Who is primarily responsible and accountable for managing a project to maximize its success?

The project manager plays a crucial role in the management of a project, making them primarily responsible and accountable for its overall success. This position involves overseeing all aspects of the project, including planning, execution, monitoring, and closing of the project.

The project manager coordinates the efforts of the team members, manages stakeholder expectations, allocates resources, and navigates through potential risks and challenges. By setting clear objectives, ensuring proper communication among team members, and guiding project activities toward completion, the project manager is essential to driving the project towards its goals. Their authority and responsibility encompass the entirety of the project lifecycle, ensuring that it adheres to the established scope, timeline, and budget.

In contrast, while a project sponsor provides the necessary support and resources for the project, they are not involved in the day-to-day management. Functional managers oversee specific departments or resources and may contribute to project success but do not possess the overarching responsibility for the project itself. Similarly, a team lead may oversee specific tasks or team members, but their focus is narrower, and they do not have the same level of accountability for the project as the project manager does. Thus, the project manager is the individual fundamentally responsible for maximizing the success of the project.