ISCID

Université du Littoral Côte d’Opale

Cours de Gestion de Projet International
Litumba PIYA-LEKI

PROJ ECT CHARTER TEMPLATE

Document Purpose

This document outlines the content and format of project charters to be used for projects as part
of the Project Management Methodology.

The project charter is intended to serve as a communication vehicle that will be used as the basis
for guiding project development. Depending on the project scope, this document will be
reviewed by either the project management professor and project team for approval, and
therefore the project parameters should be clearly defined with sufficient information to help
project team make a decision.

The decision will be one of the following:

i. Approval to plan
€ Approval to spend the resources necessary to develop a detailed project plan
(large, complex projects)
ii. Approval to execute
€ Approval to proceed with project execution (small, inexpensive, shorter projects)
iii. On hold
€ Approval in principle with the project concept, but certain conditions must be met
prior to proceeding with project execution.
iv. Rejection
€ Project is declined

This template identifies the key sections needed for all project charters. Text in italics contains
instructions, and should be removed from the final version of the project charter.

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 ISCID
Université du Littoral Côte d’Opale
Cours de Gestion de Projet International
Litumba PIYA-LEKI

PROJECT CHARTER – PROJECT #

Project Name Name of the Project listed in the Project Proposal

Author(s) of Charter Author(s)
Date Date of submission

Description

The goal of this project is to (encapsulate in one sentence the final deliverable or outcome of the
project so that everyone understands what is to be accomplished in clear terms) …

Purpose

Briefly introduce the project. What is the opportunity or problem that the project will address?
Identify the key needs that the project is designed to meet, and include any background material
on reasons why the project needs have arisen. *Be concise*, and include any background or
supporting information as an appendix to this document.

Project Sponsor

The Project Sponsor provides support for the Project Manager by securing resources, assisting
with major issues and policy conflicts, approving scope changes, signing off on major
deliverables, and providing the approval to proceed to each succeeding project phase.

Position, incumbent’s name

Customer(s)

What are the enterprise, the organization or the person that will use the results of the project?
Identify the key clients of the system or service, and where in the organization they are located.

Project Budget

This section identifies the costs that will be incurred as a result of this project. This includes any
costs during the development/execution of the project (fiscal funding) and any post-
implementation costs needed to maintain the project (base budget).

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 ISCID
Université du Littoral Côte d’Opale
Cours de Gestion de Projet International
Litumba PIYA-LEKI

Category Description of Items Fiscal Funding Base Funding

(one-time costs) (recurring costs)
People
- Staffing
(internal posting)
- Overtime
- Consultants
System
- Hardware
- Software
- Environmental
Other
- External Support
- Training/docn
TOTALS:

Success Criteria

How will it be known that the overall project was a success? What is the bottom-line impact of
the project? It is essential that the criteria be quantifiable and measurable, and if possible,
expressed in terms of business benefit to the Enterprise. Each of the following tangible benefits
should be considered when identifying the business value to be achieved:
€ Non-negotiable operational requirement or legislative demand
€ Lower the cost to operate the Enterprise
€ Lower risks of running the Enterprise
€ Deliver products & services faster; improve efficiency and effectiveness
€ Handle more work with same resources; maximize use of existing assets
€ Improve customer service and satisfaction
€ Grow volume profitably
€ Increase innovation & improve learning processes

Some examples of success criteria are shown in the table below.

Business Value Criteria for Project Success Measurement

Scope

In Scope (Project Deliverables): What features and functions will the project deliver? List all of
the major deliverables of the project, including the final product or process to be created. This
section forms the agreement between the Project Sponsor and the ISCID project team about the
expected results of the project.

Out of Scope: Identify what is not part of this project. This section is included to help clarify the
boundary between what is in the project and what is not.

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 ISCID
Université du Littoral Côte d’Opale
Cours de Gestion de Projet International
Litumba PIYA-LEKI

In Scope (Project Deliverables) Out of Scope

Assumptions

List the key assumptions that the project depends on (resources, policies, scheduling, technology,
etc). These are critical factors that are considered to be real, true, or certain; however, there is
an element of risk in these assumptions as we do not have 100% accurate information about them
even though they may have been the basis for initial project decision-making. An example
assumption could be that a particular subject matter expert (SME) is available to start working
full-time on a project at a particular date.

€ Use point form

Constraints

List any restrictions or limitations that will guide decision-making throughout the life of the
project. Typically, these constraints cover cost, scheduling, staffing and quality. An example
constraint could be that the project must be completed by a specific date due to a particular
reason (ie Project must be completed by June 27, 2006 which is the beginning of Fall 2006
registration because it impacts the Banner registration processes.)

€ Use point form

Milestones

What are the key events in the life of the project? When are they expected and what should be
delivered on these dates?

Milestone/Deliverable Target Finish Date

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 ISCID
Université du Littoral Côte d’Opale
Cours de Gestion de Projet International
Litumba PIYA-LEKI

Resourcing/Person Days Needed

List the staffing needs of the project. This list should include the project manager, functional
analysts, and developers who will contribute to the project throughout its life. It should also
include any subject matter experts who will need to be included on a part-time basis. Based on
the Milestones, document approximately how many person days will be needed to complete the
project.

*Current % Person
Position Project Responsibilities
or New Time Days

TOTAL PDs:
*’Current’ means existing resources. ‘New’ indicates a new resource will be needed; the cost of which should be reflected in the Project Budget

Risks

What are the risks involved to successfully complete the project? For each risk, identify the
probability of occurrence and the expected severity of impact if it does. A mitigation strategy for
the risks listed below should be documented in the Project Plan as part of the Risk Management
Plan.

Risk
Impact on Project Severity Probability Rating
Risk Name Description
(In Cost, PD, Schedule, Other) (H,M,L) (H,M,L) *see
note

*HxH = H HxM = H HxL = M MxL = M MxM = M LxL = L

H = High M = Medium L = Low

Alternatives

What other approaches have been considered? List the alternative project strategies available to
deliver the project such as outsourcing, purchasing, etc. Also list alternatives to the project such
as manual processing, status quo, etc.

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 ISCID
Université du Littoral Côte d’Opale
Cours de Gestion de Projet International
Litumba PIYA-LEKI

For ISCID Project Office Use Only

Charter Approval Date

Budget Amount Approved

Budget FOAPAL

Project Manager Assigned

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