What is a Project Charter and how to prepare it?

When deciding on a company to launch another project, we want to know as precisely as possible what we are deciding on. Describing the scope of the project, its goal, milestones, business case, estimated project duration, or budget are just some of the elements of a well-constructed Project Charter.

What will you learn from this article?

What is a Project Charter and what role does it play in project management,
What elements should a well-prepared Project Charter contain,
How the Project Charter supports communication within the team and change management,
What the structure of a Project Charter looks like, using the FlexiProject system as an example,
Who should fill out the Project Charter and what the process of creating it looks like,
Why a well-prepared Project Charter increases the chances of project success.

What is the project charter used for?

The practical application of the Project Charter is not limited to the moment when a decision is made to launch a project. Those who develop the Project Charter carry out a structured thought process. It allows the project to be well thought out and this will greatly reduce understatement and ambiguity during project implementation. An important purpose of the Project Charter is also effective communication between the project team and the company’s management. If during the course of the project, the business case changes or we are forced to modify the scope of the project or the strategic goals to be achieved, it is worth recording this by modifying the Project Charter. If we archive each Project Charter when significant changes occur in the project, we can always go back in history and understand how the project has changed since its launch. The Project Charter is usually created before the project team is established. Every member of the project team should be familiar with the Project Charter. It should also be thoroughly discussed at the Kick-Off meeting so that the team thoroughly understands the expectations set for the project and how to approach its implementation.

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What should a Project Charter contain?

When discussing what a sample Project Card should contain, I will use the Card that has been included in the FlexiProject system. For those who will want to design their own Project Card, the one presented here can serve as a certain Project Card template. As you can see in the picture below, Project Cards are most often divided into several separate sections. In the example below, the first section is called “Information.” It contains fields related to project roles, project number, project category, project portfolio affiliation, or estimated project duration. Also visible on the right is a graphic showing how attractive the project is in terms of the value its implementation will bring to the organization. The points on the attractiveness chart are drawn automatically because FlexiProject has a module sewn into it to evaluate the attractiveness of a project.

The next section is the section on the purpose, scope, and business case of the project, which in FlexiProject is called “Project Description.” The figure below also shows the “Benefits” and “Milestones” sections. It is worth noting that the milestones on this Sheet are drawn automatically when we place them on the project schedule. The completed Project Card (such as the one shown in the posted illustrations) is for a project that has been developed only to demonstrate the example and capabilities of the system.

Who should fill out the Project Charter?

In practice, in organizations, the process of launching a new project often looks like this. First, a so-called Initiative Charter (sometimes also called an Idea Charter) is developed, in which the project idea is described. Very often, the structure of the Initiative Card and the Project Card is also very similar. Once the Initiative Card is approved, we set up the Project Card, which we simply detail. The Initiative Charter is most often filled out by the project initiator. This can be various people in the organization. Before deciding to launch a project, the Initiative Charter is often reviewed by the Project Management Office – if there is one in the company. Once the decision has been made to launch the project and the Project Manager has been appointed, further modification of the Project Charter is left to the Project Manager.

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Maximizing project success through a well-crafted Project Charter

The Project Charter is a very important part of the project documentation. A great deal of care should be taken to ensure that the Charter is well thought out. It is a tool for making decisions. These, in turn, are all the better, the better the information available based on which such a decision is made. In addition, it is a kind of signpost for the project team, telling what is and how the project is to be achieved.