project management Project management is the process of leading the work of a team to achieve all project goals within the given constraints. This information is usually described in project documentation, created at the beginning of the development process. T ...

, a project charter, project definition, or project statement is a statement of the

scope Scope or scopes may refer to: People with the surname * Jamie Scope (born 1986), English footballer * John T. Scopes (1900–1970), central figure in the Scopes Trial regarding the teaching of evolution Arts, media, and entertainment * Cinem ...

, objectives, and participants in a project. It provides a preliminary delineation of roles and responsibilities, outlines the project's key goals, identifies the main stakeholders, and defines the authority of the

project manager A project manager is a professional in the field of project management. Project managers have the responsibility of the planning, procurement and execution of a project, in any undertaking that has a defined scope, defined start and a defined f ...

. In Initiative for Policy Dialogue (IPD), this document is known as the project charter. In

customer relationship management Customer relationship management (CRM) is a process in which a business or other organization administers its interactions with customers, typically using data analysis to study large amounts of information. CRM systems compile data from a ra ...

(CRM), it is known as the project definition report. Both IPD and CRM require this document as part of the project management process.

Purpose

The project charter is usually a short document that explains a project clearly and concisely, and refers to more detailed documents for additional information. A project charter should: * Identify the scope of the project. * Provide a shared understanding of the project objectives. * Act as a contract between the project sponsor, key stakeholders and the project team, detailing responsibilities. A project charter typically documents most of the following: * Reasons for undertaking the project * Objectives and constraints of the project, including in-scope and out-of-scope items * Identities of the main stakeholders * Risks and issues (a risk management plan should be part of the overall

project management plan A project plan, according to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK), is: "...a formal, approved document used to guide both ''project execution'' and ''project control''. The primary uses of the project plan are to document planning as ...

) * Benefits of the project * High level budget and spending authority

Establishing authority

The project charter establishes the authority assigned to the project manager, especially in a matrix management environment. It is considered industry best practice.

Uses

The three main uses of the project charter are: * To authorize the project - using a comparable format, projects can be ranked and authorized by

Return on Investment Return on investment (ROI) or return on costs (ROC) is a ratio between net income (over a period) and investment (costs resulting from an investment of some resources at a point in time). A high ROI means the investment's gains compare favourably ...

. * Serves as the primary sales document for the project - ranking stakeholders have a 1-2 page summary to distribute, present, and keep handy for fending off other project or operations runs at project

resources Resource refers to all the materials available in our environment which are technologically accessible, economically feasible and culturally sustainable and help us to satisfy our needs and wants. Resources can broadly be classified upon their av ...

. * Serves as a focal point throughout the project. For example, it is a baseline that can be used in team meetings and in

change control Within quality management systems (QMS) and information technology (IT) systems, change control is a process—either formal or informal—used to ensure that changes to a product or system are introduced in a controlled and coordinated manner. It ...

meetings to assist with scope management.

Development

A project charter will be created in the initiating process group of a phase or a project at the very start. Developing the charter and identifying the stakeholders are the two main actions of the initiating process group. Typically a project manager takes the lead in developing the charter. The project manager will employ his or her expertise and experience to develop the charter. The project manager will work with the key stakeholders (customers and business sponsors), the

PMO PMO may refer to: Government and military * Grade A Pasteurized Milk Ordinance, a United States Food and Drug Administration standard * Polish Military Organisation, an intelligence and sabotage group during World War I * Prime Minister's Office ...

, Subject Matter Experts inside and outside the organization, other units within the organization and may also work with Industry groups or professional bodies to develop the charter. The project manager will employ facilitation techniques such as brainstorming, problem solving, conflict resolution, meetings, expectations management etc. to develop the charter. Inputs to develop a charter can be: * Project Statement of Work *

Business Case A business case captures the reasoning for initiating a project or task. It is often presented in a well-structured written document, but may also come in the form of a short verbal agreement or presentation. The logic of the business case is that, ...

* Agreements *Assumptions * Enterprise standards, industry standards, regulations and norms * Organizational process, assets and templates The charter once signed will provide authority to the project manager to officially execute the project and employ organizational funds and resources to make the project successful. For a large multi-phased project, the charter can be created for each individual phase. For example, there can be an initial charter during the Scope and Seek phase of a project, followed by a Planning charter and an Execution Charter during the build phase of the project.

References

External links