Last edited 20 Oct 2020

Project board for building design and construction

A project board may be required on larger or more complex projects.

In the private sector the project board sits below the main board but usually is chaired by a main board director. It is responsible for monitoring project progress and decision making within any financial parameters set by the main board. It will often include the finance director, estates manager and heads of relevant departments. They will generally invite appropriate external or internal members of the delivery team to their meetings and review monthly project reports.

In the public sector, the project board may be appointed and chaired by the senior responsible owner (SRO). Board members will provide the senior responsible owner with technical and user advice on decisions regarding the project. A detailed list of activities that might be undertaken by the senior responsible owner in the public sector can be found in the archived OGC guide 'Project organisation: roles and responsibilities'. A diagram showing their relation to the rest of the project team is reproduced below courtesy of the Office of Government Commerce (OGC).

OGC guidance describes the role of the project board as an

...advisory panel including a technical adviser and business adviser, to address strategic issues and ensure stakeholder buy-in at a high level. and state that ...The project board should not have any powers that cut across the accountability and authority of the SRO. Project boards should be advisory only, addressing strategic issues and major points of difficulty. If a major issue cannot be resolved with the SRO, project board members would have recourse to the IDM (Investment Decision Maker).

ref OGC Achieving Excellence Guide 2 - Project organisation: roles and responsibilities.

NB The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) has now been absorbed into the Efficiency and Reform Group (ERG) within the Cabinet Office. OGC guidance has been archived, however, it is cited in the Government Construction Strategy and the Common Minimum Standards, and links are provided to OGC documents from government websites such as the Major Projects Authority. The OGC gateway review process still provides one of the best and most comprehensive sets of guidance for public projects. It is for this reason that the project plan for public projects within Designing Buildings Wiki follows the OGC gateway review process.