Project Charter Introduction:

Project Charter refers to a statement of objectives in a project. This statement also sets out detailed project goals, roles and responsibilities, identifies the main stakeholders, and the level of authority of a project manager. It acts as a guideline for future projects as well as an important material in the organization.s knowledge management system. The project charter is a short document that would consist of new offering request or a request for proposal. This document is a part of the project management process which is required by Initiative for Policy Dialogue (IPD) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM).

The Role of Project Charter:

Following are the roles of a Project Charter.

It documents the reasons for undertaking the project. Outlines the objectives and the constraints faced by the project. Provides solutions to the problem in hand. Identifies the main stakeholders of the project.

Benefits of Project Charter:

Following are the prominent benefits of Project Charter for a project.

It improves and paves way for good customer relationships. Project Charter also works as a tool that improves project management processes. Regional and headquarter communications can also be improved to a greater extent. By having a project charter, project sponsorship can also be gained. Project Charter recognizes senior management roles. Allows progression which is aimed at attaining industry best practices.

Elements in Project Charter:

Since project charter is a project planning tool which is aimed at resolving an issue or an opportunity, the below elements are essential for a good charter project. For an effective charter project, it needs to address these key elements.

Identity of the project. Time: the start date and the deadline for the project. People involved in the project. Outlined objectives and set targets. The reason for a project charter to be carried out, often referred to as 'business case'. Detailed description of a problem or an opportunity. The return expected from the project. Results that could be expected in terms of performance. The expected date that the objectives is to be achieved. Clearly defined roles and responsibilities of the participants involved. Requirement of resources that will be needed for the objectives to be achieved. Barriers and the risks involved with the project. Informed and effective communication plan.

Out of all above elements, there are three most important and essential elements that need further elaboration.

Business Case
This outlines the need for a project charter to take place. A business case should set out the benefits gained from carrying out a project charter. Benefits need not only be in terms of finance such as revenue, cost reduction etc but also the benefit that the customer receives. Following are the characteristics of a good business case.

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reasons of undertaking the project. benefits gained from undertaking the project now. consequences of not doing the project. factors that would conclude that it fits the business goals.

Project Scope
As the name denotes, it refers to the scope that the project will give the business if they undertake the project. Before doing a project, the following concerns need to be addressed:

The within scope and out of scope needs to be considered. The process that each team will focus upon. The start and end points for a process. Availability of resources. Constraints under which the team will work. Time limitations . The impact on the normal workload if the project is to be undertaken.

The Need for a Good Communication Plan:

The need for a good communication plan is at its utmost necessity when it comes to planning a project. Project Managers need to work on building a good communication plan which will help in meeting the overall objectives of a Project Charter. When creating a communication plan, the project manager needs to take the following into consideration:

Who - responsibility of each individuals participating in the project. What . The motive and the reason for communication plan. Where - location where the receiver could find information. When . the duration and the frequency of the communication plan. How . the mechanism which is used to facilitate the communication. Whom . The receivers of the communication.

Conclusion:
The project charter is not only a tool that is used for planning projects but also a communication mechanism that acts as a reference. A well planned project with an effective communication plan will definitely bring in success for the project undertaken at hand.

Project Scope

Introduction:
When it comes to project planning, defining the project scope is the most critical step. In case if you start the project without knowing what you are supposed to be delivering at the end to the client, and what the boundaries of the project, there is a little chance for you to success. In most of the instances, you actually do not have any chance to success with this unorganized approach. If you do not do a good job in project scope definition, project scope management during the project execution is almost impossible. The main purpose of the scope definition is to clearly describe the boundaries of your project. Clearly describing the boundaries is not enough when it comes to project. You need to get the client's agreement as well. Therefore, the defined scope of the project usually included into the contractual agreements between the client and the services provider. SOW, or in other words, Statement of Work, is one such document. In the project scope definition, the elements within the scope and out of the scope are well defined in order to clearly understand what will be the area under the project control. Therefore, you should identify more elements in detailed manner and divide them among the scope and out of scope.

How to Define the Project Scope:

When the project is about to be funded, there should be a set of defined deliveries and objectives for the project. There can be a high level scope statement prepared at this level. This high level scope statement can be taken from the initial documents such as SOW. In addition to the SOW, you need to use any other document or information in order to further define the project scope at this level. In case, if you feel that you do not have enough information to come up with a high level scope statement, you should then work closely with the client in order gather necessary information. Project objectives can be used for defining the project scope. As a matter of fact, there should be one or more deliveries addressing each project objective in the project. By looking at the deliverables, you can actually gauge the project scope. Once you get to know the main deliverables of the project, start asking questions about the other processes and different aspects of the project. First identifying and clearly defining the out of scope also helps you to understand the scope of a project. When you go on defining the out of scope, you will automatically get an idea of the real project scope. In order to follow this method, you need to have a defined scope up to a certain level. Whenever you identify an item for the scope or out-of-scope, make sure you document it then and there. Later, you can revisit these items and elaborate more on those. Once you have successfully defined the scope of the project, you need to get the sign-off from the related and applicable parties. Without proper sign-off for the scope, the next phases of the project, i.e. requirements gathering, might have issues in executing.

Scope Creep:
Scope creep is something common with every project. This refers to the incremental expansion of the project scope. Most of the time, the client may come back to the service provider during the project execution and add more requirements. Most of such requirements haven't been in the initial requirements. As a result, change requests need to be raised in order to cover the increasing costs of the services provider.

Due to business cope creep, there can be technological scope creep as well. The project team may require new technologies in order to address some of the new requirements in the scope. In such instances, the services provider may want to work with the client closely and make necessary logistic and financial arrangements.

Conclusion:
Project scope definition is the most important factor when it comes to project requirements. It is vital for services providers to define the scope of the project in order to successfully enter into an agreement with the client. In addition to this, the scope of the project

Project Success Criteria

Introduction:
As a project manager, the main objective of the project manager is to deliver the project within the time stated and on budget defined. However that's not all when it comes to project success criteria. In addition to above conditions, the project manager needs to work closely with the customer and should ensure the project deliverables have met the customer expectations. There are many parameters in a project success criterion.

Key Performance Indicators:

The first project success criterion is to deliver projects bearing in mind the business drivers. Key Performance Indicators (KPI's) is a method used to measure the benefits gained from undertaking the project. These provide an insight to the scope of the project. The performance indicators are:

Established by the clients at the start of the project and are listed on a priority basis. Aligned with the business objectives. Able to make critical decisions based on KPI's for the project. Prove to be a stance for products to be accepted by the clients. It's a quantitative method and it's measurable.

To create a project success criteria based on KPI is not enough, and targets need to be set. These set targets need to be realistic and achievable at the end.

The Project Manager's Verdict for Project Success Criteria

A project success criterion begins with the initiatives taken by the project manager to the project in question. This will increase the chances of the project becoming successful as well as meeting customer's expectations. The project manager who wants his/her project successful will definitely ask the customers for feedback.

This approach will prove to be successful and will be a learning curve if any mistakes had been done. KPI need to go hand in hand with the business objectives for a project to be considered successful.

Meeting the Customer's Expectations

Going the extra mile is not restricted to only customer services, it's also a magic word for project management. A top most important factor for a project success criterion is to exceed customer's expectations by completing the project within the stated deadline, budget, and quality. However project manager needs to bear in mind that this could be misinterpreted and could lead to unnecessary cost. Ideas to make a better product than sticking to the original idea could be done with the approval of the customer. For this to be successful, proper implementation needs to be in place.

Success Factors
Success factors are contributions made by the management towards a successful project. These can be classified broadly into five groups as follows: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. The project manager: The person needs to have an array of skills under his arm to use during the project. Project team: The team needs to consist of variety of skills and experience. Collectively as a team, success is easy to achieve with proper guidance. Project: The scope and timeline of the project is crucial. Organization: The organization needs to provide support to both the project manager and the project team. External environment: External constraints should not affect the project. Back up plans need to be in place in case daily tasks cannot be carried by the team.

The project's quality should not be compromised under any circumstances as this will drive away potential customers.

Further Project Success Criteria:

The criteria for a successful project are not restricted to only above. However following are some of other supporting factors that need to be considered when it comes to a successful project management and execution.

Negotiations Proper and conducive project plan Assigning tasks to the team members Developing a plan to achieve common tasks Reviewing and doing a rework when needed Managing project risks efficiently Allocating time for process improvement Learn from the learning curve Proper estimation of project in terms of not only quantitatively but also qualitatively

Conclusion:
A project to be considered successful requires proper planning and the help from the management. Exceeding customer requirements will bring about success to the project. Understanding the business drivers and ensuring that the project meets the objectives of the business will also contribute to success. Aligning the key performance indicator to that of the business objective will not only help project managers to keep track but also measure and improve