compact. Most projects usually have 10 or fewer roles. Even for large projects.

    It's common for teams to think they need a specific role for each of the consultants. But, as we mentioned earlier, they only need their own role if they are using different mail types for example. 

    Having a common set of types for all consultants, makes it easier to manage and track information. If you're creating reports for example, you can always filter by company name.

    That's the end of the Play.

    Next you'll get everything set up.

Consultant Tip

If you manage another project that has roles you want, you can copy those roles into this project.

Copy project roles from an existing project.

Next Steps

Now it's time to get everything set up. 

  • 1Document your decisions

    Now you've done the hard work, it's time to document it. Here's an example table of document types assigned to each role.

    You'd then do the same for mail types and statuses. 

     

    Document Type CL PM CN MC SC
    Contract
    no
    no
    yes
    yes
    yes
    Drawing
    no
    no
    yes
    no
    no
    Image
    yes
    yes
    yes
    yes
    yes
    Manual
    no
    no
    yes
    yes
    yes
    Policy
    yes
    yes
    no
    yes
    no
    Process
    no
    yes
    no
    yes
    no
    Program
    no
    yes
    no
    yes
    no
    Report
    yes
    yes
    yes
    yes
    no
    Schedule
    no
    no
    yes
    no
    no
    Shop Drawing
    no
    no
    no
    yes
    yes
    Specification
    no
    yes
    yes
    yes
    yes
    Warranty
    no
    no
    no
    yes
    yes
    CL 
    Client
    PM 
    Project Manager
    CN 
    Consultant
    MC 
    Main Contractor
    SC 
    Subcontractor
     
     

  • 2Getting set up and configured

    All you need to do is follow the steps to get your project configured with the agreed project roles. 

    Note: You will need to be a Project Admin to add and edit project roles.


    1. Create any new roles you need for the project

    2. Edit or rename any existing roles that you need

    3. Assign the roles to the relevant organizations

    4. Assign the relevant mail types, document types and statuses to each role

    5. Remember to set a default role with the minimum types added to it

That's it! You've now decided what project roles are important for you and your team, and set them up in Aconex. 

You're now ready to manage your communications and documentation efficiently. 

Resources

Some useful and related links to help you with this Play.