As someone who teaches project management at the graduate level, I often find myself moving quickly through the "introductory" tools of the profession—scope statements, stakeholder registers, project charters. After all, my students are future leaders, already thinking about agile transformations, earned value management, and strategic portfolio alignment.
But recently, while revisiting core documents with my class,
I found myself unexpectedly falling back in love with one of the most essential
and underappreciated tools in the project manager's toolkit: the project
charter.
It was The Project Management Tool Kit by Tom
Kendrick (2013) that reminded me why the project charter deserves more
attention—not less—at the graduate level. Kendrick doesn’t treat the charter as
a checklist item or administrative requirement. He presents it as a strategic
control document, one that establishes authority, aligns stakeholders, and
serves as a living reference point throughout the project lifecycle. In doing
so, he elevates its importance in ways I had admittedly started to overlook.
Why the Project Charter Still Matters—More Than Ever
So, what caused this renewed appreciation?
For one, I started looking at the project charter through a strategic
lens rather than a procedural one. The charter is not just about initiating the
project; it’s about establishing purpose, authority, and accountability.
According to the PMBOK® Guide – Seventh Edition (Project Management
Institute, 2021), the project charter formally authorizes a project and gives
the project manager the authority to apply organizational resources. That’s
foundational—especially in large or matrixed organizations where ambiguity can stall
decision-making and delay progress.
Kendrick builds on this by positioning the charter as a baseline
for control. When changes in scope, timeline, or budget arise (as they always
do), the charter provides a reference point for evaluating whether those
changes are justified. It reinforces project governance by defining who has
decision-making authority and how changes should be escalated and approved.
Alignment, Not Assumption
One of the most common pitfalls I see in student
projects (and in real-world consulting engagements) is misalignment of
stakeholder expectations. Kendrick highlights how the charter can serve as an
early and critical tool for stakeholder engagement. By clearly outlining the
project's purpose, objectives, and constraints up front, the charter becomes a
tool for consensus-building. It gets everyone, sponsors, team members,
clients, on the same page before execution begins.
This early alignment pays dividends. A well-crafted charter
reduces the risk of mid-project confusion, scope creep, or duplicated effort.
It also supports stronger communication because all parties share a single
source of truth for why the project exists and what success looks like.
Risks, Roles, and Responsibility
In addition to scope and objectives, the project charter
captures preliminary risks, assumptions, and constraints. While this is not a
substitute for a full risk management plan, Kendrick argues that acknowledging
high-level risks early prepares the team for what may come and encourages
proactive mitigation.
Equally important, the charter defines roles and
responsibilities, clarifying who is accountable for what. In classroom teams
and client-facing projects alike, I’ve found that unclear roles are often the
root of frustration and inefficiency. The charter resolves that tension before
it begins by making authority and responsibility explicit.
What a Strong Charter Includes
To be effective, a project charter should include the
following elements (PMI, 2021; Kendrick, 2013):
- Project
title and high-level description
- Business
justification or strategic alignment
- Measurable
project objectives
- Scope
overview and major deliverables
- Assumptions,
constraints, and high-level risks
- Timeline
or key milestones
- Initial
budget estimate
- Key
stakeholders and their roles
- The
name and authority of the project manager
- Sponsor
authorization and sign-off
These components ensure the charter is more than a
formality. It becomes a foundation for governance, communication, risk
planning, and team cohesion.
Rediscovering the Basics
Teaching this material again and watching my students
wrestle with the precision required to write a good charter, reminded me of
something critical: mastery in project management doesn’t mean moving past the
fundamentals. It means using them better. The charter is not a simple document.
It is a strategic declaration. It sets the tone for disciplined execution,
promotes shared understanding, and gives the project legitimacy in the eyes of
the organization.
So yes, I fell back in love with the project charter. And I
hope more project leaders do the same—not because it is basic, but because it
is powerful.
Happy Thursday, my fellow project charter enthusiasts,
–srt
P.S.
Before I am called a heathen (or other) for suggesting a project charter is necessary
for all project management methodologies, let me stop you. I believe that while
not every project management methodology formally requires a project charter, most
benefit from some version of it. Traditional and hybrid approaches rely on
charters for authority, alignment, and governance, while agile methods often
replace them with lighter-weight vision statements or product briefs. In
frameworks like Lean Six Sigma, the charter is a standard tool used to define
the problem and scope. Regardless of the methodology, a well-crafted charter—or
its equivalent—serves a critical role in clarifying purpose, aligning
stakeholders, and establishing accountability from the outset.
References
Kendrick, T. (2013). The Project Management Tool Kit: 100 Tips and
Techniques for Getting the Job Done Right. AMACOM.
Project Management Institute. (2021). A Guide to the Project Management Body
of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) – Seventh Edition. PMI.
