According to the PMBOK® Guide, specifically the Develop Project Charter process, the project charter is the foundational document created during the Initiating Process Group.
The Initiating Process Group consists of those processes performed to define a new project or a new phase of an existing project by obtaining authorization to start.
Formal Authorization: The Project Charter is the document that formally authorizes the existence of a project and provides the project manager with the authority to apply organizational resources to project activities.
High-Level Definition: It establishes a partnership between the performing and requesting organizations. In the case of external projects, a formal contract is typically the preferred way to establish an agreement.
Key Stakeholder Identification: The other major process in this group is Identify Stakeholders, which happens concurrently or immediately after the charter is signed.
A. Monitoring and Controlling: This group is focused on tracking and regulating progress. You cannot monitor a project that hasn ' t been authorized or planned yet.
B. Executing: This group focuses on performing the work. Execution cannot begin until the project is initiated and a plan has been developed.
D. Planning: While high-level planning occurs during initiation, the Planning Process Group officially begins after the charter is signed. The Project Charter is actually a key input to the first process of the Planning Group (Develop Project Management Plan).
A verified Project Charter typically includes:
Project purpose or justification.
Measurable project objectives and related success criteria.
High-level requirements.
High-level project description, boundaries, and key deliverables.
Overall project risk.
Summary milestone schedule.
Preapproved financial resources.
Project manager assignment, responsibility, and authority level.
Name and authority of the sponsor or other person(s) authorizing the project charter.
