Free template
Project charter template
A project charter gives a project its mandate: why it exists, what it will deliver, who is accountable, and what success looks like. Use this template to write one in an afternoon.
Copy the sections below into your own document, then write each one with the guidance under it. Most teams finish a first draft in an afternoon and refine it with their sponsor.
The template, section by section
- 1. Executive summary
- Write this last, in one paragraph: the problem or opportunity, what the project will do about it, and the outcome the sponsor is paying for.
- 2. Purpose and justification
- Name the business need behind the project and why it matters now. If the project supports a wider goal, name that goal.
- 3. Objectives and success criteria
- List three to five objectives, each measurable. For each, write the evidence that will show it was met, and by when.
- 4. Scope
- Draw the boundary: what the project will deliver, and just as clearly, what it will not. The out-of-scope list prevents the hardest conversations later.
- 5. Deliverables
- List the major deliverables with a sentence on what finished means for each, and who accepts it.
- 6. Milestones and target dates
- Five to ten milestones with target dates is enough for a charter; the detailed schedule comes later.
- 7. Budget summary
- State the approved budget at a summary level, who controls it, and the point at which an overrun goes back to the sponsor.
- 8. Assumptions
- Record the conditions you are treating as true for planning. For each, name who will validate it, by when, and how the plan would change if it proves false.
- 9. Risks and constraints
- List the biggest known risks with a planned response for each, then the fixed constraints the plan must respect: deadlines, budget ceilings, regulations, or required technology.
- 10. Stakeholders and roles
- Name the sponsor, the project manager, and the people whose approval or work the project needs, each with their role in one line.
- 11. Approval
- The sponsor's sign-off, with name, role, and date. A charter without an approval line is a proposal.
Tips for a charter people read
- Keep it to two or three pages. A charter is a mandate, not a plan; detail belongs in the schedule and the RAID log.
- Write the executive summary last, once the other sections agree with each other.
- Review the charter with the sponsor before kick-off, and treat any change to scope, budget, or dates as a change to the charter.
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