Project Charter in Project Management

A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to produce a unique product or service

The characteristics of projects are

• Specific start and end date
• Has a defined objective
• Series of tasks to achieve a defined outcome or objective

The temporary nature of project indicate that it have a definite start & end date. Temporary doesnt means that the project have to be short duration like months, projects can span for years duration.

Fulfillment of project objectives may produce one or more deliverables like

1. Unique product ( a complete product or enhancement of a existing product or correction of product etc.)
2. Unique service ( a support function)
3. Unique result ( new process, documents etc.)

Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools & technique to the project activities to meet the project requirement. Project management enables the organization to execute the projects effectively & efficiently.

Effective project management helps organization to

1. Meet business objectives
2. Meet stakeholders expectations
3. Increase chance of successful project
4. Manage constraints
5. Manage risks in timely manner
6. Control changes

The core component of project management are

• Business case for why a project is necessary
• Capturing project requirements, specifying quality of the deliverable, estimating resources and timescales
• Developing and implementing a management plan for the project
• Leading and motivating the project delivery team
• Managing the risks, issues and changes on the project
• Monitoring Project progress against plan
• Managing the project budget
• Maintaining communications with stakeholders and the project organisation
• Procurement management
• closing the project in a controlled fashion when appropriate.

Poorly managed project with out project management will fail & result in

1. Missed deliverables
2. High cost
3. Poor quality
4. Rework
5. Lost of reputation for organization
6. Unsatisfied stakeholders

A Project Charter is a document that describes the purpose of a project and its scope, it legally authorizes the beginning of the project.It provides a preliminary delineation of roles and responsibilities, outlines the project objectives, identifies the main stakeholders, and defines the authority of the project manager. It serves as a reference of authority for the future of the project.

A project charter includes:

• The essence of the project.
• Provide a shared understanding of the project.
• Act as a legal agreement between the project sponsor, key stakeholders and the project team to start the project.

The project charter is to documents:

• Reasons for undertaking the project
• Objectives and constraints of the project
• Directions concerning the solution
• Identifies the main stakeholders
• In-scope and out-of-scope items
• High level Risks identified
• Target project benefits
• High level budget and spending authority

Understand about organizational structure here

The project charter is a document that officially starts a project or a phase. It formally authorizes the existence of the project and provides a reference source for the future.It explain the business need that lead to the project being taken up.The project charter is signed by the sponsor.

Many people do not understand the importance of a Project Charter. They believe that Project Charter does not serve any specific purpose.They do not realize Project Charter and Contract serve different purposes. They believe when contract is available project charter is not needed.

The project charter includes fundamental information used to authorize and establish the basis for a project.

Reference: http://www.thetips4you.com/what-is-a-project-charter-project-charter-vs-contract-vs-statement-of-work/

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