The project charter is a document that formally authorizes the project and gives the team the authority to begin the project work. The project charter tells the story of the project to justify the need for the project. However, it's important to keep the charter high level (a single slide or 1-pager is ideal). The audience for the charter is generally decision makers, not the project team (although the project team can refer back whenever this is uncertainty on the mission of the project). The project charter addresses five key areas: - **Project justification**: clearly states why the project is needed and how it creates value - **Project Objectives & Deliverables**: what will the project deliver? - **Project Requirements & Constraints**: What will the project accomplish; what will it not accomplish? - **Project Stakeholders & Resources**: Who is involved in the project? - **Project Budget & Schedule**: cost and timeline. A Project Charter may include any of these sections: - Title - Purpose or description - Objectives - High level requirements or deliverables - Success metrics or criteria - Assumptions, Constraints - Potential risks - Key milestones - Resources needed - Potential stakeholders - Related work, external dependencies - Approval requirements - Project team (sponsor, manager and team members)