How to Develop a Project Charter

Document the results of your interviews.

The first step in any project should be creating a project charter describing the organization’s need for the project. Gathering information for the charter gives you a solid high-level view of the project requirements, constraints and risks. When everyone begins with a clear understanding of the scope of the project and the resources required, you can avoid misunderstandings in the future. Usually the project manager creates the charter, although sometimes a project sponsor or someone from the program management office will develop it prior to a project manager being assigned.

Things You'll Need

• Project sponsor
• Project stakeholders
• Project charter template
• Information about the project scope, requirements, and resources

Instructions

1. Interview the project sponsor. She should have the best knowledge of the importance of this project to the organization and how it fits with the strategic goals.

2. Choose a project charter template. If your organization doesn’t already have a standard template, see the Resources section of this article for some options. The sections included in your template will guide you while gathering information about the project.

3. Interview the project stakeholders. These people will be the most impacted by the project and should represent both the business and technical groups in the organization. Their detailed knowledge about the impact of the project will allow you to thoroughly describe the project risks, resource needs and constraints.

4. Research additional information. You may discover questions about a specific technology needed for the project or problems other organizations have had on similar projects. You may need to talk to others in your organization or contact technical or professional organizations with specialized knowledge.

5. Document each of the sections in your template with the results of your interviews and research. The charter should include a thorough, though high-level, view of the project.

6. Review the charter with the sponsor and stakeholders. This will ensure that all the key players have a thorough understanding of the project.

7. Request authorization to start the project by having the sponsor sign and approve the charter document.

Tips & Warnings

• • If your organization doesn’t have a standard charter template, choose one that matches your organization’s level of understanding. Forcing a project team to fill out a very detailed project charter is unlikely to be successful if it has never used one.

• • Every project charter should include the project sponsor, project’s objectives, scope, high-level project milestones and a high-level budget. Most charters also include success criteria, the names and roles of project stakeholders and participants (including who has approval authority), a description of the systems and business processes impacted, a communication plan, project dependencies and the project’s risk management plan.

• • When team members are excited about a project, they often want to dive in and immediately get started on the project work rather than spend time on the charter. Resist that urge. A good project charter is the solid foundation a project needs to get off to the right start.

References

• Cornell University Information Technologies: Cornell Project Management Methodology

Resources

• A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge; Project Management Institute; 2008
• Gannthead