The 7 Elements of Project Charter in Six Sigma Management

Do you know what a project charter is? What is it for and how to do it? If you answered no to any of these questions, continue reading this guide and find out the answers.

What is Project Charter?

The Project Charter is the document that signs an agreement between the project executing team, the responsible Belt and the company managers (Champions and Sponsors).

This tool is used in the project definition phase to finalize the first stage of the DMAIC method.

In addition, it aims to keep the team aligned with the focus of the project, formalizing the main definitions of the work through the schedule, scope and goal.

Now that you know what this tool is and what it is for, read the next topic in this article and learn how to do it right now.

How to make a Project Charter?

A good project charter should contain the title of the project, the name of the project leader, the date the contract was drawn up, and the description of the problem. It should present clearly the objectives of the project and what is expected of the team, thus ensuring the commitment of those involved.

The description of the problem should present some points raised in the the customer's voice, presenting the problem from your point of view, as project leader, but also from the point of view of internal and / or external customers.

It is also necessary to have the scope of the project well defined, i.e. to be well detailed in everything that is part of the project and also everything that is not part of the project. It should also list the team and who is responsible for accomplishing each step.

In addition, the project index, its periodicity and the current value should also be included in the project charter. One can illustrate the historical behavior of the process with a time series graph, for example.

Last, but not least, a good project contract must contain a schedule with at least the start and end dates of each step of the DMAIC method. It must be printed and signed by team members, sponsor and champion who are involved in the project.

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Project Charter in project management

The project contract is the game rule, there is no project in progress if there is no contract signed by the manager.

It is a living document. With the analysis, the investigations, and the establishment of the real gain of the project, the Master Black Belt must complement it until the end of the analysis phase of the project.

The more filled this contract is, the more value it has as active documentation, including the portfolio form of the belt itself.

The project charter can also be used by the Belt as a negotiation tool with its managers to get more time to dedicate to the project, or to change a team member.

This tool can also help you to manage the Six Sigma initiative that is happening in your organization, and help you stay current with the project.

The role of the master black belt is to use this tool in a proactive and non-reactive way, that is, not letting the problem occur in order to act, but rather to predict what can go right or wrong in order to act before it happens.

The 7 elements of the Project Charter

In order to develop a project charter, I have separated 7 essential elements for its elaboration, see below:

1. Project Description

The business case contains a description of the reason for the project. It defines the quantifiable benefit of the project and how it aligns with the strategy or business goals in the Six Sigma Project Charter.

2. Business Need

The problem statement is given by a more specific and focused description of the problem symptoms that will be addressed by the team. This statement should be objective and direct to the problem, so that it does not raise questions later.

3. Goal Setting

The specific objective or declaration of the target refers to the expected results for the project. The goals consist of a statement of the specific project targets needed to achieve the expected overall purpose.

4. Risk and Issues

Critical success factors clarify and document project constraints, limitations and other factors that affect the team's effort to successfully complete the project. All risks inherent to the project must be documented.

5. Project Scope

In the scope, the limits for the project are identified and the specific scope of the project is described. It describes the boundary conditions and identifies the main parameters covered or not covered by the project.

6. Work plan

The work plan refers to the main milestones of the project and is often identified with a graphic. A project plan should answer the key questions of "Who, what, where, how much, how and when", the 5W2H.

7. Team structure

The structure of the team refers to the human resources of the project. Typically, resources are project managers, leaders, and project team members. It is important to define the roles of each of the members involved.

Project Charter Template

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