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Project Charter Template

By 
Slite
A project charter template formalizes a specific project's existence. Get your free project charter document template today and start building the key internal documents for project planning.
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What is a Project Charter Template?

A project charter template is a formal template for project planning that allows the start of a project and makes an idea or initiative become a real project. It's a key internal document used for project planning.

Project Charter Examples

IT project charter example

Try Slite's Project Charter Template

Consulting project charter example

Design project charter example

How to customize Slite's Project Charter Template

Slite's project charter templates provide a comprehensive framework that you can customize to fit the needs of your project. Here are some tips for customizing the template:

1. Brainstorm Project Basics

An excellent project charter template starts with a strong foundation. By using a charter template, you can ensure that you include all the essential elements in your project. At the beginning of your project planning process, take the time to thoroughly brainstorm all the essential elements of your project. Get all the most important project leaders in a room (or conference call) together and develop your vision collaboratively as soon as you can.

2. Collecting Key Information

Once you've fleshed out the basic foundational elements of your project, collect all the key information you'll need to get your program charter template together. Remember, be specific. All the elements should answer questions rather than prompt them.

3. Choosing Your Team

By this point, key project leaders should already be established. Now's your chance to put together your dream teams using the Slite template for project charter. Make sure to consider all the different departments, fields, and industries that need to be involved, inside and outside your company.

4. Getting Initial Approval

Getting initial approval is what really turns a collection of documents into a business charter template. This step normally involves the project manager as well as key sponsors, organizers, and stakeholders.

5. Save it for later

It's a good idea to save it for later use as a reference or even as a sample project charter template for future projects. You can also use any example of a project charter as a guide to help you create your own custom template in the future.

There you have it! Assembling a high-quality project charter template doesn't have to be an impossible task. Follow these steps and you'll be well on your way to getting your project off the ground.

Key elements of an effective Project Charter Template

A simple project charter template should still include key elements that outline the project's purpose, goals, timelines, and roles and responsibilities of team members.

1. Essential project information

An effective project charter template should include information such as project name, project definition, project sponsor, project manager, key stakeholders & core project team members.

Example
Project Name: Groundbreaking Project
Project Sponsor: Charlie Brown
Project Manager: Snoopy

2. Statement of Work (SOW)

SOW provides an overview of the scope of the project, projected deliverables, and project criteria. Be specific about what's motivating your project and why it's necessary (sometimes referred to as business need). You can use a charter document template to ensure that this section is comprehensive and covers all the necessary information.

Example: A specific, concise overview of the scope of the project, the motivations behind it & the most important deliverables.

3. Project background

This section provides additional context on the purpose and objectives of the project, as well as any relevant background information. Charter templates can help ensure that this section includes all the necessary information to provide a comprehensive understanding of the project's history and goals.

4. Business Case

A proper business case helps validate the purpose of the project and gives more validation to the time and resources spent on it.

Our free project charter template can provide a structured approach for creating a business case, ensuring that all relevant factors are considered and the case is presented in a clear and convincing manner.

Pro Tip: Be specific when it comes to your statement of work. This might seem obvious, but defining motivations at the project start can go a long way in terms of future planning and avoiding problems down the road.

5. Project objectives and goals

Objectives and goals are a critical component of an effective project charter template. By clearly outlining the desired outcomes, a project team can align on priorities and ensure everyone is working towards a shared vision. Anticipating how your viewers define goals and objectives in a template for project charter can simplify the process and provide a structured framework for successful project completion.

6. Project timeline

This section of the one-page project charter template should include a detailed timeline that accounts for the general project lifecycle, major milestones, and end dates. While this information doesn't need to be set in stone and can be updated in real-time, it's important to have a clear plan in place to ensure the project stays on track.

7. Project budget & financial projections

This section of the basic project charter template should aim to provide an overview of the assumed costs and be aware of the project budget. It is essential to include detailed financial projections in this section, including estimates for all costs associated with the project, such as labor, materials, and equipment.

8. Project constraints, assumptions, risks & dependencies

This section of the project charter form outlines any known threats to the project's success, as well as any constraints, assumptions, and dependencies that must be accounted for in the project plan. It is important to identify these factors early on and address them in the project charter template to ensure that they are properly managed throughout the project lifecycle.

9. Project success criteria & indicators

This section of the program charter template should outline the measurable indicators that will clearly demonstrate your project's success. These indicators should always refer back to the purpose of the project, and should be specific, achievable, and measurable. By including this section in your project charter templates, you can ensure that all stakeholders are aligned on what success looks like and how it will be measured.

10. Approval Signatures

Designated space for signatures of all stakeholders who approve the project charter format, indicating their commitment to the project.

Advantages of having a Project Charter Template

A charter template is an essential component of any large-scale project because it:

1. Authorizes the Initiation of the Project

Project charter templates are formal documents that authorize the initiation of projects, as well as the project team members to carry it out. This means that they provide a clear framework for the project's activities, ensuring that everyone involved understands their roles and responsibilities.

2. Outlines Key Project Elements and Deliverables

A good charter document template makes sure everyone has a shared understanding of the project itself, outlining key project elements and deliverables. This ensures that there's no confusion on deliverables or criteria, and helps to keep everyone on the same page.

Pro Tip: This is especially important when talking about the scope of the project.

3. Provides a Powerful Project Organization Tool

Project charter templates are invaluable organizational resources. Project team members and project managers alike will refer back to it throughout the project's lifecycle. By using a project management charter template, you can keep all the necessary information in one place and easily accessible to everyone involved.

4. Indicates Project Value from the Get-Go

It's easy for project management to determine your project's value just by glancing at your essential project information and project statement.

5. Instills Confidence in All Parties Involved

An excellent project charter template explicitly sets out all the most important parts of a project, well-placed headers and sign-offs included. This shows all parties involved that your project will be a success and should be taken seriously.

Slite's Free Project Charter Template

Are you ready to put together a project charter template for your next project? We're thrilled that we've convinced you. In even better news, we have a project charter template that you can use to take the first steps in your project charter development process.Here at Slite, we're passionate about helping you work with your team collaboratively and efficiently. Forget about emailing documents and excel sheets back and forth and use our free template to keep all the key documents you need in one place. What are you waiting for?

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