The Team

Projects in CITS5206 are undertaken by groups, typically comprising 5 students enrolled in the unit. Teams are allocated by the unit co-ordinator during week 1. Projects are proposed by clients and it is the up to the team to negotiate with the client about details of the project, and then to complete as much of the project as possible in the time allowed within the unit. The team will:

• Interact with the client as often as is necessary, but especially at the start and at the end of each deliverable.
• Complete as much of the project as they can and submit to the client the agreed deliverables for each deliverable.
• Complete an Individual and Group Reflection for each deliverable, reflecting on the project from the team's point of view.
• Take it in turns to arrange and chair team meetings and create sets of minutes summarising the meetings. All minutes should be shared with your team, the client and the unit coordinator, usually on your project github area.
• Team members are responsible for reporting any problems that arise in the team to the Unit Coordinator as soon as possible.

Above all, Team members are expected to act at all times as professionals.

The Client

A Client will normally be from industry, UWA or the wider community, although clients can also come from within CSSE. The role of the client is to act as a client for the project group, set out what needs to be done, give domain-specific advice necessary for the project, work with the team to develop the requirements and scope for the project, and to perform some marking. Tasks include:

• With the unit co-ordinator to devise one or more projects, each to be undertaken by a project team, and write a preliminary project proposal
• Before the project starts, publish (on the unit web page) any special conditions or restrictions for undertaking this project and the IP exploitation model.
• Meet each team as often as dictated by the demands of the project: recommended at least once per fortnight (i.e. 6 times during the semester) at a mutually agreed location (UWA, client offices or online).
• Identify additional project stakeholders as needed for the project and introduce them to the team.
• Provide domain-specific support and advice to the team as required by the scope of the project
• Agree and advise on the contents of some of Deliverables e.g. the platform on which the project is to be delivered, e.g. Web-based, mobile app, etc.
• Advise, agree, and undertake acceptance tests for the project.
• Complete a short survey giving feedback about the work done so far for each of the 3 project deliverables (weeks 5, 8 and 12). This review will be used by the Unit Coordinator to inform the marks for each deliverable.

The clients are very busy professionals, with many years of experience, who are donating their time and talent. teams must endeavour to accommodate clients' often very tight schedules as far as practical. If groups explain their constraints it will generally be possible to come to some agreement about meeting dates, times and venues. After all, everybody wants the projects to succeed!

Project Stakeholders

Stakeholders are any parties with a stake in the project: the client, system users, managers and so on. Where possible each project should identify a few key stakeholders in addition to the client.

• Stakeholders meet with the project team at least once during the project to help the team to capture requirements or for feedback on early versions of the system.
• The client or unit coordinator will introduce the team to relevant stakeholders.

Technical Advisor

A technical advisor is a software expert who is able to advise the project team on the software technology(s) they will use for the project. A client may also be a technical advisor, but usually these roles are separate.

• The technical advisor will meet with the project team a few times during the project to help the team identify appropriate software technologies for their project, and to help them utilise that technology effectively.
• Usually the unit coordinator will identify suitable technical advisors and introduce the team.

Unit Co-ordinator

The Unit co-ordinator has responsibility for the running of the unit as a whole. This role is normally filled by an experienced academic. Sufficient documentation needs to be provided to maintain consistency between the various parties: clients, other stakeholders and teams. Most of the effort will be focused on the team project. Major tasks:

• Coordinate Clients to create sufficient projects for the enrolment
• Ensure that workshops timetable and other resources are in place
• Assemble and advertise all unit deliverables, marking rubrics and deadlines
• Assemble the schedule, workshop classes and guest lecturers for the professional skills component of the unit
• Maintain the unit homepage and unit outline and other documentation
• Grade assessments and collate marks
• Enforce the deadlines (with any special consideration cases)
• Allocate members to teams
• Monitor all teams and clients
• Mediate between team members in extreme cases
• Resolve conflict and deal with appeals and requests for remarking

Role descriptions adapted from the CITS3200 guidelines by Michael Wise