Free Project Charter Forms - Simple & Advanced

By Kate Eby | May 23, 2023

A project charter helps you focus on project objectives, manage scope, and communicate with stakeholders and the team. We’ve gathered the top project charter forms for project managers, team members, and others to use when creating project charters. 

Included on this page, you’ll find a simple project charter form, an advanced project charter form, and an editable Six Sigma project charter form. We also provide a list of tips for using project charter forms.

Simple Project Charter Form 

Simple Project Charter Form Example

Download a Simple Project Charter Form with Example Data for 
Microsoft Word  |  Adobe PDF  | Google Docs | Smartsheet

Download a Blank Simple Project Charter Form for 
Microsoft Word  |  Adobe PDF  | Google Docs | Smartsheet

 Use this simple project charter form to successfully standardize your organization’s project charters. This simple project charter form is available with sample data and as a blank template, and they are fully editable and fillable. State the problem or issue each individual project will address, along with the purpose, business case, goals, success metrics (e.g., KPIs), and expected deliverables in the project overview. Describe the project scope and tentative schedule (including key milestones) to help ensure your project is planned adequately, completed on time, and within budget, and it meets its obligations. 

For project charter templates and resources, see this article on project charter templates.

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Advanced Project Charter Form 

Advanced Project Charter Form Example

Download an Advanced Project Charter Form with Example Data for 
Microsoft Word  |  Adobe PDF  | Google Docs | Smartsheet

Download a Blank Advanced Project Charter Form for 
Microsoft Word  |  Adobe PDF  | Google Docs | Smartsheet

Use an advanced project charter to comprehensively define your project’s scope, objectives, and stakeholders. This fully editable and fillable form with sample data provides an example of what should be included in the charter. Add the project’s overview details (e.g., purpose, business case), tentative schedule, resources, costs, benefits, risks, constraints, and assumptions to the template. This advanced project charter form serves as a single-source reference document for all stakeholders, so everyone is aligned and working toward the same project goals.

Six Sigma Project Charter Form  

Six Sigma Project Charter Form Example

Download a Six Sigma Project Charter Form with Example Data for 
Microsoft Word  |  Adobe PDF  | Google Docs

Download a Blank Six Sigma Project Charter Form for 
Microsoft Word  |  Adobe PDF  | Google Docs  

This Six Sigma-specific project charter form outlines the scope, objectives, and stakeholders of a project. Use the editable form to automatically assign Six Sigma belts to the project to help your team identify and remove the causes of project defects and errors. This Six Sigma project charter form is the perfect solution for project managers, project sponsors, and key stakeholders to plan and bring their projects to satisfactory completion. 

For more free Six Sigma-specific project charter resources and templates, see our definitive guide to Six Sigma project charters.

What Is a Project Charter Form?

A project charter form defines project objectives, scope, deliverables, stakeholders, risks, and more. Completing the form can serve as formal authorization to start a project. It also helps establish lines of communication and accountability among the project team and stakeholders.

A project charter serves as a blueprint for the project and provides a clear direction and focus for the project team. By using a project charter form, you can increase the likelihood of a successful project outcome.

A project charter form typically includes the following sections: 

  • Project Title and Description: This section provides a brief overview of your project, including its purpose, goals, and objectives. 
  • Project Scope: This section defines the project’s boundaries and specifies what is included and excluded from the project. 
  • Project Stakeholders: This section identifies the key stakeholders involved in the project and their roles and responsibilities. 
  • Project Deliverables: This section outlines the tangible outputs or results that your project will produce.  
  • Project Timeline: This section defines when certain steps in the project should be complete, along with the start and end dates, as well as key milestone deadlines. 
  • Project Budget: This section provides an estimate of your project’s budget, including any resources or funding required. 
  • Project Risks and Assumptions: This section identifies the potential risks and assumptions associated with the project and outlines a plan for managing them.

Using a project charter form is a helpful tool for ensuring a project is well-defined, properly authorized, and effectively managed. It helps establish clear lines of communication, accountability, and decision-making, which can ultimately lead to a successful project outcome.

To find more resources on how to write a project charter, read our article on how to create an effective project charter. For best practices on what to include in a successful project charter, see this article on breaking down the elements of a project charter.

Advantages of Using an Online Project Charter Form in Smartsheet

Downloadable templates are a simple way to create and customize project charter forms, but using an online tool such as Smartsheet comes with advantages, such as automated notifications, real-time updates, easy collaboration, and more:

  • Easy to Access: An online project charter form in Smartsheet can be accessed from anywhere with an internet connection, making it easy for team members to check status and make changes wherever they are.
  • Streamlined Processes: Online project charter forms streamline the process of developing and securing approval for a project charter, providing a consistent, organized structure to ensure all of the necessary information is included.
  • Automated Notifications: Smartsheet enables automated notifications to ensure stakeholders are alerted when changes occur, so everyone is kept in the loop on a project’s status and next steps.
  • Real-Time Updates: With real-time updates, changes to the project charter form are immediately visible to all stakeholders without the need to share new versions of a file.
  • Collaboration: Collaboration features and app integrations make it easy for team members to comment, assign tasks, organize data, and stay informed during all project phases.

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