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Creating a Project Sheet

by pop tug

In my experience as a 25-year veteran of project management, developing a project sheet helps you gather important details about an upcoming project so that you can get approval, funding and resources. This allows you to complete the work in a timely manner. By defining the requirements at the beginning of the project, you save time and effort. Not collecting adequate information typically results in missed expectations, cost overruns and conflict. To develop a comprehensive project sheet, you need specify the purpose of the project, audience, content, technology required, and time frame.

  1. Open a file to develop a project sheet. For example, create a new spreadsheet to contain information about your project. You may create separate worksheets for each phase of project life cycle, including initiation, planning, execution, monitoring, and closing. The purpose of creating a project sheet is to capture information about the project so that project team members know what the project is supposed to accomplish.
  2. Enter the label “Project Title” on the first line. In the second column, enter the title. Additionally, use the third column to add a project description and other details such as business need, related projects or marketing trends. The purpose of defining a title is to allow people to refer to the project by name.
  3. Enter the label “Project Approval” on the second line. In the second column, enter the name of the person who will approve the project. If you have multiple people who need to approve the project, add additional lines. You can also add their roles and contact information, such as e-mail address, business address and telephone number. By defining these people, you identify who provides the approval and funding for the effort.
  4. Enter the label “Business Need” on the third line. In the second column, enter details to justify investment in this project. For example, establish what issue triggered the investigation into a solution? What consequences will occur if nothing is done? The answers to these questions establish the business justification for the project.
  5. Enter the label “Business Metrics” on the fourth line. In the second column, list the operational metrics that you will monitor to ensure you achieve success. For example, sample metrics include customer satisfaction, time-to-market, sales revenue, and product errors. By establishing business metrics you can measure whether the project achieved its goal.
  6. Enter the label “Audience Need” on the fifth line. In the second column, describe the beneficiaries of this project. For example, for a training development project, upon completion, a sales team will be able to describe a new product’s features and benefits to consistently pitch to existing and new customers. You can also provide additional details, such as the audience size, location and primary language. By identifying the audience’s preferences at the beginning of the project, you develop materials that address their needs.
  7. Enter the label “Priority” on the sixth line. In the second column, indicate the priority for this project as low, medium or high. This helps your sponsors decide if they want to invest in this project at this time. Add additional justification in the third column. Establishing a priority for your project enables you to ensure funding and resources get allocated to the project, even in difficult economic times.
  8. Enter the label “Proposed Solution” on the seventh line. In the second column, describe the technology you intend to use to solve the business problem. For example, for a marketing campaign, you may propose using social media technology to create a wiki, blog or forum to promote your product or service. Defining a proposed solution in the project lets everyone know what the project is intended to produce.
  9. Enter the label “Funding” on the eighth line. In the second column, enter the dollar amount you estimate is required to complete this project. Base this estimate on past projects, your own experience or expert advice. Use the third column to supply more details about the cost breakdown. For example,indicate if funding required for customization, translation or other need. Listing the financial needs of the project in the project sheet helps you articulate the funding required to complete the project.
  10. Enter the label “Project Manager” on the ninth line. In the second column, enter your name and e-mail address. This allows team members to contact you if they have questions about the project sheet.
  11. Enter the label “Status” on the tenth line. Use this final entry to indicate the project status, such as in progress, on hold or complete. This allows you to use the project to communicate the status on an on-going basis.
  12. Save your file, print it or distribute to team members. This file represents a key project document.

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