A project charter document is a notice designed to let job participants know the important factors of the assignment they are working on. It is issued once, and is also used by the assignment's sponsor to give a general direction for the work and the manager.
The leader or the venture's sponsor is usually responsible for writing the document; and what is written must be approved by the resource manager, the sponsor and the client.
Identification
A project charter document states the specific jobs of the workers, who the main stakeholders are, how much power the manager has, and what the objectives are. It is signed, sent to every person connected to the task, and refers to more detailed documents, like the "request for proposal."
There can be seven sections that cover all aspects of the venture. First is the overview which presents the problem to be worked on, describes the plan, lists the objectives and goals, the scope, what is necessary for success, any assumptions and limitations. The second area covers where the financing will come from, who will have oversight and what the major points of accomplishments will be. The third area outlines the assignment structure, who does what and who is responsible for what, where it will be worked on and what will be available for its completion. Fourth is information on who to contact for the various aspects of the plan. The fifth area is a directory which explains all of the terminology. If there has been any revision to the task since it was first conceived it will be included in the sixth area, the revision history section. The seventh section of the charter document is the appendix, where any add-on information that is relevant will be placed.
Considerations
A project charter document can also be referred to by other names such as the "project definition," "project overview statement" (POS) or "terms of reference."
Features
The project charter involves the directing of the task's best solution, objectives and constraints, reasons for starting the work, and the identities of the proposed plan's stakeholders. It enables the ranking of planned work and authorizes a return on an investment while being a reference for change in order to maintain the scope. At its minimum it has three main uses: job authorization, primary sales document, and focus point.
Significance
Project charter documents unify the assignment workers' understanding of the task's goal. They coordinate all priorities and clarifie jobs.
Without a plan, individual workers would complete their efforts as described by their own plan while not being informed about what the overall mission is. The result could be work that is not on target for needed results.
Effects
The main effect of the project charter document is that it is a cohesive reference that authorizes work to be done and makes it possible to prioritize work according to what will be the best return on investment. As a sales document it shows investors a summary and provides a clear cut case for needed resources.
