What is a Project Plan Template?
A project plan template is a document detailing the guidelines, procedures, and other reminders necessary to follow or consider when planning and executing a project. This can be a simple list or, ideally, a checklist.
What is the Purpose of a Project Plan Template?
The main purpose of a project plan template is to guide the project planning process, and, later, the project execution. A project plan checklist template, in particular, serves to guide project managers, their stakeholders, their clients, and their other staff or partners to have a view of the project and its process before and during the project.
A project plan template should help with managing the project management process as a whole. However, specifically, it can also help with managing the following:
- Legal documents and processes necessary to execute the project
- Project milestones and goals, as well as when they should be completed or achieved
- Schedules of different tasks before and after project completion
- Budget for different resources such as materials, manpower, and permits
What to Include in a Project Plan Checklist Template
As a project plan template is based on the three main elements of a project plan, the template must contain sections for the following:
- The project scope and goals: What does the project hope to accomplish, and what can the project management team do for it? Additionally, what are the project management team’s limitations or constraints, and why?
- The project’s budget: What are the expected project deliverables and their related financial costs? Can the budget be extended beyond the agreed-upon amount?
- The project’s milestone schedule or timeline: What specific milestones should be met at certain points in time? And are these dates flexible, or should they be strictly followed?
In addition to the three main parts of a project plan, it would also be helpful to include:
- More details on the project, such as the name of it, if applicable, and who are involved
- Possible risks that may be encountered during the project execution stage
- Assumptions of different situations that may happen during the project management process
- Related documents concerning resources, legal requirements, and risks
Below is an example of a project plan template in use for your reference:
Project Plan Template Sample Report | SafetyCulture
FAQs about Project Plan Templates
Technically, no. Each project plan can differ in format depending on the project management team’s company and their client’s wishes. What is important is that the project plan contains the project’s scope, budget, and milestones.
Aside from a project plan template, you also need:
- Project Initiation Document (PID) templates
- Project execution forms
- Project monitoring forms
- Project closure forms
A project plan template can be used by anyone in a project management team, but it is usually used by:
- Project managers and their assistants, as well as project contractors, if any
- Clients, in order to stay updated with changes in the plans
- Stakeholders or other relevant businessmen, such as sponsors, to understand where their money will go to
