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Project Charter Template for ISO 21500 Project Management

ProjectManagers.org-Download-Template

Project Charter Template for ISO 21500 Project Management. The ISO 21500 Project Charter template that we are giving for FREE today to you covers the ISO 21500 Project Management International Standard but also any other national standards and frameworks compliant with ISO 21500 such us: ANSI PMI PMBOK for PMP, IPMA Competence Baseline (ICB), APM Body Of Knowledge, British Standards Institute (BSI) Guide to Project Management (BS 6079), Project Management South Affrica (PMSA), Project Manager Competency Development (PMCD), Project Management Association of Japan (PMAJ) Project and Program Management for Enterprise Innovation (P2M), Australian Institute of Project Management (AIPM) Competency StandardsAXELOS PRINCE2, etc.

This Project Charter Template will be useful for any serious Project Manager initiating a project. In fact, Develop the Project Charter is the first process in ISO 21500 Project Management. The output is the Project Charter, the document that formally authorizes a project or phase.

I say a “serious” Project Manager, because the Project Charter formally recognizes the existence of the project and describes the project objectives and deliverables, and the business need that it is addressing.

It is normally the responsibility of the Sponsor to create the Project Charter, but in practice the task is often delegated to future the Project Manager. The Project Charter is the document that provides the Project Manager with formal approval to execute the project.

Develop the Project Charter may have the following inputs: a project statement of work, a contract, a business case or previous phase documents.

The Business Case is previous because defines the reason why a project is authorized in the Project Charter.


The elements of a Project Charter are the following:

Project charter template section 1: Project purpose or justification

This section defines the reason why the project is being undertaken, that is, how the project aligns with the strategies, goals and objectives of the business. Usually also includes a financial analysis of the cost and benefits of the project.

This is the first point of the Project Charter because the business case must be reassessed throughout the project as conditions change, and the results should be communicated to the project sponsor. Based on this information, the sponsor may decide the continuation or termination of the project or phase.

Project charter template section 2: Project description

This section provides a project overview, the description of the Product that is to be built and the project deliverables.

Project charter template section 3: Project and product requirements

In this section are defined all the high-level conditions or capabilities that must be met to satisfy the purpose of the project.A description of the product features can be included, according the stakeholders needs and expectations. We say “high-level” because detailed requirement gathering will be done later in the planning phase of the project (included in the Scope Plan).

Project charter template section 4: Project roadmap

The Project Roadmap is the summary milestones or main events in the project, including key dates for deliverables, start and end of product acceptances, and of project phases. 

Project charter template section 5: Acceptance criteria

This point is critical. An early identification and agreement of the criteria for accepting each of the deliverables will save a lot of time to the Project Manager. May be helpful a table with each of the deliverables or project objectives, success criteria and name of the customer/sponsor responsible to accept it. Take into account that during the project, stakeholders may change and new stakeholders may have different points of view, so this point is critical for avoiding future reworks. Remember to include for each deliverable: HOW will be accepted (the Success Criteria – the specific and measurable criteria that will determine a project deliverable successful) and WHO will approve your deliverables.

Project charter template section 6: Initial risks

Another critical point is documenting the initial project risks. Later these risks will be included in the Risk Register, that it is build in the Identify Risks process of the ISO 21500 Planning process group.

Project charter template section 7: Estimated budget

The Estimated Budget may include tolerances for costs in the Project. Can be a total assigned budget or a list of estimated costs by nature/typology for a better project control.

Project charter template section 8: Preliminary roles and responsibilities

This section also describes the duties of the Project Team. This includes people who should be involved and why and how they might be involved. This might include Customers, Stakeholders, and the Project Team.

Project charter template section 9: Identification of the project manager. project manager’s authority level

The Project Manager Identification designates the Project Manager who has primary project oversight responsibility.  

 The description of the project manager’s authority outlines the level of authority given to the project manager. This would include financial oversight and level of decision making.

Staffing decisions

This is the Project Charter Template parte where it is given authority to the Project Manager for hiring, firing, discipline, accepting or not accepting project staff.

Budget management and variance

On this Project Charter Template section where it is given authority to the Project Manager for making technical decisions about the deliverables or the project approach.

Technical decisions

Here is the Project Charter Template section where it is given authority to the Project Manager for making technical decisions about the deliverables or the project approach.

Conflict resolution

This Project Charter Template section where it is given authority for authority to the Project Manager for resolving conflicts within the team, within the organization and with external stakeholders.

Escalation path for authority limitations

On this Project Charter Template section where it is defined the path of escalation for issues outside the authority level of the Project Manager.

Project charter template section 10: Approvals signature

 This is the approval required from the project’s sponsor to give the green light (go-ahead) to the project.

No matter if you are using ISO 21500 Project Management International Standard on your project or any other national standards and frameworks compliant with ISO 21500 such us: ANSI PMI PMBOK for PMP, IPMA Competence Baseline (ICB), APM Body Of Knowledge, British Standards Institute (BSI) Guide to Project Management (BS 6079), Project Management South Affrica (PMSA), Project Manager Competency Development (PMCD), Project Management Association of Japan (PMAJ) Project and Program Management for Enterprise Innovation (P2M), Australian Institute of Project Management (AIPM) Competency StandardsAXELOS PRINCE2, etc. This is a must for any Project Manager initiating a project:

ProjectManagers.org-Download-Template

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