The Project Charter
The most Important and Powerful Document to
use for Initiating, Controlling and Preparing a
Project in order to ensure Project Quality
Presented by Mark Troncone, MBA, PMP®, ITILv3, CSM®
Agenda
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Why do you need a Project Charter?
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When is a Project Charter Created?
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Why is a Project Charter Important?
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When should a Project Charter be used?
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How to Create a Project Charter
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The Traditional Sections to Include
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The New Sections that Must be included for Quality
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When should it be Updated?
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Who Should Sign Off?
About Me
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PMP® Certified – Project Management Institute
CRM Certified SCRUM Master® – SCRUM Alliance
ITILv3 Foundations® Certified Certified IT Business Analyst – IFS State of Connecticut
MT Associates - Active career transition mentor
MBA – Management, BS – Marketing, AS – Accounting
Work Experience:
Save the Children
Transact Technologies
Starwood Hotels
Affinion Group
Hewitt Associates
Wachovia Bank
Bayer Pharmaceuticals
Reader’s Digest
James River Corporation
Why do you need a Project Charter
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As a Project Manager – it is your “Power Document” to use
throughout the life of a project
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You cannot start nor run a Project without one
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The Project Charter formally recognizes /authorizes the existence of
the Project
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A project does not exist without a Project Charter
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The Project Charter gives the Project Manager authority to spend
money and commit corporate resources
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The Project Charter provides “high-level” requirements and scope
for the Project
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The Project Charter links the Project to the on-going work of the
organization
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Any changes to the Project Charter after “Sign-Off” will necessitate
questioning whether or not the Project should continue
When is a Project Charter Created
Tasks developed during the Initiating Phase:
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Select a Project Manager
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Determine company culture and existing systems
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Divide large projects into Phases
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Understand the Business Case
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Uncover “Initial” requirements and risks
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Create Measurable Objectives
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Identify Stakeholders (I would do this before the Project Charter)
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Develop Stakeholder Management Strategy
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Create Project Charter
Why is a Project Charter Important
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Defines how success will be measured
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Defines Deliverables/Scope (Project and Product)
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Defines the Project Manager Authority Level
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Defines Project Team roles and responsibilities
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Defines the Business Case
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Defines the Stakeholders and their Expectations
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Defines Measurable Objectives
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Defines Project Approval Requirements
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Defines “High Level” Project Risks
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I will define other areas to add later in the presentation
When should a Project Charter be used
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As mentioned, the Project Charter should be developed
during the Initiation Phase of the Project
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The Project Charter should be reviewed after the Project
“Kick-Off” meeting with:
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The Stakeholder(s)
Key Business User(s)
Subject Matter Expert(s)
3rd Party Vendor lead(s)
Project Team
Project Sponsor(s)
The Project Charter should also be referenced throughout
the project conflict resolutions concerning any area of
dispute of how the project should be run. This then
becomes the Project Manager’s Power Document to say “This is what we agreed on”
How to Create a Project Charter
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You should have a template document created with
all of the sections included in this presentation to
quickly - fill out / update / amend
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Also include:
• Revision History (in the front)
• Table of contents (in the front after the Revision History)
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Sign Off Section (last page of the document)
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Sign Off Section to include:
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Project Sponsor(s)
Key Stakeholder(s)
Project Manager
Other Representatives as determined
The Traditional Sections of the Project
Charter to Include
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Cover Page:
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Company Name/Logo
Project Name and Project Number
Date Created (MM/DD/YYY)
Version Number
Revision History (Type / Date / Change and Section / By Whom)
 Table of Contents
 Project Title and Description
 Project Scope (High Level Deliverables and end result of the project)
 Business Case (Why is the Project being done)
 Project Manager Assigned and their Authority Level
 Stakeholders and Stakeholder Requirements
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The Traditional Sections of the Project
Charter to Include
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Project Agreements:
• What your business will provide
• What the other entity will provide (if necessary)
• What a 3rd Party Vendor will provide (if necessary)
• Responsibilities of any entity or 3rd Party Vendor Project Manager
• Products to be Installed/Upgraded
• Exclusions (What the company is excluded from delivering)
• Assumptions / Constraints
• Acceptance Criteria
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Measurable Project Objectives (measurable strategic goals)
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Project Approval Requirements (items needing approval)
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High Level Business Risks (potential risks and opportunities)
The New Project Charter Sections that
Must be included for Quality
I suggest adding the sections mentioned on the following
slides to ensure quality is delivered throughout the
project:
• For larger projects (> one year, > $$$ Budget and > X amount of
resources) you may want to have separate documents addressing
these areas with separate meetings and sign-offs. This can be
time consuming but necessary.
• For smaller projects it will improve the process to have all of these
sections combined in one document (Project Charter) that can be
referenced and updated easily.
• Also all topics within this Project Charter can be reviewed,
discussed and agreed upon in one meeting with all of the
significant team members present.
The New Project Charter Sections that
Must be included for Quality
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Project Plan and Milestones (without dates)
• Describes how the project will be run and managed
• Names the Milestone Tasks to achieve for each phase
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Project Communications Plan
◦ Describes how the project team will communicate:
• To Stakeholders, Project Sponsors, Key Business Users
• To the Project Team, Partnering Entity, 3rd Prty Vendor
• To any other resource needing updates
• How the Project Team will communicate Project Tasks updates
• Contains a Visual Project Task Spreadsheet
• Project Meetings – Structure / Agenda / How Often / Schedules
• Weekly Project Dashboard and Status Reports – Schedules
The New Project Charter Sections that
Must be included for Quality
• Communications of any “Sub-Teams” – Structure and agenda
• Chart for Scheduled Meetings (meeting name, method,
attendees, leader, frequency)
• Contacts Lists (Name, Title, Phone, Email Address)
• Email Subject Line Structure
 Project Name
 Project Categories
 Project Level (1= High Must Read, 2 = medium Be Informed, 3 = Low FYI)
 Subject Line Message
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Requirements Plan
• High level plan describing how requirements will be gathered
• Estimates Business Analyst effort and Business Commitment
The New Project Charter Sections that
Must be included for Quality
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Requirements
• How they will be gathered (Functional and Non-Functional)
• Method for Reviewing Requirements with business
• Commitments of time from the business to ensure requirements
are delivered on time
• How Sign-Offs will be obtained
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Project Risk Management Plan
• How Risks will be Captured / Scored / Responded To
• Contingency Plans developed here
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Project Issues Management Plan
• How Issues will be Categorized / Rated for Severity / Monitored
and resolved – then communicated back to all Team Members
The New Project Charter Sections that
Must be included for Quality
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Project Change Control Management Plan
• To Log a Requested Change / Prioritize / Note Effects / Approve
• Change Approval while project is in-flight
• Change Enhancement after Project Closure
• Change Dismissed as Not Needed
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Project Training Plan
• Training Plan including system modules and written manuals
• Training Plan Schedule and who will need to be trained
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Project Testing Plan
• Unit Testing – by developers and review with the business
• QA Testing – Test Scripts and Sign-Off
• UAT Testing – Test Scripts and Sign-Off
The New Project Charter Sections that
Must be included for Quality
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Project Implementation Plan
• Technical Cut Over – High Level Tasks – incl. Non-Functionals
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Project “Go Live” Plan
• Go Live Plan (duration) and Monitoring
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Project Closure
• Project Closing Plan
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Project Lessons Learned Management Plan
• Identify Type / Severity / Escalation Process / where to keep
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Project – Application Support Plan
• How will the application be supported (Customer Service and
Help Desk) – who will need training
When to Update the Project Charter
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Update up and to the final presentation to the:
• Stakeholders
• Project Sponsors
• Key Business Users and Subject Matter experts
• Project Team
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Can be updated after reviewed and signed-off only
if all Team Members agree to the amendment
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But if continually changed or questioned after SignOff the question should be raised “Do we continue
with the project?”
Who should Sign-Off on the Project
Charter
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At a minimum the Project Charter should be signed off by:
• Stakeholder(s)
• Project Sponsor(s)
• Project Manager / Tech Lead / Business SME(s)
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Can be updated after reviewed
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Key Business Users and Subject Matter experts
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Other Key Department Stakeholders that this project may effect
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Key Project Team Members:
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DBA
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QA Lead
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Lead Developer
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Network or Technical Leads
QUESTIONS?
Tell me what you think
mtroncone73@yahoo.com