Whenever you’re ready to start managing projects, give ProjectManager a try. ProjectManager is an award-winning project management software designed to plan, schedule and track projects from start to finish. Build detailed project schedules, allocate resources, monitor costs and compare estimates against actual performance using a complete set of powerful project management tools. Get started for free today.

1. 30-60-90 Day Plan Template

During a new hire’s first three months, clarity around priorities determines how quickly they gain traction. A 30-60-90 day plan breaks the employee onboarding process into defined phases, outlining short-term goals, learning priorities, performance milestones and expected deliverables so both manager and employee share the same action plan from day one.

This employee onboarding template organizes each phase into SMART goals, action steps, deliverables, key performance indicators and resource requirements. During the first 30 days, the focus centers on understanding team dynamics and reviewing project documentation. By 60 days, attention shifts to process improvements and cross-functional collaboration. At 90 days, the employee tracks milestone completion, performance outcomes and stakeholder reporting to demonstrate measurable impact.

2. Professional Development Plan Template

Long-term performance improves when development is planned instead of assumed. A professional development plan outlines how an employee will strengthen skills, close performance gaps and grow into greater responsibility over time, connecting current competencies with future expectations and aligning individual progress with the broader employee onboarding process and team performance goals.

This employee onboarding template starts with personal information and a current skills assessment to establish a realistic baseline. From there, it guides the employee through defining development goals, mapping specific action steps and setting a clear timeline. Built-in sections for resources, performance indicators and evaluation ensure progress is measurable, supported and regularly reviewed rather than forgotten after the first draft.

3. Performance Review Template

At the end of any review period, structured feedback becomes essential for maintaining standards and improving results. A performance review evaluates how an employee has performed over a defined timeframe, measuring outcomes against expectations, goals and core competencies while reinforcing alignment within the employee onboarding process.

This employee onboarding template begins with employee information and a defined review period to establish context. It then walks managers through structured performance criteria such as job knowledge, quality of work, productivity and teamwork. Dedicated sections for goals achieved, future objectives, overall ratings and signatures ensure feedback is documented, actionable and formally acknowledged by both parties.

4. Performance Improvement Plan Template

When performance gaps become visible, formal structure protects both accountability and fairness. A performance improvement plan documents the specific steps an employee must take to correct deficiencies within a defined timeframe, clarifying measurable standards and reinforcing expectations during critical stages of the employee onboarding process.

This employee onboarding template begins by stating the purpose and outlining specific performance issues tied to job standards. It then guides managers to set SMART goals, define a clear action plan and establish an improvement timeline. Sections for support resources, evaluation criteria and documented consequences ensure accountability, while final assessment and signatures formally close the loop.

5. Employee Schedule Template

Clear visibility into work hours prevents confusion, overlap and staffing gaps from the start. An employee schedule outlines when team members are expected to work, including shift start times, end times and days off, helping new hires understand how their availability aligns with operational demands and team coverage requirements.

This employee onboarding template organizes weekly shifts by employee name and day of the week, displaying start times, end times and total hours. Managers can quickly assign coverage, track off days and balance workloads across the team. For new hires, it provides immediate visibility into their shift structure and reinforces accountability from the start.

6. Training Record Template

Tracking completed training is critical for compliance, skill development and risk management. A training record documents the courses, certifications and professional development activities an employee completes over time, ensuring that required safety, technical and soft skills training are properly recorded within the employee onboarding process.

This employee onboarding template centralizes employee details alongside course information, training type, provider, start and completion dates, certification status and expiration deadlines. Managers can quickly monitor compliance requirements, identify upcoming renewals and track in-progress training. Revision dates and approval fields add governance, making the document reliable for audits, performance reviews and workforce planning.

7. Skills Matrix Template

Understanding team capability at a glance makes workforce planning far more strategic. A skills matrix maps employees against the competencies required for their roles, making strengths and gaps visible while supporting training decisions, resource allocation and structured onboarding templates across departments.

This employee onboarding template lists each employee alongside key skills, proficiency assessment sources and required skill levels. It highlights skill gaps and recommends targeted actions such as certifications or workshops. By comparing current capability with expected performance standards, managers can plan training, allocate resources strategically and strengthen team capacity with measurable development steps.

9. Team Charter Template

Before a team begins executing work, alignment around purpose and authority must be documented. A team charter formalizes the project background, mission, scope, roles and operating rules so everyone understands expectations, decision-making authority and success criteria within the employee onboarding process and broader project environment.

This employee onboarding template captures foundational details such as team name, leadership, project duration and stakeholder context, then structures key sections covering mission, budget, resources, roles, scope, milestones and communication guidelines. By requiring documented responsibilities, performance measures and dated signatures, it creates accountability, clarifies authority and prevents confusion once project execution begins.

ProjectManager Is an Award-Winning Project Management Software

ProjectManager offers robust project management features such as Gantt charts, task lists, workload management charts, timesheets and real-time dashboards and reports. In addition to that, it’s also equipped with AI project insights, online team collaboration features and unlimited file storage that further help project managers ensure nothing falls through the cracks. Watch the video to learn more!

If you need a tool to manage projects from start to finish, then signup for our software now at ProjectManager. Our online software can help project managers plan, track and oversee projects as they unfold. Sign up for a free 30-day trial today!

The post 9 Free Employee Onboarding Templates for Excel and Word appeared first on ProjectManager.

Whenever you’re ready to start managing projects, give ProjectManager a try. ProjectManager is an award-winning project management software designed to plan, schedule and track projects from start to finish. Build detailed project schedules, allocate resources, monitor costs and compare estimates against actual performance using a complete set of powerful project management tools. Get started for free today.

What Should Be Included In a Project Manager Cover Letter?

Every effective project manager cover letter follows a clear structure that mirrors how projects themselves are run: organized, intentional and results-driven. Instead of vague claims, it should present measurable outcomes, alignment with the employer’s priorities and proof of leadership across scope, schedule, cost and stakeholders. The sections below outline exactly what to include.

Header Section

Include your full contact information exactly as it appears on your resume. Use a professional email address and LinkedIn URL. Address a specific hiring manager whenever possible. If you cannot find one, use “Hiring Manager.” Keep formatting clean, aligned and consistent with your resume header.

Greeting

Always use a formal greeting. If you know the hiring manager’s name, use it. Avoid generic greetings like “To whom it may concern.” A specific greeting signals effort and attention to detail. This small step subtly reinforces professionalism and stakeholder awareness—both critical skills for project managers.

Opening Paragraph

Start strong. Do not repeat your resume summary. Immediately state the role and highlight measurable impact. Include years of experience and at least two metrics. This paragraph establishes credibility fast and tells recruiters why they should continue reading. Lead with proof, not passion.

Why this Company + Why this Role

Show you researched the company. Mention something specific—mission, product, market, recent initiative or strategic focus. Then connect their priorities directly to your experience. This section proves the letter is tailored, not mass-sent. Hiring managers want alignment, not generic interest.

Body

Tell a short, structured success story. Include project scope, complexity, stakeholders and measurable results. Focus on what you did, not just what the team accomplished. Use numbers whenever possible. This demonstrates ownership, structured execution and tangible impact—exactly what employers evaluate.

Quick Fit Map

This optional section is useful for competitive roles. Pull three core requirements directly from the job posting and map them to measurable evidence from your background. Keep it concise. This makes it easy for recruiters to quickly see alignment without searching through paragraphs.

Closing paragraph

End confidently but professionally. Express interest in discussing next steps. Avoid sounding desperate or overly aggressive. Reinforce the value you bring and thank the reader. This section should feel composed, assured and forward-looking—consistent with strong leadership presence.

Project Manager Cover Letter Template

This project manager cover letter template includes two fully written examples to guide you in different industries: a construction project manager cover letter and an IT project manager cover letter. Each example shows how to present measurable results, align with hiring priorities and structure project experience clearly for specific roles and delivery environments.

Below those examples, the project manager cover letter template transitions into a detailed, editable version with step-by-step instructions for every section. Each component—header, greeting, opening paragraph, company alignment, body examples, quick fit map and closing—comes with explicit guidance explaining what to write, how to frame measurable impact and how to tailor the project manager cover letter to a specific job description.

Project Manager Cover Letter Examples

Seeing a complete project manager cover letter makes the structure click fast. The two project manager cover letter examples below show how to tailor tone, metrics and proof points for different industries while keeping the same high-performing format and flow.

IT Project Manager Cover Letter

Daniel Carter
(512) 555-7821 | daniel.carter@example.com
Austin, TX
linkedin.com/in/danielexamplecarter
March 26, 2026

Hiring Manager
Summit Ridge Development

Dear Hiring Manager,

I’m excited to apply for the Construction Project Manager position at Summit Ridge Development. With over nine years of experience delivering commercial and multi-family construction projects from preconstruction through closeout, I’ve led cross-functional site teams to execute builds valued at more than $20M, consistently improving schedule reliability, cost control and stakeholder coordination.

Summit Ridge Development’s commitment to quality construction, disciplined project oversight and long-term client relationships strongly aligns with my background leading complex commercial builds and residential developments. Your emphasis on schedule precision, subcontractor management and financial accountability reflects how I manage construction programs.

At IronClad Construction Partners, I directed a multi-phase commercial office development encompassing 90,000 square feet and a $14M budget. The project required coordination among architects, subcontractors, city inspectors and ownership representatives while maintaining strict compliance with safety and contractual standards. By tightening critical path sequencing, strengthening RFI and submittal tracking processes and implementing proactive cost forecasting, we delivered the project three weeks ahead of schedule and 4% under budget.

In another engagement, I took over a multi-family residential development that was trending 15% behind schedule due to procurement delays and subcontractor misalignment. I re-sequenced trade activities, formalized weekly coordination meetings and reinforced change order controls. Within one quarter, we recovered the project timeline, maintained cost variance under 3% and re-established stakeholder confidence through structured progress reporting and milestone tracking.

Throughout my career, I’ve prioritized disciplined field execution without compromising safety or quality standards. Whether leading on-site coordination meetings, resolving subcontractor conflicts or presenting cost performance updates to ownership groups, I focus on transparency, accountability and measurable results.

I would welcome the opportunity to contribute to Summit Ridge Development’s upcoming projects and help ensure predictable, high-quality construction delivery. Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to the opportunity to discuss how my experience can support your organization’s goals.

Sincerely,
Daniel Carter

Construction Project Manager Cover Letter

Daniel Carter
(512) 555-7821 | daniel.carter@example.com
Austin, TX
linkedin.com/in/danielexamplecarter
March 26, 2026

Hiring Manager
Vertex Digital Systems

Dear Hiring Manager,

I’m excited to apply for the IT Project Manager role at Vertex Digital Systems. With over nine years of experience delivering large-scale technology initiatives across SaaS and enterprise environments, I’ve led cross-functional teams to execute complex programs valued at more than $12M, consistently improving system performance, delivery predictability and stakeholder alignment.

Vertex Digital Systems’ focus on scalable cloud solutions and integrated enterprise platforms strongly aligns with my background leading CRM modernization, API integration and infrastructure transformation initiatives. Your emphasis on structured governance, technical precision and measurable delivery outcomes mirrors how I approach complex IT programs.

At BrightPath Technologies, I directed a multi-phase cloud migration initiative impacting more than 550 users across operations, finance and customer service teams. The program required integration across six legacy systems, cross-functional engineering collaboration and strict security compliance oversight. By implementing formal sprint governance, refining dependency mapping and introducing structured release checkpoints, we completed deployment four weeks ahead of schedule while reducing post-launch defect rates by 29%.

In another initiative, I assumed leadership of a data center consolidation program that was trending 16% over budget due to scope creep and vendor coordination gaps. I re-baselined the implementation roadmap, formalized change control procedures and renegotiated key service agreements. Within two quarters, we stabilized cost variance under 5%, improved infrastructure uptime to 99.98% and restored executive confidence through transparent performance dashboards and steering committee reporting.

Throughout my career, I’ve prioritized disciplined technical execution without sacrificing team collaboration. Whether facilitating Agile ceremonies, aligning DevOps pipelines or presenting system performance metrics to senior leadership, I focus on clarity, accountability and measurable business impact.

I would welcome the opportunity to contribute to Vertex Digital Systems’ technology initiatives and help drive reliable, scalable IT project delivery. Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to the possibility of discussing how my experience can support your organization’s objectives.

Sincerely,
Daniel Carter

ProjectManager Is an Award-Winning Project Management Software

ProjectManager offers robust project management features such as Gantt charts, task lists, workload management charts, timesheets and real-time dashboards and reports. In addition to that, it’s also equipped with AI project insights, online team collaboration features and unlimited file storage that further help project managers ensure nothing falls through the cracks. Watch the video to learn more!

Related Content

In addition to these free project management resume templates for Word, we’ve built a library of more than 1,000 free project management templates, blogs, ebooks, videos and guides to help project managers navigate the many moving parts of the project lifecycle.

• How to Become a Project Manager (And Get a Job)
• Project Manager Titles: Entry-Level Titles, Senior Titles & More
• Project Manager Resume: Examples & Template Included
• Best 30 Project Manager Interview Questions and Answers (2026)
• Project Manager Job Description (Free Copy+Paste Examples)

If you need a tool to help you as a project management professional, then signup for our software now at ProjectManager. Our online software can help project managers plan, track and oversee projects as they unfold. Sign up for a free 30-day trial today!

The post Project Manager Cover Letter: How-to Guide, Examples & Template appeared first on ProjectManager.

Whenever you’re ready to start managing projects, give ProjectManager a try. ProjectManager is an award-winning project management software designed to plan, schedule and track projects from start to finish. Build detailed project schedules, allocate resources, monitor costs and compare estimates against actual performance using a complete set of powerful project management tools. Get started for free today.

1. Project Manager Resume Template

Hiring managers move quickly, especially when reviewing dozens of project manager resumes for the same opening. With that in mind, this project manager resume template gives you a clean, proven layout for organizing the exact details hiring teams look for: your role, the projects you led, what you delivered and the tools and methods you used.

It guides you to include measurable outcomes (budget ranges, timelines, performance improvements) without burying the signal in long paragraphs. The structure also makes it easier to weave in role-relevant keywords naturally, which can help with automated resume screening systems, known as applicant tracking systems (ATS).

• Contact Information: Provides a clear header with phone, email, location and LinkedIn so recruiters can immediately identify and contact you without searching through the document.
• Professional Summary: Offers a short positioning statement where you define your years of experience, industries served and ability to manage the full project lifecycle from initiation to closeout.
• Professional Experience: Includes role-by-role entries where you describe project budgets, team size, scheduling tools and leadership responsibilities in concrete, outcome-focused language.
• Assistant Project Manager Experience: Allows you to demonstrate career progression by showing how you supported scope definition, milestone tracking and stakeholder coordination before taking full ownership.
• Key Achievements: Creates a dedicated space to highlight quantifiable improvements such as cost savings, schedule compression or performance gains tied directly to your leadership.
• Core Competencies: Organizes your strengths—risk management, change control, stakeholder engagement and reporting—into a scannable section aligned with project management expectations.
• Technical Skills: Lists project management software, scheduling platforms and earned value management tools you actively use to plan and track delivery.
• Education and Certifications: Documents academic background and credentials like PMP or Scrum certifications that validate formal project management training.
• Project Portfolio: Showcases selected projects with budget size, duration and impact so hiring managers can quickly assess scope and complexity handled.

2. Project Manager Cover Letter Template

Recruiters expect more than a generic introduction when filling project management positions. We know that, which is why this project manager cover letter template helps you structure a focused narrative that connects the achievements of your project manager career to the company’s business objectives.

It includes detailed writing instructions so you can open with results, demonstrate strategic alignment and present a concise example that shows leadership, risk management and stakeholder coordination without drifting into vague, irrelevant or incomplete statements. Instead of repeating bullet points, it encourages you to explain context, constraints and business impact so hiring managers understand how you think, how you prioritize and how you deliver under pressure.

• Professional header and targeted greeting: Establishes credibility with complete contact information and a properly addressed hiring manager, showing professionalism and attention to detail expected from project leaders.
• Strong, results-driven opening paragraph: States the role, years of experience and quantified achievements upfront to capture attention fast and position the candidate as outcome-focused.
• Company alignment paragraph: Demonstrates research and strategic fit by connecting the organization’s mission, priorities or initiatives to the candidate’s background and delivery approach.
• Evidence-based success story: Provides a concise mini-case study showing scope, complexity, leadership actions and measurable outcomes to prove execution capability.
• Complex problem-solving example: Shows how the candidate manages risk, recovers challenged projects or resolves stakeholder conflicts, reinforcing governance discipline and leadership maturity.
• Optional quick fit map section: Aligns job requirements with proven experience, making it easier for recruiters to quickly assess suitability against posting criteria.
• Confident, forward-looking close: Reinforces value, invites next steps and maintains a professional tone without sounding desperate or overly aggressive, strengthening executive presence.

3. Senior Project Manager Resume Template

Stepping into enterprise-level interviews requires more than listing completed projects. This senior project manager resume template is built to help experienced leaders move confidently through executive hiring processes by showcasing project portfolio management oversight, governance structures and measurable business impact.

Instead of focusing only on task execution, it frames strategic planning, financial stewardship and organizational transformation in a way that aligns with director and PMO-level expectations during structured hiring evaluations.

• Executive Profile: Summarizes enterprise leadership experience, portfolio scale and governance responsibilities in a high-level overview.
• Leadership Experience: Details management of large programs, C-suite engagement and oversight of multiple project managers or PMO analysts.
• Strategic Impact: Highlights measurable business outcomes such as operational savings, cycle-time reduction or revenue growth.
• Portfolio Oversight: Lists major initiatives with investment size, geographic scope and duration to show scale of responsibility.
• Core Leadership Competencies: Organizes strengths in governance, risk strategy, financial modeling and executive reporting.
• Technical & Analytical Expertise: Documents advanced portfolio tools, forecasting models and risk analysis systems used in enterprise environments.
• Education & Executive Credentials: Confirms advanced degrees and certifications aligned with portfolio- and program-level roles.

4. Project Coordinator Resume Template

Breaking into project management roles and climbing the career path starts with proving you can keep execution organized under pressure to succeed as a project coordinator. This project coordinator resume template is structured to help early-career project management professionals advance through hiring processes by clearly presenting schedule tracking, documentation control and stakeholder communication experience. While it supports entry- to mid-level roles, it also helps candidates demonstrate readiness for more advanced project management roles by framing coordination work within the broader project lifecycle.

• Professional Summary: Describes coordination experience, attention to detail and ability to manage multiple administrative workflows simultaneously.
• Project Coordinator Experience: Documents hands-on support with schedule tracking, milestone monitoring and stakeholder communication.
• Project Assistant Experience: Shows involvement in document control, vendor coordination and logistical support activities.
• Key Contributions: Highlights measurable improvements in reporting accuracy, documentation efficiency or communication cadence.
• Core Competencies: Organizes strengths in milestone tracking, record management and risk log updates.
• Technical Skills: Lists tools such as Excel, Microsoft Project and collaboration platforms used for tracking and reporting.
• Project Involvement: Provides examples of initiatives supported to demonstrate exposure to different project types.

5. IT Project Manager Resume Template

Technology environments demand clarity around systems, integrations and delivery speed. This IT project manager resume template follows the same structure as the project management resume templates outlined earlier, but tailors language toward software implementation, infrastructure upgrades and Agile delivery. Instead of general project examples, it emphasizes technical stack familiarity, cross-functional coordination between developers and stakeholders and ownership of digital transformation initiatives within structured IT governance environments.

• Technical Summary: Highlights systems experience, methodologies and familiarity with software development environments.
• Implementation Experience: Documents software rollouts, migrations or infrastructure upgrades with budget and timeline details.
• Methodology Section: Clarifies experience with Agile, Scrum, Waterfall or hybrid delivery frameworks.
• Toolset Documentation: Lists Jira, MS Project and other technical tools used to manage delivery and track performance.
• Risk & Security Oversight: Describes how technical risks, compliance requirements or data considerations were managed.

6. Construction Project Manager Resume Template

On a construction site, results are measured in schedules, budgets and physical progress. This construction project manager resume template uses the same foundational format as the project management resume templates previously explained, but adapts the content to reflect construction scheduling, subcontractor coordination and cost control. It highlights site supervision, milestone tracking and compliance with contract documents, aligning experience with real-world construction project delivery expectations.

• Project Overview Section: Lists construction type, contract value, duration and geographic location for context.
• Field Leadership Experience: Describes coordination of subcontractors, site crews and safety compliance efforts.
• Schedule & Cost Control: Documents use of baseline schedules, earned value tracking and budget forecasting.
• Change Management: Explains handling of change orders, RFIs and coordination with architects and inspectors.
• Delivery Results: Highlights on-time completion, cost containment and quality outcomes achieved on completed builds.

ProjectManager Is an Award-Winning Project Management Software

ProjectManager offers robust project management features such as Gantt charts, task lists, workload management charts, timesheets and real-time dashboards and reports. In addition to that, it’s also equipped with AI project insights, online team collaboration features and unlimited file storage that further help project managers ensure nothing falls through the cracks. Watch the video to learn more!

Related Content

In addition to these free project management resume templates for Word, we’ve built a library of more than 1,000 free project management templates, blogs, ebooks, videos and guides to help project managers navigate the many moving parts of the project lifecycle.

• How to Become a Project Manager (And Get a Job)
• Project Manager Titles: Entry-Level Titles, Senior Titles & More
• Project Manager Resume: Examples & Template Included
• Best 30 Project Manager Interview Questions and Answers (2026)
• Project Manager Job Description (Free Copy+Paste Examples)

If you need a tool to help you as a project management professional, then signup for our software now at ProjectManager. Our online software can help project managers plan, track and oversee projects as they unfold. Sign up for a free 30-day trial today!

The post 6 Project Management Resume Templates appeared first on ProjectManager.

What Is Construction Document Management?

Construction document management is the process of organizing, storing and controlling all digital and physical construction documents throughout a project lifecycle. Effective construction document management enables construction companies and project managers to maintain a single source of truth, ensure real-time access to information and track changes across drawings, contracts and work orders. Using document management software and cloud-based construction software, teams improve compliance, streamline decision-making and reduce time spent on data entry and version control.

Why Is Construction Document Management Important?

Keeping construction documents organized and accessible is essential for ensuring projects stay on schedule and within budget. A strong document control system gives project managers and team members real-time access to digital documents, tracks changes and maintains a clear history for compliance audits. Centralizing documents in a cloud-based system helps construction companies reduce errors, prevent cost overruns and make informed decisions throughout the project lifecycle.

Managing construction documents in ProjectManager is easy. Leverage the sheet view to see all tasks, documents, attachments and status in one sortable grid. You can link files to specific tasks, track document updates and monitor completion alongside progress. Centralized access to all construction documents makes it simple for construction teams to manage documentation efficiently. Sign up for a free 30-day trial, no credit card required.

Construction Document Management Process

Now that we know more about the definition and importance of construction document management, let’s explore the steps.

1. Document Creation & Intake

Project documents are created or received from internal teams, designers, contractors or authorities. This includes drawings, specifications, contracts, RFIs, submittals, permits and reports. Each document is logged, named consistently and assigned basic metadata (project, discipline, date, version).

2. Classification & Organization

Documents are categorized by type, phase and discipline (e.g., design, procurement, construction, closeout). Folder structures or document registers are applied to ensure files are easy to locate and consistently stored across the project lifecycle.

3. Version Control & Change Tracking

Revisions are managed to ensure only the latest approved versions are used on site. Superseded documents are archived, version histories are maintained and changes are clearly tracked to prevent rework, errors or disputes.

4. Review, Approval & Distribution

Documents requiring review follow defined workflows for checking, approval or rejection. Once approved, documents are formally issued to relevant stakeholders, ensuring the right people are working from the correct information.

5. Access Control & Security

User permissions are assigned based on roles and responsibilities. Sensitive documents such as contracts or financial records are restricted, while construction drawings and schedules are shared with broader project teams as needed.

6. Ongoing Updates & Coordination

As the project progresses, documents are continuously updated to reflect design changes, site conditions and decisions. Coordination between teams ensures document updates align with schedules, procurement and field activities.

7. Audit Trail & Compliance Management

All document actions—uploads, revisions, approvals and distributions—are logged to create a clear audit trail. This supports contractual compliance, regulatory requirements and dispute resolution if issues arise.

8. Archiving & Project Closeout

At project completion, final versions are compiled and archived. As-built drawings, warranties, operation manuals and closeout documents are organized for handover to owners and facility management teams.

Important Documents for the Construction Document Process

Managing construction documents effectively requires knowing which files are most critical to your project’s success. From contracts to change orders, understanding the key documents in the construction document process helps teams stay organized, maintain compliance and ensure smooth project execution.

Construction Drawings

At the heart of every construction project are the drawings—detailed visual guides showing architectural, structural and mechanical designs. Proper document management ensures that all team members work from the latest version. Cloud-based systems and document control make it easy to share, update and track drawings throughout the project lifecycle.

Construction Specifications

Specifications define the materials, quality standards and workmanship required for construction. Rather than just a checklist, they guide daily decisions on the job site. Centralized document management allows construction managers and team members to quickly access specs, monitor updates and maintain a clear history for compliance and quality assurance.

Construction Contracts

Construction contracts formalize agreements between owners, contractors and subcontractors, covering responsibilities, timelines and payment terms. Storing these documents in a document management system reduces risks, provides easy version tracking and ensures that project managers can reference obligations or resolve disputes efficiently.

Related: 14 Types of Construction Contracts: Pros, Cons & Best Practices

Construction Submittals

Submittals, including shop drawings and product samples, require approval before installation. A structured construction document management system ensures timely review, prevents delays and keeps all stakeholders informed. With real-time access, project managers can track status, ensure proper approvals and avoid mistakes during execution.

Construction Requests (RFP, RFQ, RFI)

Requests for proposals, quotations or information are critical communication tools during a project. By managing these requests within a document control system, teams maintain visibility, ensure accountability and preserve a complete record. This process simplifies decision-making and keeps all project participants aligned.

Construction Project Management Plan

The project management plan serves as a roadmap, detailing objectives, risk strategies, schedules and resource allocation. Document management software ensures this plan is accessible to all team members, maintaining version control and real-time updates. Centralizing the plan supports informed decisions and keeps the project aligned with its goals.

Construction Statement of Work

A statement of work (SOW) clearly defines the project scope, deliverables and responsibilities. Integrating the SOW into a document management system ensures stakeholders have one source of truth. This transparency prevents scope creep and supports efficient project execution by providing a reference point for all decisions.

Construction Budget

Construction budgets detail expected costs for labor, materials and contingencies. Keeping the budget in a cloud-based document management system enables project managers to compare planned versus actual spending. This real-time visibility reduces cost overruns, ensures compliance and provides a historical record for future construction projects.

Related: 18 Budget Templates for Business & Project Budgeting

Construction Schedule

The construction schedule coordinates tasks, dependencies and milestones. When integrated into a document management system, schedules become dynamic tools. Project managers and team members can access updates in real time, track progress, adjust resources and maintain accountability, ensuring that deadlines are met across the project lifecycle.

Free Construction Documents Templates

We’ve made several free Excel construction templates designed to improve project outcomes. We’ve highlighted only a few that we encourage you to explore.

Construction Management Plan Template

This ready-to-use template helps construction project managers outline objectives, tasks, schedules, budget and responsibilities in one organized document. By centralizing your plan, you can improve collaboration, maintain clear document control and keep your construction projects on track from start to finish.

Construction Scope of Work Template

This template helps construction project managers clearly define project deliverables, timelines and responsibilities, ensuring all stakeholders are aligned. By documenting the scope in one centralized location, teams can prevent misunderstandings, maintain proper construction document control and streamline project execution from planning through completion.

Construction Budget Template

Designed for construction project managers, this template makes it easy to plan, track and control costs for labor, materials, equipment and contingencies. With centralized budget data, teams can reduce the risk of cost overruns, support better decision-making and keep financials aligned with project schedules throughout the construction lifecycle.

Construction Document Management Participants

Successful construction document management relies on the collaboration of multiple participants. Understanding the roles and responsibilities of each team member ensures documents are organized, controlled and accessible, helping projects run smoothly and stay on schedule.

Project Owner/Client

Provides project requirements, approves key documents and ultimately receives final deliverables at closeout. The owner relies on accurate document control to make decisions, manage risk and support operations after handover.

Project Manager

Oversees document workflows and ensures documents align with scope, schedule and cost. The project manager coordinates reviews, tracks approvals and makes sure teams are working from the latest authorized information.

Construction Document Control Team

Manages day-to-day document handling. The construction document control team is responsible for filing, version control, naming conventions, distribution, access permissions and maintaining audit trails throughout the project lifecycle.

Architects & Design Consultants

Produce and revise design documents such as drawings, specifications and reports. They respond to RFIs, issue design updates and ensure design documentation remains coordinated and compliant.

Related: 10 Free Construction Scheduling Templates for Excel, Word & Google Sheets

Engineers (Structural, MEP, Civil, etc.)

Develop discipline-specific documents and calculations. Engineers submit revisions, respond to technical queries and support design changes during construction.

General Contractor/Construction manager

Consumes design documents, submits RFIs, submittals and change documentation and distributes approved documents to site teams. They rely heavily on controlled documents to execute the work accurately.

Subcontractors & Supplier

Submit shop drawings, material submittals, product data and certifications. They must follow document control procedures to ensure their work complies with approved designs and specifications.

ProjectManager Is Powerful Construction Document Management Software

ProjectManager provides construction teams with a centralized, online platform to manage documents and ensure construction document control throughout the entire project lifecycle. Construction project managers and team members can store, organize and control drawings, contracts, change orders and work orders in one secure location.

Collaborate Across Project Views

Views like the Gantt chart enable real-time collaboration. Use the Gantt chart to improve document control by linking documents to scheduled activities and milestones. This ensures drawings, specifications and contracts align with timelines and dependencies, reducing errors caused by outdated information.

Organize Documents by Phase

The kanban board makes it easy to organize and sort your construction document management approach. Build custom workflows and ensure that they align with stages, such as draft, submitted, under review, approved or issued. Drawings, RFIs, change orders and contracts can be attached directly to kanban cards, keeping files tied to the work they support.

Related Project Management Content

• 8 Free Construction Forms for Excel and Word
• 14 Types of Construction Contracts: Pros, Cons & Best Practices
• How to Manage a Construction Project Step by Step
• 10 Types of Construction Projects with Examples
• The Construction Process Explained Step-by-Step

ProjectManager is online construction project management software that connects teams, whether they’re in the office or on the job site. They can share files, comment at the task level and stay updated with email and in-app notifications. Construction document control has never been easier. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

The post Construction Document Management: A Quick Guide appeared first on ProjectManager.

Using effective project planning tools and a thorough and well-written statement of work (SOW) will set you up to successfully lead a project over the finish line on schedule and within budget.

What Is a Statement of Work (SOW)?

The statement of work (SOW) is a legally binding document that captures and defines all the work management aspects of your project. You’ll note the activities, deliverables and timetable for the project. It’s an extremely detailed work contract that defines the terms and conditions agreed upon between parties and lays the groundwork for the project plan.

The statement of work (SOW) is one of the first documents you’ll create to lay out the entire landscape of the project before you create a project plan and execute it. Because of the great amount of detail required, the prospect of writing one can be daunting. Let’s break it down into more digestible parts. Your statement of work will be much more detailed than your job estimate, which is a simpler document that outlines the work that’ll be performed and the costs associated with it.

Get your free

Statement of Work Template

Use this free Statement of Work Template to manage your projects better.

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When you’re writing a statement of work, it can help to use a statement of work template because of the various aspects of the project that it must capture. Most statement-of-work templates include things such as a glossary of terms defining what you’re referencing in the SOW. There will be a place for you to write the statement of purpose as well as administrative information. If you like our statement of work template, you can also try our free project management templates to manage your projects.

What Is the Purpose of a Statement of Work (SOW)?

As noted, the statement of work is a detailed overview of the project scope. It’s also a way to share the project requirements, acceptance criteria and payment terms with those who are working on the project, whether they’re collaborating or are contracted to work on the project. This includes stakeholders like vendors and contractors who are bidding to work on the project.

An SOW contract is also helpful to project managers as it provides a structure on which the project plan can be built. The statement of work helps to avoid conflicts in the project. With detail and clarity, the SOW helps keep everyone who’s involved in the project on the same page and works to leave confusion to a minimum.

When building your schedule, it helps to use project management software. It can help organize your tasks and resources, as it’s critical to make an accurate schedule at this stage in the project. Project management software can also help you to create a work breakdown structure (WBS) to zoom into your project scope and identify your project’s activities, deliverables and milestones.

ProjectManager can organize the information you’re gathering in our list view. But our tool does more than make a fancy to-do list. Choose between online Gantt charts, kanban boards, project calendars and other project management views to plan, schedule and track your projects. Our real-time software tracks your progress and the list shows the percentage complete for each task. See for yourself by taking our free 30-day trial.

When to Use a Statement of Work

A statement of work should be used at the start of any project that requires clear deliverables, defined responsibilities and a formal agreement between stakeholders. In the project management industry, it’s especially important for projects involving external vendors, multiple teams or complex tasks, where ambiguity can lead to delays, budget overruns or disputes.

A SOW is also useful when projects have strict timelines, regulatory requirements or fixed budgets, as it sets expectations and defines scope upfront. Additionally, it serves as a reference point throughout execution, helping manage changes, prevent scope creep and ensure accountability across all parties.

Statement of Work vs. Scope of Work

While they sound the same, a statement of work isn’t a scope of work. The statement of work, as we’ve shown, is a formal document that details the goals of the project.

The scope of work is part of the larger statement of work. In it, the way the project team will deliver the outcomes laid out in the SOW is described, so the scope of work is a much shorter project document.

What Does SOW Stand for In Business and Project Management?

Now that we’ve cleared the difference between a statement of work and scope of work, it’s important to note that the SOW acronym stands for statement of work and not scope of work, which is a component of the SOW. Similarly, the terms SOW contract, SOW document and SOW agreement also refer to statements of work in project management and business.

Statement of Work Template

Templates make everything a little bit easier. Jump-start your statement of work document with our free SOW template for Word. It helps you outline your project background, schedule, deliverables, communication plan and more. Download your free copy today.

Types of Statement of Work

An SOW can be broken down into three main categories, which can be defined as follows.

• Design/detail SOW: When you’re writing this SOW, you’re conveying to the supplier how you want the work done. What are the buyer requirements that’ll control the supplier’s process? You can use a requirements gathering template to ensure you gather them all. These project requirements can run the gamut from quality acceptance criteria and payment terms to the measurement of materials. In this SOW, it’s the buyer who’s being held responsible for the performance, as he’s the one directing the project course.
• Level of effort/time and materials/unit rate SOW: This SOW agreement is an almost universal version and it can apply to most projects. It defines the level of effort as well as the materials and cost per unit. It tends to find use in short-term contracts.
• Performance-based SOW: This is the preferred SOW of project managers as it focuses on the purpose of the project, the resources and the quality level expected of the deliverables. It does not, however, explain how the work is supposed to get done. This allows a great deal of autonomy in how to get to an outcome without requiring a specific process.

How to Write a Statement of Work (SOW)

A statement of work is a legally binding agreement between a client and a vendor that describes the terms and conditions for the execution of a project’s scope of work. There’s a lot of information to describe in the SOW. You can create this on your own if you want, but using project management tools to make sure nothing is left out will prove helpful. You only have one chance to create your SOW document and you want it done right.

Here’s an overview of the steps you’ll need to follow to write your statement of work:

1. Create a brief introduction for your project
2. Define the purpose of your project
3. Define your project scope
4. Create a work breakdown structure to identify your project tasks, milestones and deliverables
5. Create a project schedule
6. Define project requirements and acceptance criteria
7. Define payment terms and conditions

In terms of writing the statement of work, you’ll want to be specific with this project document. You want to clarify the terms used to make them universally understood and clearly define who’s going to do what and by what time those tasks must be completed. This avoids confusion later in the project when you can’t afford miscommunications or disputes.

Besides writing clearly, include visuals in the SOW to help focus the lens on various project aspects. Including visuals, be they project charts, graphs or other illustrations to help you clarify the project, will make the SOW agreement more digestible.

After all the work you’ve done to detail the specifics of the project, you don’t want to neglect the final, crucial step — getting the work signed off. You can’t proceed if you don’t have the authority to do so. Or, more accurately, you can, but it might cost you the success of the project. Make sure that those in authority have signed off on the statement of work.

What Should Be Included in a Statement of Work (SOW)?

There are as many parts in a statement of work as there are in a project, so it’s advisable to use a project management information system to help you manage its components. If you start by focusing on the parts, you can work yourself up to the whole. For a full understanding of an SOW, first, note the major aspects of the project it addresses.

1. Project Background

Project background is a concise summary of the circumstances, conditions and prior decisions that led to the initiation of the project. It describes the situation that exists before work begins, including relevant history, business context and triggering events, without proposing solutions or commitments.

In a statement of work, the project background establishes shared context between the parties, explains why the engagement exists and provides a factual foundation for interpreting scope, objectives, assumptions and contractual obligations that follow, reducing ambiguity and misalignment during execution.

2. Purpose Statement

Start with the big question: why are you initiating this project? What’s the purpose of the project? Create a purpose statement to lead this section and provide a thorough answer to these questions, such as what are the project objectives, deliverables and return on investment?

3. Project Goals and Objectives

Project goals and objectives define the desired outcomes and specific results a project is expected to achieve within a statement of work. Goals describe the broader purpose and direction of the project, while objectives translate those goals into measurable, actionable targets. Together, they establish a clear framework for decision-making, align stakeholder expectations and provide criteria for evaluating performance, progress and successful project completion.

4. Scope of Work

What work needs to be done in the project? Note it in the scope of work, including what hardware and software will be necessary. What’s the process you’ll use to complete the work defined in your project scope? This includes outcomes, time involved and even general steps it’ll take to achieve that. You’ll need to create a project scope statement to capture the information about your project scope.

• Project tasks: Specific activities required to complete the work outlined in a statement of work. They break the project scope into manageable units, defining what actions must be performed, by whom and often within what timeframe. Defined tasks help ensure accountability, support accurate scheduling and cost estimates and provide a structured path for executing the scope.
• Project task dependencies: Describe the relationships between tasks, identifying which activities must be completed before others can begin. In an SOW, documenting dependencies clarifies workflow, sequencing and timing constraints. This helps set realistic schedules, anticipate potential delays and ensure that interrelated tasks are coordinated effectively to support smooth project execution.
• Roles and responsibilities: Define who is accountable for specific tasks, decisions and deliverables within a statement of work. This section clarifies expectations for project sponsors, managers, team members and external parties. Clearly assigning responsibilities reduces confusion, prevents overlap or gaps in ownership and supports efficient collaboration and accountability throughout the project lifecycle.
• Project deliverables: Tangible or measurable outputs the project is expected to produce, as defined in the statement of work. They specify what will be delivered, in what format and often to what standard. Defined deliverables provide a basis for acceptance, performance measurement and payment.
• Project milestones: Key points or events that mark significant progress or achievements within a project. In a statement of work, milestones help structure the timeline, track progress and align stakeholders on critical phases. They are often tied to reviews, approvals or payments and provide clear checkpoints for measuring advancement toward project completion.
• Project exclusions: Identify tasks, deliverables or responsibilities that are intentionally outside the project’s scope. In a statement of work, stating exclusions helps prevent misunderstandings and scope creep. By defining what is not included, stakeholders can align expectations and reduce the risk of disputes.

Related: Project Scope Template

Use project management software to monitor your progress and ensure you’re meeting your milestones. ProjectManager has a real-time dashboard that’s built into the tool, unlike other software that makes you build your own. We not only have a dashboard embedded but it automatically calculates and displays the metrics in easy-to-read charts and graphs. Keep up with more than milestones, but also project variance, costs and more.

5. Work Schedule

The work schedule defines when contracted work will be performed across the engagement period for the statement of work. It identifies key dates, phases, milestones, review points and the overall performance window at a high level.

The work schedule establishes timing expectations and phase relationships, supports coordination between parties and provides a baseline for tracking progress, evaluating schedule changes and assessing timing impacts on costs, resources and deliverable acceptance throughout the duration of the agreement.

6. Project Requirements

Project requirements establish the mandatory conditions that must be satisfied for the work to proceed, be reviewed and be accepted. They specify obligations related to communication, approvals, reporting, access, compliance, quality and documentation that govern how the parties interact during delivery.

• Communication and reporting requirements: Define how progress is communicated, including reporting frequency, formats, meetings and points of contact, ensuring visibility, alignment and timely issue identification throughout the engagement.
• Review, approval and decision requirements: Specify required reviews, approval authorities and response timelines that govern deliverable evaluation, change authorization and decision-making, preventing delays and ambiguity during execution.
• Acceptance criteria and validation requirements: Establish acceptance criteria and processes for confirming deliverables meet agreed standards, including testing, inspections and formal sign-off, forming the basis for acceptance and payment.
• Compliance, quality and documentation requirements: Define applicable laws, standards, quality benchmarks and documentation obligations that must be met to ensure contractual, regulatory and operational compliance throughout delivery.

7. Project Assumptions

Project assumptions are conditions or factors that are accepted as true for planning purposes, even though they may not be fully verified. In a statement of work, documenting assumptions provides context for scope, timelines and cost estimates. They help align stakeholder expectations, identify potential risks and establish a baseline for decision-making if conditions change during project execution.

8. Project Constraints

Project constraints are the limitations or restrictions that affect how a project is planned and executed, such as budget, schedule, resources, or regulatory requirements. In a statement of work, defining these constraints sets realistic expectations and establishes boundaries for delivery. This information guides planning decisions, supports risk management and helps ensure the project remains achievable within agreed-upon limits.

9. Quality Assurance Guidelines

Quality assurance guidelines define the standards, processes and criteria used to ensure project work meets required levels of quality and performance. In a statement of work, these guidelines establish how quality will be measured, reviewed and maintained throughout execution. They help align expectations, support consistent results, reduce rework and provide a clear basis for evaluating deliverables against agreed-upon quality standards.

10. Quality Control Procedures

Quality control procedures are the specific methods and activities used to inspect, test and verify that project deliverables meet defined quality requirements. In a statement of work, these procedures outline how quality will be checked, who is responsible and when reviews will occur. They support consistent evaluation, early detection of defects and acceptance of deliverables that meet agreed-upon standards.

11. Project Success Criteria

Quality control procedures are the specific inspection, testing and verification activities used to confirm that project deliverables meet defined quality standards. In a statement of work, documenting these procedures clarifies how outputs will be reviewed, who is responsible for checks and when evaluations occur. This ensures consistent quality, supports acceptance decisions and reduces defects, rework and disputes during project execution.

12. Change Management Approach

A change management approach defines the formal process for requesting, evaluating, approving and implementing changes to the project scope, schedule, or cost. In a statement of work, it establishes how changes will be documented, who has approval authority and how impacts will be assessed. This approach helps control scope creep, maintain alignment with project objectives and ensure changes are managed consistently and transparently.

13. Payment Terms

If the project budget has been created, then you can list the payments related to the project and how they’ll be delivered: upfront, over time or after completion. For example, you can pay after the completion of a milestone or on a fixed schedule, whichever is more financially feasible.

14. Other

There will be other parts of the project that aren’t suited to the above categories, and this is the place where you can add them so that everything is covered. For example, are there security issues, restrictions around hardware or software, travel pay, post-project support, etc?

Related: Project Task Tracking Template

Statement of Work Example

We’ve been talking a lot about a statement of work, but a statement of work example can help make the subject more understandable. Let’s take a look at what a statement of work sample would look like in a real-life scenario.

This statement of work defines the terms, scope and expectations for the construction of a new 12,000-square-foot light industrial warehouse expansion. The document establishes contractual alignment between the client and contractor by clearly defining objectives, scope boundaries, deliverables and responsibilities before the start of physical work.

Project Background

The client operates a growing regional distribution business and has outgrown its existing warehouse capacity. Increased inventory volumes and operational throughput have created space constraints that limit efficiency and future growth. This project involves constructing a warehouse expansion adjacent to the existing facility to support increased storage capacity, improve logistics flow and meet applicable zoning and building regulations.

Purpose Statement

The purpose of this statement of work is to formally document the construction services to be provided for the warehouse expansion project. It defines what work is included, how deliverables will be produced, who is responsible for execution and what activities fall outside the agreed scope, serving as the baseline for performance measurement and change control.

Project Goals and Objectives

The primary goal of the project is to deliver a fully operational warehouse expansion that meets structural, safety and regulatory requirements within the agreed schedule and budget. Supporting objectives focus on quality execution, coordination among trades and minimizing disruption to existing warehouse operations.

Scope of Work

The scope of work defines the construction tasks required to deliver the warehouse expansion, including dependencies, deliverables, assigned responsibilities and explicit exclusions. Any work not expressly included in this section is considered outside the scope and subject to formal change control.

Work Schedule

The work schedule outlines the planned sequencing and duration of major project phases. Dates are based on the notice to proceed and assume timely approvals and site access. The schedule establishes baseline expectations for progress tracking and milestone coordination.

Project Requirements

Project requirements define the technical, regulatory and performance standards that must be met for deliverables to be accepted. These requirements establish objective criteria for compliance, inspection and final approval.

Project Assumptions

Project assumptions identify conditions believed to be true for planning purposes. If any assumption proves incorrect, schedule, cost or scope adjustments may be required through formal change control.

Project Constraints

Project constraints identify fixed limitations that restrict planning flexibility. These constraints must be managed throughout execution and cannot be altered without formal agreement.

Quality Assurance and Control

Quality assurance and control define the processes and standards used to ensure that all work performed under this statement of work meets contractual, regulatory and technical requirements. Quality activities focus on preventing defects through planning and oversight while verifying completed work through inspections, testing and formal acceptance before project closeout.

ProjectManager Can Improve Your Statement of Work

ProjectManager has a suite of project management tools that can help you put together a statement of work (SOW) that accurately depicts the forthcoming project. For starters, you can use our Gantt to start listing the tasks you can think of for the project.

Plan and Schedule Project Tasks With Gantt Charts

The online Gantt has the basics of a visual timeline and the ability to link dependencies to avoid bottlenecks and set milestones. Assign costs to tasks and see your planned costs for the project or specific phases. You can use the critical path tool to know what tasks can be skipped if necessary and set the baseline once your schedule and budget are done. That means you’ll be able to track in real time whether you’re staying on track and under budget. ProjectManager has the tools you want and delivers more functionality than the competition.

As you can see, using our Gantt chart software can go a long way to making an accurate statement of work for your project. Accuracy means a lot to stakeholders when it comes time to deliver on the work that you scoped out.

Keep Track of Progress, Costs and Schedules With Real-Time Dashboards

ProjectManager’s project dashboard tracks progress, costs and workload in real time so you can monitor the execution of your statement of work and quickly determine whether your project team is delivering tasks on time and on budget. In addition, Gantt charts and kanban boards have built-in risk and resource management features for better project tracking.

Related Work Management Content

• Workflow Template
• Statement of Work Template
• Work Proposal Template
• 9 Work Templates for Excel and Word
• How to Write a Work Proposal (with Example & Template)
• ¿Qué es la declaración de trabajo de un proyecto?
• Was ist eine Leistungsbeschreibung? Definition & Beispiele

The statement of work is a foundational document of any project. Once created and approved, you’ll have to create a plan and implement it. That’s where ProjectManager comes in. Our online project management software provides real-time data to help you manage and track your statement of work. Take it for a test spin and see how it can help you with this 30-day free trial.

The post What Is a Statement of Work? Definition & Examples appeared first on ProjectManager.

A project proposal is a formal project management document used to present a proposed initiative in a clear, structured way before work begins. It defines what the project is, what it aims to achieve and the high-level requirements needed to move forward.

Rather than detailing execution, a project proposal establishes a shared planning framework that allows organizations and external stakeholders to review, discuss and refine an idea early. Because proposals are written for sponsors, clients or decision-makers, they must be tailored to their priorities and concerns. Understanding the audience is critical to presenting information at the right level of detail.

We’ve created a free project proposal template for Word to help structure documents, so you don’t have to remember the process each time.

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Project Proposal Template

Use this free Project Proposal Template to manage your projects better.

Get the template

What Is the Purpose of a Project Proposal?

A project proposal explains why a project should exist and provides the information decision-makers need to approve, fund or prioritize it. It justifies a business need or opportunity, communicates expected value and benefits, and helps secure executive or client buy-in.

By clearly defining scope, goals, deliverables, success criteria and assumptions, it aligns stakeholders around a shared understanding of what will be delivered. A proposal also estimates costs, resources and timelines, allowing organizations to compare alternatives, evaluate feasibility and reduce risk before committing resources.

In competitive contexts, it supports bids, funding requests and contract awards. Internally, it formalizes ideas into actionable plans, serves as a reference for decisions and governance, and enables prioritization by showing how the project fits strategic objectives.

Most project management teams use a project proposal for the following purposes:

• Justifying a business need or strategic opportunity
• Establishing stakeholder expectations and project success criteria early
• Serving as a reference for project-related decisions
• Supporting internal prioritization and portfolio decisions
• Communicating expected value and business benefits

ProjectManager is an award-winning project management software equipped with advanced project planning, scheduling and monitoring features to turn any project proposal into a successful project in any industry. Create a project timeline, estimate costs, track project budgets, allocate resources and much more with powerful Gantt charts, real-time project dashboards and reports. Get started for free today.

When to Use a Project Proposal

A project proposal is most useful at key decision points, before time, money or project resources are committed. It provides structure when an idea needs evaluation, approval or alignment, helping stakeholders understand what’s being proposed, why it matters and what’s required to move forward. Whether you’re introducing a new initiative, responding to a request or reassessing a change, a project proposal creates clarity and supports informed decision-making.

Most project management teams write a project proposal when:

• Requesting project approval
• Seeking project financing or budget allocation
• Responding to a client or stakeholder request
• Proposing a new initiative or idea
• Competing for a contract or bid
• Evaluating multiple project options
• Defining work before project initiation
• Clarifying scope, cost or risk
• Aligning cross-functional teams
• Committing significant resources
• Requiring formal re-approval after changes
• Documenting assumptions before execution

Types of Project Proposals

In terms of types of project proposals, you can have one that’s formally solicited, informally solicited or a combination. There can also be renewal and supplemental proposals. Here’s a brief description of each of them.

• Solicited project proposal: This is sent as a response to a request for proposal (RFP). Here, you’ll need to adhere to the RFP guidelines of the project owner.
• Unsolicited project proposal: You can send project proposals without having received a request for a proposal. This can happen in open bids for construction projects, where a project owner receives unsolicited project proposals from many contractors.
• Informal project proposal: This type of project proposal is created when a client asks for an informal proposal without an RFP.
• Renewal project proposal: You can use a renewal project proposal when you’re reaching out to past customers. The advantage is that you can highlight past positive results and future benefits.
• Continuation project proposal: A continuation project proposal is sent to investors and stakeholders to communicate project progress.
• Supplemental project proposal: This proposal is sent to investors to ask for additional resources during the project execution phase.

Related: 12 Free Proposal Templates

Project Proposal Template

All the elements in the above project proposal outline are present in our template. This free project proposal template for Word will provide you with everything you need to write an excellent project proposal. It will help you with the executive summary, project process, deliverables, costs—even terms and conditions. Download your free template today.

Project Proposal Outline

There are several key operational and strategic questions to consider, including:

• Executive summary: This is the elevator pitch that outlines the project being proposed and why it makes business sense. While it also touches on the information that’ll follow in the project proposal, the executive summary should be brief and to the point.
• Project background: This is another short part of the proposal, usually only one page, which explains the problem you’ll solve or the opportunity you’re taking advantage of with the proposed project. Also, the project background should provide a short history of the business to put the company in context to the project and why it’s a good fit.
• Project vision & success criteria: State the goal of the project and how it aligns with the goals of the company. Be specific. Also, note the metrics used to measure the success of the project.
• Potential risks and mitigation strategies: There are always risks. Detail them here and what strategies you’ll employ to mitigate any negative impact as well as take advantage of any positive risk.
• Project scope & deliverables: Define the project scope, which is all the work that has to be done and how it will be done. Also, detail the various deliverables that the project will have.
• Project approach: Define the approach you’ll use for the contract. There are several different types of contracts used in construction, for example, such as lump sum, cost plus, time and materials, etc. This is also a good place to describe the delivery method you’ll use.
• Expected benefits: Outline the benefits that will come from the successful completion of the project.
• Project resource requirements: List the resources, such as labor, materials, equipment, etc., that you’ll need to execute the project if approved.
• Project costs & budget: Detail all the costs, including resources, that’ll be required to complete the project and set up a budget to show how those costs will be spent over the course of the project.
• Project timeline: Lay out the project timeline, which shows the project from start to finish, including the duration of each phase and the tasks within it, milestones, etc.
• Stakeholders & roles: Identify key stakeholders, sponsors and decision-makers involved in the project, along with their roles, responsibilities and level of authority throughout the project lifecycle.
• Assumptions, exclusions & constraints: Document the assumptions the proposal is based on as well as any known constraints, such as budget limits, regulatory requirements, resource availability or fixed deadlines. It’s also important to define exclusions, activities or deliverables that will not be done.
• Project governance: Explain how the project will be governed, including review checkpoints, approval authorities and escalation paths for major decisions or changes.
• Change management approach: Describe how changes to the project scope, schedule or budget will be evaluated, approved and communicated once the project is underway.
• Communication plan: Define how project updates will be shared, how often reporting will occur and which stakeholders will receive which types of information.
• Quality management approach: Outline how quality will be planned, monitored and controlled to ensure deliverables meet defined standards and expectations.
• Legal, compliance & procurement considerations: Address contractual, regulatory or procurement requirements that must be met before and during project execution.

Turn your project proposal into a successful project with ProjectManager. It’s powerful project management features allow you to keep your projects on schedule and under budget while keeping stakeholders informed with real-time project dashboards and reports.

How to Write a Project Proposal

To make the best proposal possible, you’ll want to be thorough and hit on all the points we’ve listed above. Here’s a step-by-step guide to writing a persuasive priority proposal.

1. Write an Executive Summary

The executive summary provides a quick overview of the main elements of your project proposal, such as your project background, project objectives and project deliverables, among other things. The goal is to capture the attention of your audience and get them excited about the project you’re proposing. It’s essentially the “elevator pitch” for the project life cycle. It should be short and to the point.

The executive summary should be descriptive and paint a picture of what project success looks like for the client. Most importantly, it should motivate the project client; after all, the goal is getting them to sign on the dotted line to get the project moving!

2. Provide a Project Background

The project background is a one-page section of your project proposal that explains the problem that your project will solve. You should explain when this issue started, its current state and how your project will be the ideal solution.

• Historic data: The history section outlines previously successful projects and those that could have run more smoothly. By doing so, this section establishes precedents and how the next project can be more effective using information from previous projects.
• Solution: The solution section addresses how your project will solve the client’s problem. Accordingly, this section includes any project management techniques, skills and procedures your team will use to work efficiently.

3. Establish a Project Vision & Success Criteria

You’ll need to define your project vision. This is best done with a vision statement, which acts as the north star for your project. It’s not specific as much as it’s a way to describe the impact your company plans to make with the project.

It’s also important to set up success criteria to show that the project is in fact doing what it’s proposed to do. Three obvious project success criteria are the triple constraint of cost, scope and time. But you’ll need to set up a way to measure these metrics and respond to them if they’re not meeting your plan.

4. Identify Potential Risks and Mitigation Strategies

To reduce the impact of risk in your project, you need to identify what those risks might be and develop a plan to mitigate them. List all the risks, prioritize them, describe what you’ll do to mitigate or take advantage of them and who on the team is responsible for keeping an eye out for them and resolving them.

5. Define Your Project Scope and Project Deliverables

The project scope refers to all the work that’ll be executed. It defines the work items, work packages and deliverables that’ll be delivered during the execution phase of your project life cycle. It’s important to use a work breakdown structure (WBS) to define your tasks and subtasks and prioritize them.

6. Set SMART Goals for Your Project Proposal

The best mindset when developing goals and objectives for your project proposal is to use the SMART system:

• Specific – Make sure your goals and objectives are clear, concise and specific to the task at hand.
• Measurable – Ensure your goals and objectives are measurable so it’s obvious to see when things are on track and going well, and conversely, when things are off track and issues need to be addressed. Measurable goals make it easy to develop the milestones you’ll use to track the progress of the project and identify a reasonable date for completion and/or closure.
• Attainable – It’s important every project has a “reach” goal. Hitting this goal would mean an outstanding project that extends above and beyond expectations. However, it’s important that the project’s core goal is attainable, so morale stays high and the job gets done with time and resources to spare.
• Relevant – Make sure all of your goals are directly relevant to the project and address the scope within which you’re working.
• Time-Based – Timelines and specific dates should be at the core of all goals and objectives. This helps keep the project on track and ensures all project team members can manage the work plan that’s ahead of them.

7. Explain What’s Your Project Approach

Your project approach defines the project management methodology, tools and governance for your project. In simple terms, it allows project managers to explain to stakeholders how the project will be planned, executed and controlled successfully.

8. Outline The Expected Benefits of Your Project Proposal

If you want to convince internal stakeholders and external investors, you’ll need to show them the financial benefits that your project could bring to their organization. You can use cost-benefit analysis and projected financial statements to demonstrate why your project is profitable.

9. Identify Project Resource Requirements

Project resources are critical for the execution of your project. The project proposal briefly describes what resources are needed and how they’ll be used. Later, during the planning phase, you’ll need to create a resource management plan that’ll be an important element of your project plan. Project requirements are the items, materials and resources needed for the project. This section should cover both internal and external needs.

10. Estimate Project Costs and Project Budget

All the resources that you’ll need for your project have a price tag. That’s why you need to estimate those costs and create a project budget. The project budget needs to cover all your project expenses, and as a project manager, you’ll need to make sure that you adhere to the budget.

11. Define a Project Timeline

Once you’ve defined your project scope, you’ll need to estimate the duration of each task to create a project timeline. Later during the project planning phase, you’ll need to create a schedule baseline, which estimates the total length of your project. Once the project starts, you’ll compare your actual project schedule to the schedule baseline to monitor progress.

Project Proposal Example

The best way to understand what a project proposal should look like is to take a look at a project proposal example. Here’s a project proposal for a construction project that integrates some of the elements of the project proposal outline we’ve described above.

1. Executive Summary

This proposal outlines a small commercial tenant improvement to refresh a 1,200 square foot neighborhood café. The project upgrades finishes, counters, lighting and signage to improve customer experience and operational flow while minimizing downtime. The investment supports revenue growth, brand consistency and code compliance within a short construction window timeline.

2. Project Background

The café operates in a mixed-use retail corridor and has outgrown its current layout. Aging finishes, inefficient service flow and limited seating constrain sales during peak hours. This project modernizes the space, improves circulation and aligns the location with the company’s updated brand standards and local building requirements and permits.

3. Project Vision and Success Criteria

The vision is to deliver a refreshed café that enhances customer comfort, supports faster service and reflects the brand’s identity. Success is measured through schedule adherence, budget tracking, quality outcomes and operational readiness, ensuring the space opens on time, meets code requirements and achieves targeted performance metrics after completion launch.

4. Potential Risks and Mitigation Strategies

5. Project Scope & Deliverables

6. Project Resource Requirements

7. Project Costs & Budget

8. Project Timeline

9. Assumptions, Exclusions & Constraints

Project Proposal vs. Project Charter

A project proposal is a detailed project document that’s used to convince the project sponsor that the project being proposed is worth the time, money and effort to deliver it. This is done by showing how the project will address a business problem or opportunity. It also outlines the work that will be done and how it will be done.

A project charter can seem like the same thing as a project proposal as it also defines the project in a document. It identifies the project objectives, scope, goals, stakeholders and team. But it’s done after the project has been agreed upon by all stakeholders and the project has been accepted. The project charter authorizes the project and documents its requirements to meet stakeholders’ needs.

Project Proposal vs. Business Case

A business case is used to explain why the proposed project is justified. It shows that the project is worth the investment of time and money. It’s more commonly used in larger companies in the decision-making process when prioritizing one project over another.

The business case answers the questions: what is the project, why should it be taken up, who will be involved and how much will it cost? It’s therefore related to a project proposal, but the project proposal comes before the business case and is usually part of the larger proposal.

Project Proposal vs. Project Plan

Again, the project proposal and the project plan in this case are very similar documents. It’s understandable that there would be some confusion between these two project terms. They both show how the project will be run and what the results will be. However, they’re not the same.

The project proposal is a document that aims to get a project approved and funded. It’s used to convince stakeholders of the viability of the project and their investment. The project plan, on the other hand, is made during the planning phase of the project, once it’s been approved. It’s a detailed outline of how the project will be implemented, including schedule, budget, resources and more.

In addition to these elements, it’s advisable to use a cover letter, which is a one-page document that helps you introduce your project proposal and grab the attention of potential clients and stakeholders.

Project Proposal Tips

Whatever project proposal you’re working on, there are a few tips that apply as best practices for all. While above we suggested a project proposal template that would have a table of contents, meaning it would be many pages long, the best-case scenario is keeping the proposal to one or two pages max. Remember, you’re trying to win over stakeholders, not bore them.

Speaking of project stakeholders, do the research. You want to address the right ones. There’s no point in doing all the work necessary to write a great proposal only to have it directed to the wrong target audience. Whoever is going to read it, though, should be able to comprehend the proposal. Keep the language simple and direct.

When it comes to writing, get a professional. Even a business document like a project proposal, business case or executive summary will suffer if it’s poorly constructed or has typos. If you don’t want to hire a professional business writer, make sure you get someone on your project team to copy, edit and proof the document. The more eyes on it, the less likely mistakes will make it to the final edition. You can also use an AI writing tool to help you proofread the project proposal and ensure the text is clear and concise.

While you want to keep the proposal short and sweet, it helps to sweeten the pot by adding customer testimonials to the attachments. Nothing sells a project plan better than a customer base looking for your product or service.

ProjectManager & Project Proposals

ProjectManager allows you to plan proposals within our software. You can update tasks for the project proposal to signify where things stand and what’s left to be done. The columns allow you to organize your proposal by section, creating a work breakdown structure (WBS) of sorts.

When building a project proposal, it’s vital to remember your target audience. Your audience includes those who are excited about the project, and see completion as a gain for their organization. Conversely, others in your audience will see the project as a pain and something to which they aren’t looking forward. To keep both parties satisfied, it’s essential to keep language factual and concise.

Our online kanban boards help you think through that language and collaborate on it effectively with other team members, if necessary. Each card shows the percentage completed so everyone in the project management team is aware of the work done and what’s left to be done.

As you can see from the kanban board above, work has begun on tasks such as product documentation and design. Tasks regarding stakeholder feedback, ideation, market research and more have been completed, and there’s a good start on the engineering drawings, 3D rendering, supply chain sourcing and translation services.

A PDF is then attached to the card, and everyone added to the task receives an email notifying them of the change. This same process can be used throughout the life-cycle of the project to keep the team updated, collaborating, and producing a first-class project proposal. In addition to kanban boards, you can also use other project management tools such as Gantt charts, project dashboards, task lists and project calendars to plan, schedule and track your projects.

Related Project Planning Content

• Project Documentation: 15 Essential Project Documents
• How to Create a Project Execution Plan (PEP)
• How to Write a Scope of Work
• Project Scope Statement: How to Write One With Examples
• ¿Qué es una Propuesta de Proyecto? (Con Ejemplo)
• Comment rédiger une proposition de projet
• Wie man einen Projektvorschlag schreibt
• Como elaborar uma proposta de projeto

Project proposals are just the first step in the project planning process. Once your project is approved, you’ll have to solidify the plan, allocate and manage resources, monitor the project, and finally hand in your deliverables. This process requires a flexible, dynamic and robust project management software package. ProjectManager is online project management software that helps all your team members collaborate and manage this process in real-time. Try our award-winning software with this free 30-day trial.

The post How to Write a Project Proposal (Examples & Template Included) appeared first on ProjectManager.

Why Use a Proposal Template?

Across industries, a proposal template is a starting point for customizing proposals to suit specific needs. For example, in construction, the focus may be on deliverables, site plans and contractor timelines. In IT, the emphasis might be on system architecture and technical requirements.

Despite the differences in content, the template’s consistent format—typically including an executive summary, goals, methodology, budget and risk assessment—ensures that decision-makers can quickly evaluate the feasibility and value of a proposed project. This cross-industry adaptability not only saves time and improves clarity but also enhances collaboration and decision-making across departments and sectors.

15 Free Proposal Templates for Submitting Proposals

These proposal templates provide a standardized structure that helps stakeholders understand the project’s objectives, scope, timelines and resource requirements, regardless of the field.

1. Project Proposal Template

Download this free project proposal template for Word to outline the details of a proposed project in a clear, organized manner. It serves as a structured framework for presenting important project information to stakeholders, clients or decision-makers to gain approval, funding or support.

This fully customizable proposal template can be easily adapted for use in construction, IT, marketing, engineering or any business proposal. This document is created to kick off a new project. It’s in-depth with a clear and concise cover letter and executive summary to provide an overview of the proposal and convince the sponsor to approve it.

If the project is approved, the proposal template will continue to be useful as it informs the project planning phase. That’s because it defines the project scope and objectives, identifies key activities and milestones, resources and roles, estimates timelines and shows dependencies. The project proposal template explains what will happen and why, which then allows a Gantt chart to show when it will happen and in what sequence.

ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software with robust Gantt charts that can do all that and so much more. Yes, it schedules tasks, resources and costs, but unlike many of the competitors, it can also link all four types of task dependencies to avoid cost overruns. Also, we can filter for the critical path and set up a baseline to track progress in real time. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

2. Event Proposal Template

Download this free event proposal template for Word to outline key details, objectives and logistics of an event for potential clients, sponsors or internal stakeholders. It serves as a blueprint that describes the event’s purpose, target audience, venue, schedule, budget, marketing strategies and expected outcomes. By organizing this information in a clear, persuasive format, the template helps event planners present a professional and convincing case for why the event should be approved, funded or supported.

An event proposal template streamlines the planning process and ensures consistency across different events or clients. It allows planners to quickly adapt proposals to various audiences while maintaining a high standard of quality and thoroughness. A strong template not only improves communication but also demonstrates the planner’s expertise, attention to detail and understanding of the client’s or organization’s goals.

3. Request for Proposal Template

Use this free request for proposal template (RFP) for Word to solicit bids from vendors, contractors or service providers for a specific project or service. It outlines the project’s requirements, objectives, scope of work, timelines, evaluation criteria and submission guidelines. Templates help organizations ensure that every RFP they issue is clear, consistent and detailed enough for vendors to prepare thorough, comparable proposals.

A good RFP template reduces misunderstandings, improves the quality of vendor responses and helps the organization select the best partner for the project. This proposal template not only saves time but also increases transparency and fairness in the vendor selection process.

4. Budget Proposal Template

This free budget proposal template for Word presents a detailed estimate of the financial resources needed for a project, event or organizational activity. It outlines expected costs across categories like labor, materials, equipment, travel, marketing and other expenses. A budget proposal helps stakeholders understand the financial requirements, justify funding requests and evaluate whether the proposed project is feasible and aligned with organizational goals.

This proposal template ensures that all necessary financial details are included, organized clearly and presented consistently and professionally. A well-prepared budget proposal not only strengthens the overall project proposal but also helps with financial planning, accountability and decision-making once the project is underway.

5. Construction Proposal Template

Download this free construction proposal template for Word to outline the scope, timeline, materials, labor and pricing for a construction project they are bidding on. It serves as a formal offer to a client, clearly detailing what work will be performed, the terms and conditions, project milestones, estimated costs and payment schedules.

This kind of proposal template ensures that all critical information is included, presented professionally and customized easily for different projects, helping contractors win jobs and protect themselves legally if disputes arise later. It not only clarifies expectations between the contractor and client but also builds trust by demonstrating transparency, thorough planning and professionalism.

6. Consulting Proposal Template

Use this free consulting proposal template for Word to pitch services to potential clients by outlining the solutions they will provide, how they will deliver them and the value the client can expect. Unlike more technical proposals, a consulting proposal focuses on diagnosing the client’s problem, presenting a tailored approach and explaining why the consultant’s expertise is the right fit.

It’s both a strategic and persuasive document, meant to demonstrate understanding of the client’s needs and build confidence in the consultant’s ability to drive results. Because consulting work often varies widely between clients, the proposal template is designed to be flexible, allowing for customization based on project scope, industry or business goals. A well-crafted consulting proposal not only lays the groundwork for the project but also sets the tone for the client-consultant relationship.

7. Sponsorship Proposal Template

Use this sponsorship proposal template to pitch a partnership to a potential sponsor. It outlines what the event, project, or initiative is about, the audience it reaches, what the sponsor would gain (such as visibility, brand alignment or sales opportunities), and what sponsorship packages or benefits are available. The goal is to communicate value so the sponsor can see why the investment is worthwhile.

This template has a polished, professional structure to present all this information clearly. It organizes your objectives, audience details, sponsorship tiers, budgets, and deliverables in a way that’s easy for potential sponsors to review and compare. This saves time, ensures nothing important is missed and increases the likelihood that your proposal feels credible, compelling and ready for decision-makers.

8. Bid Proposal Template

Businesses, contractors and freelancers use this free bid proposal template for Word to formally offer their services or products at a specified price in response to a client’s request. It outlines key details such as the scope of work, timeline, cost breakdown and terms and conditions.

The goal of this proposal template is to convince the client that the bidder not only understands the project requirements but is also offering the best combination of price, quality and reliability. Using a template ensures that bids are professional, complete and easy to compare against competitors’ submissions.

9. Design Proposal Template

A design proposal outlines the scope, approach, timeline, and cost for a design project—whether it’s graphic design, product design, UX/UI work or another creative service. It explains the client’s problem, the designer’s proposed solution, the deliverables, the process and the terms of the engagement. Its purpose is to set clear expectations and help the client decide whether to move forward.

Our free template gives designers a consistent, professional framework to build proposals quickly. Instead of starting from scratch, they can plug in project details, pricing, deliverables and timelines while ensuring every proposal includes the right information.

10. Service Proposal Template

Use this free service proposal template for Word to offer professional services to potential clients in a clear, organized way. It outlines what services will be provided, how they will be delivered, the timeline for completion, pricing and any terms and conditions. A service proposal is not just a pricing sheet—it’s a persuasive document that explains the value and approach of the service provider, aiming to align the proposal with the client’s needs and goals.

This proposal template helps service providers maintain consistency across different proposals while saving time and ensuring no important information is overlooked. A strong service proposal makes it easier for clients to understand exactly what they are getting, builds trust and increases the likelihood of securing the business.

11. Program Proposal Template

Use a program proposal if you need to present a plan for a program, or a coordinated set of related projects or initiatives intended to achieve a major strategic goal. This free template defines the program’s purpose, objectives, scope, timeline, resources, budget, expected outcomes, and metrics for success. The proposal serves to persuade decision-makers (executives, sponsors, stakeholders) to approve and fund the program before any work begins.

Use this ready-made structure that covers all critical components: summary, objectives, scope, deliverables, timelines, budget, resource needs, risks, governance, stakeholder engagement and success criteria. By documenting objectives, scope, resources, and success metrics in one place, everyone knows exactly what’s being proposed and what’s expected.

12. Business Proposal Template

This free business proposal template for Word is used to present a product, service or solution to a potential client, partner or investor to secure a deal or agreement. It organizes key information—such as the problem being addressed, the proposed solution, implementation strategies, pricing and terms—into a clear, persuasive document.

A business proposal is meant to show not only what you are offering but also why your offering is the best choice. This proposal template ensures that proposals are consistent, comprehensive and professionally presented, saving time while improving the quality of communication.

13. Marketing Proposal Template

Download this free marketing proposal template for Word to outline a strategic plan for promoting a client’s products, services or brand. It presents a clear framework that explains the client’s current challenges, proposed marketing solutions, specific tactics (like digital ads, SEO, social media campaigns), timelines, expected outcomes and associated costs.

The purpose of this proposal template is to help marketers communicate their vision effectively, making it easier for clients to understand the value and impact of the proposed strategy. A marketing proposal not only highlights what actions will be taken but also emphasizes how those actions align with the client’s broader business objectives.

14. Grant Proposal Template

Use this free grant proposal template for Word to apply for funding from a grant-making entity, such as a government agency, foundation or nonprofit. It provides a clear, organized way to present the project or program needing financial support, outlining objectives, methodologies, expected outcomes and budget requirements.

The goal of this proposal template is to convince the funding organization that the proposed project aligns with their goals and is worthy of financial backing. A grant proposal template helps ensure all necessary components are included in a way that meets the funder’s expectations and guidelines.

15. Work Proposal Template

This free work proposal template for Word is used to outline a specific task or project, usually between a service provider (like a contractor, freelancer or consultant) and a client. It details the work to be completed, how it will be done, the timeline and the costs involved.

The purpose of this proposal template is to define expectations and terms, ensuring that both parties are on the same page before work begins. It serves as an agreement to avoid misunderstandings and sets a clear roadmap for how the work will progress.

ProjectManager Turns Proposals Into Winning Projects

A proposal template is valuable when appraising or bidding or a project. Once the project is accepted, the template is less useful. It’s not a waste, of course, as the information gathered can be used to plan the project. But that planning, managing and tracking of work shouldn’t be done on templates. That’s what project management software is for.

ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that has Gantt charts, but also multiple project views, such as sheet, task, list and calendar views and kanban boards to execute work in the way that’s right for you. Use custom or automated workflows, with task approval settings to ensure quality, to add efficiency to processes. This helps to meet the goals of the proposal.

Manage Resources and Stay Productive

Efficient resource management starts with scheduling the human and nonhuman resources on the Gantt chart. The next step is to onboard the team, but before assigning them to tasks, set their availability to streamline the process and ensure the right resources for the right job at the right time.

View all project resources on the color-coded workload chart to see who is overallocated or underutilized. Balance the team’s workload right from that chart to keep them productive. A team page offers a daily or weekly overview of their activities, which can be filtered by priority or progress. Their tasks can even be updated without leaving the page.

Track Metrics and Keep on Schedule

Other project metrics need to be monitored and controlled. For a high-level project overview, toggle to the real-time project or portfolio dashboards. They’re already set up and ready to view easy-to-read graphs and charts that show time, cost, workload and more.

Greater detail can be found with one-keystroke customizable reports on status, variance, workload, timesheets and more. Filter each to focus on key data points or progress, which can be shared with stakeholders to keep them updated. Even our secure timesheets help track labor costs to help projects stay on budget.

Related Proposal Content

For those who want to explore the subject beyond the boundaries of proposal templates, below are some links to articles and a video that go into how to write and make different types of proposals.

• How to Write a Project Proposal (Examples & Template Included)
• How to Write a Service Proposal: Sample & Template Included
• How to Make a Request for Proposal (RFP)
• Project Proposal Writing: How to Write A Winning Project Proposal

ProjectManager is online project and portfolio management software that connects teams, whether they’re in the office or out in the field. They can share files, comment at the task level and stay up to date with email and in-app notifications. Get started with ProjetManager today for free.

The post 15 Free Proposal Templates for Submitting Proposals appeared first on ProjectManager.

Using project report templates, like a weekly status report template, ensure these reports are created quickly and effectively.

Why Use a Project Report Template?

No matter how thoroughly a project is planned, the unexpected is bound to happen. Project reports document these changes, whether good or bad, and inform future strategies. Without regularly completing project reports, valuable information and insights is missed out on.

Status reports are an example of how reporting directly impacts a project, in both the short-term and long-term. These weekly reports outline many details about a project, and using a weekly status report template can save you from leaving gaps in the information. Project report templates also keep these reports consistent and organized throughout the life of the project. Disorganized, or “messy” project reporting is a major pitfall.

Using a project report template ensures you’re getting the most from the data and presenting it to stakeholders in the right way.

Free Project Report Templates

Regardless of the project report, the document must convey information concisely—but that doesn’t mean the data should suffer. The challenge is providing information most efficiently. A project reporting template strikes a balance between too much detail and oversimplified reports that are useless to stakeholders.

Project reporting templates make reporting easier and the data more straightforward. Each of the following free project report templates is designed for a specific purpose and focuses on different information.

1. Weekly Status Report Template

A weekly project status report does exactly what one would think — it documents specific information during a project. These reports should be created throughout the life of a project to illustrate changes, whether that be successes or failures. A weekly status report is the first step toward understanding if a project is going smoothly.

Our weekly status report template covers all the bases and presents information efficiently. This template includes major details such as an executive summary, project milestones, issues, risks and past and future projections.

This status report template also ensures the information is presented in a way that makes the most logical sense. The executive summary defines the project and discusses goals and projections. It doesn’t make sense to present potential risks and changes to stakeholders before they’re hooked on the executive summary.

2. Project Dashboard Template

A project dashboard is one of the most widely used project management tools. Our dashboard template is a visual tool to view the project’s current status, health, calendar and more. It’s a great complement to our weekly status report template.

A dashboard should include tasks, task lengths, costs and workload, but it shouldn’t necessarily illustrate the minutiae of them. Use this free project dashboard template to keep it simple without needing an oversaturated dashboard. Or if you’re looking for a dashboard for managing multiple projects or tracking the performance of your business operations, you can use our free KPI dashboard template for projects and businesses.

3. Project Progress Report Template

A project progress template helps project managers compare actual progress against the projections and estimates included in the project plan. A progress report is a critical project management tool that works for both tracking and reporting.

4. Risk Register Template

As the project continues, new risks are bound to crop up. There’s no way to foresee every potential risk during the project planning phase, so reporting on new issues as they appear is required. This way, problems are identified before they happen and you gain a better understanding of what to look out for in future projects.

A risk register should include each potential risk and the impact it could have. It should also categorize the risk and describe what steps were taken in order to avoid it.

While many of these risks will never become reality, it’s crucial to document and plan for them. Projects without risk registers walk the tightrope with no safety net. They also don’t inform future projects. Keeping a running list with this risk register template turns risks into references for the future.

5. Executive Project Status Report Template

Sometimes, senior leaders need a quick, clear snapshot of a project’s overall health. Unlike detailed team reports, this template focuses on the information executives care about most: project status, major milestones, key accomplishments, upcoming work, risks or issues, budget or timeline concerns and any decisions or support needed.

Its purpose is to simplify communication and keep leadership aligned without overwhelming them with details. By using a template, project managers can present updates consistently, highlight what truly matters and help executives make fast, informed decisions.

6. Change Log Template

A change log is similar to a risk register. However, in a risk register, these are potential risks. In a change log, these are actual changes that took place. A change log template is where major changes in the project, what actions were taken to resolve them when the matter was resolved and other details will be listed.

Why not add this information to a weekly status report? These are specific, unusual circumstances throughout the life of the project that need to be in one location.

A change log template organizes the information about changes and what steps were taken to address them in one chronological list. Remember, a project report template is supposed to be a point of reference for project managers experiencing changes in future projects. An organized change log shows what responses worked in the past and what didn’t.

7. Project Update Template

Project updates are integral to project reporting. Using a project update template benefits teams and stakeholders because it imposes consistency and clarity on reporting, making updates faster to prepare and easier to read. It ensures essential information isn’t overlooked, helps track progress, flag problems early, and communicate changes transparently.

With a consistent format, stakeholders always know where to find key information like accomplishments, upcoming work, risks and overall project health. This reduces confusion, saves time and ensures nothing critical is overlooked.

8. Project Closure Report Template

At the end of the project, it’s time to wrap up and get stakeholder sign-offs with a project closure template. This report is the final sprint in the marathon of managing a successful project. Without this final push, all the hard work up to this point loses value.

A project closure report includes documentation of everything needed to complete the project, as well as any outstanding items that have not been completed. This report should summarize objectives, criteria for completion, successes, failures and lessons learned. It should also provide information about time spent, budget, scope and schedule.

A project closure report sometimes asks for abstract information. Listing all the major takeaways from a project sounds challenging, but this free project closure template makes it as simple as following a checklist.

9. Post-Mortem Project Report Template

A post-mortem is a medical term that refers to the examination of a dead body to determine the cause of death. In project management, the post-mortem is a report on a project that has just been completed, reviewing what worked and what didn’t.

Download this free port-mortem template for Word and get a project report template that details the good, bad and ugly of a recently delivered project. This allows the project manager, team and stakeholders to honestly assess the project, issues and all, to apply what’s learned to the next project.

This free project report template crucially outlines what the initial expectations were. There’s space to list the project milestones, achievements and obstacles. Stakeholders has a place to give their perspective, too, making this a comprehensive look at past projects to improve future ones.

10. KPI Dashboard Template

Project report templates don’t have to look back at a closed project; they can be very helpful for tracking the progress of a current one. Being able to get a lot of data on the performance, cost, workload and more when managing a project provides information to make more insightful decisions.

Download this KPI dashboard template for Excel to get valuable data that helps deliver projects on time, within budget and meeting quality standards. Project managers can use this project report template to quickly identify trends and respond to challenges or opportunities when they arise.

This project report has charts and graphs that help deliver projects and businesses alike. There are key performance indicators for budget, a yearly pay/loss overview, task status, resource planning, workload analysis and more.

11. Lessons Learned Report Template

When a project is over, it’s not finished. There are documents to sign, teams to release to other projects and more paperwork. But the last and possibly most important item of business is documenting the knowledge obtained from the execution of the project.

This free lessons learned template for Excel is a way to capture that knowledge, both positive and negative. Like the post-mortem, this project report template allows the team to reflect on the project and figure out how the next one can be better managed.

The lessons learned template divides each topic discussed as a win or an issue. From there, the team will describe what happened and its impact on the project. That leads to how it might change future projects and then a list of action items to address the win or issue.

12. Change Impact Report Template

Change is a given when managing a project. That doesn’t mean project managers and business leaders just let it happen. They use this free change impact assessment template for Excel to understand how the change will affect the people, process and projects they’re involved with.

Using this project report template can inform resource allocation and reduce the risk associated with the change. It helps analyze the type and extent of the change, and its impact on different departments in the organization, from employees to project teams, processes, technology and more.

The free project report template has space to describe the current state of the operation or business process. Then there’s a place to define the desired state. Next, the proposed change is explained and a list of questions will be provided to estimate the impact of the change.

13. Highlight Report Template

A highlight report is a brief, high-level summary that gives stakeholders a snapshot of a project’s current status over a defined reporting period. This highlight report template keeps sponsors and stakeholders informed without overwhelming them with detail.

It focuses on what has changed since the last report, what needs attention and whether the project remains on track. Regular highlight reports improve transparency, support timely decision-making and help maintain alignment across teams.

14. After Action Report Template

This structured document is used after a project, event, campaign or any major initiative is completed. It helps teams review what happened, compare outcomes to what was planned and reflect on successes and failures.

Using an after-action report template benefits stakeholders by ensuring that insights and outcomes are consistently documented and shared. Rather than leaving conclusions in people’s heads (or scattered notes), the template forces teams to articulate what worked, what failed and why, which builds organizational memory.

The Value of a Perfect Report

All too often, projects are managed without reflecting on the successes and failures of past projects. The best projects are informed by past reports and create reports with the future in mind. Using project reporting templates means each report created is part of a larger reference for the future.

Whether reporting on agile projects, programs, products, or managing any other type of project, there is a template that will benefit your reporting and results. This can mean simplifying your workflow and improving deliverables.

Take Project Reporting Further with ProjectManager

Using project templates is an excellent first step in the project reporting process, but templates can only take you so far.

Fortunately, you can take project reports even further by using them in combination with project management software. Online project management software such as ProjectManager can create and share automated reports with the most up-to-date data. Take a free trial of ProjectManager and see just how much we can improve your project reporting experience.

Related Content

• Project Management Templates for Google Sheets
• 6 Project Report Examples (Free Download)
• Essential Report Templates for Excel
• Project Status Reports: The Ultimate Guide
• Project Performance Reporting: Key Performance Reports
• Understanding the Exception Report in Project Management

ProjectManager is a cloud-based software that allows you to manage projects and create reports from anywhere. Import your project in minutes and create reports with ease. The ProjectManager dashboard shows an easy-to-navigate overview of your project, and our reporting tools give you the power to report on the information with the click of a button. See for yourself by taking this 30-day free trial today.

The post 14 Free Project Report Templates for Excel & Word appeared first on ProjectManager.

This guide defines what project documentation is and why it’s important in addition to outlining the top 25 project documents that you should always create to plan and execute your projects.

What Is Project Documentation?

The term project documentation refers to the project management documents that are created throughout the project life cycle. These documents, such as the project plan, project schedule or project budget, define activities, procedures and guidelines that the project team should follow.

Project documentation has several purposes such as project planning, cost management or risk management. In addition, there are certain project documents that must be created at a specific project phase as they set the stage for the next step. For example, the project management plan must be created before the project execution phase can begin.

Project management software can help you organize and share information that is crucial to the success of your project. ProjectManager is project management software with advanced planning, tracking and reporting that has unlimited file storage and makes it easy to share product documentation with your team and stakeholders. All of its multiple project views share one source of information to keep everyone on the same page. Get started for free.

Let’s take a look at which project documents should be created at each project management phase.

Project Documentation by Project Phase

Projects vary in size and complexity and some require more comprehensive project documentation than others. Here’s an overview of some of the project documents that are usually created throughout the project life cycle.

• Project Initiation: Project charter, project summary, business case, project kickoff meeting agenda
• Project Planning: Project management plan, work breakdown structure, project budget, project schedule, change management plan, scope management plan, risk management plan
• Project Execution: Project status report, project execution plan, lessons learned template, timesheets, change requests, change orders
• Project Monitoring and Control: Project status report, lessons learned template, timesheets
• Project Closure: Project closure template, punch list

Now that you have an idea of the right project documentation for each phase of your project life cycle, let’s dive into some critical project management documents.

Top 25 Project Documents to Include in Your Project Documentation

Here’s a brief description of the important project documents and a corresponding project management template for each of them. Don’t forget to check our library of free project management templates, where you’ll find dozens of templates to build your project documentation.

1. Project Plan Document for Word

The project plan is the most comprehensive of all project management documents because it compiles the project documents that are created during the project planning phase. For example, your project plan should include your project budget and your project schedule.

2. Project Charter Document

The project charter is written during the project initiation phase and it sets the stage for the project plan. Project managers use project charters to provide a quick overview of the project to stakeholders, sponsors and clients.

3. Business Case Document

Just like the project charter, a business case is a document that’s created during the initiation phase to convince project stakeholders of the project’s value by explaining the potential benefits it could have for their organization.

4. Project Schedule

At a basic level, the project schedule defines the timeline for the execution of all project tasks. It can also include more details such as the resources needed for each task, who’s responsible for it, the float or slack your project has and the critical path. ProjectManager’s Gantt chart is the perfect tool for creating a detailed project schedule.

ProjectManager offers four kinds of dependencies, baseline tracking and real-time resource availability when assigning work. You can break down you project into subtasks and track costs for each phase to ensure you stay on track. Get started with ProjectManager for free and build a better project schedule.

5. Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

A work breakdown structure (WBS) is a fundamental example of project documentation. It breaks down the project’s scope into smaller, more manageable components. At the top is the overall project goal that is progressively broken down into smaller pieces. This tool helps organize complex projects and ensures they stay on track.

6. RACI Chart Document

RACI stands for responsible, accountable, consulted and informed. A RACI chart, also known as a RACI matrix, helps define roles and responsibilities for different tasks and deliverables within a project or process. It aims to eliminate confusion about who is responsible for what and improve communication. This is a valuable tool for projects of all sizes, especially those with multiple stakeholders and complex workflows.

7. Risk Register Document

This document allows you to register all potential project risks and includes a brief description of their potential impact and likelihood. A risk register is an important project document as it provides important information for your risk management plan that contains all risk management documents, strategies and guidelines.

8. Scope Statement Document

A scope statement defines the activities that will be executed to complete a project. It’s used by project managers to let stakeholders know what will be done and what won’t be done so that expectations are clear from the beginning. It’s part of the scope management plan, a comprehensive document that explains the procedures and guidelines related to the project scope.

9. Project Budget Document

The project budget is a critical project management document. To create one, you’ll need to estimate your project costs, which include labor, materials, equipment and anything that’s needed to execute the project.

10. Project Communication Plan

A communication plan sets all the guidelines for communication among team members and project stakeholders. It defines the communication channels to be used, the communication schedule and roles and responsibilities among other details to streamline the communication process throughout the project life cycle.

11. Project Execution Plan

A project execution plan (PEP) lays out exactly how a project will be delivered, including the tasks, timeline, resources and budget needed to move from plan to reality. This Excel template brings all execution‑phase details together: scope definitions, task lists, start and end dates, assigned team members, resource needs (labor, materials, equipment) and cost estimates.

12. Project Status Report Document

Project status reports are a must-have project management tool because they allow you to check the health of your project at any point in time and share data with stakeholders to keep them updated. Status reports are brief and include the most relevant information only.

13. Statement of Work Document

A statement of work (SOW) is a formal document that defines the full scope, deliverables, timeline and responsibilities for a project before any work begins. This template provides a structured format to capture all essential project details, including the project background, objectives, scope, deliverables, schedule and assigned responsibilities.

14. Project Closure Document

It’s always necessary to create project documentation at the end of the project closure phase. That’s because project managers need to close contracts, create a “lessons learned” document and get formal approval from stakeholders, among other important tasks. All of this must be documented so that nothing falls through the cracks.

15. Project Proposal Document

A project proposal is a project management document that provides a quick overview of the key areas of a project. Its main purpose is to convince potential stakeholders of the value of the project during the initiation phase. It should be a persuasive document that highlights the main benefits, goals and requirements.

16. Procurement Plan Document

A procurement plan is a detailed roadmap for acquiring goods and services that a project will depend on. This free template defines what must be procured, when and how purchases will be made, what contract types and vendor‑selection criteria will be used and how supplier relationships and deliveries will be managed.

17. Project Plan Document for Excel

Project plans are undoubtedly important, and sometimes, teams prefer to work in a familiar Excel format. This template ensures everyone involved knows what must be done, when and by whom, setting expectations clearly and aligning the team around a shared structure. With a solid project plan, you reduce risks of confusion, scope creep or missed deadlines and give your project the best chance of finishing on time and within budget.

18. Issue Log Document

An issue log is an example of project documentation that helps manage problems or obstacles that come up during a project. It’s a list or spreadsheet that’s used to document, monitor and resolve issues that could potentially impact the project’s schedule, budget, scope or quality. An issue log helps establish responsibility for resolving issues and creates a historical record for future reference.

19. Change Request Form

A change request form is a standardized project document that formally proposes, evaluates and approves alterations to a project’s original plan. It helps manage modifications to scope, budget, schedule or other project aspects in a controlled manner. This form helps mitigate the negative impact of uncontrolled changes and keeps the project on track with its overall goals.

20. Project Brief Document

A project brief is a summarized version of your project plan, geared towards an audience such as cross-functional teams or stakeholders who don’t need to dive into all the details of a project management plan but still need to have an understanding of the project goals, budget, roles & responsibilities, among other key aspects.

21. Project Requirements Document

Project requirements are the goals and specifications that are expected from a project to make sure all stakeholders are satisfied. Our free requirements gathering template will help you document all your project requirements.

22. Project Charter Document

A project charter is the foundational document that formally kicks off a project. It defines the project’s purpose, high‑level objectives, scope, key stakeholders, roles and responsibilities and initial constraints or assumptions. The Excel template provides a clear framework to document all essential project initiation details, including project name, sponsor, objectives, scope, deliverables, stakeholders and high-level schedule and budget estimates.

23. Project Overview Document

A project overview is a 1-page document that outlines the most critical aspects of a project, such as its timeline, milestones, budget, status and the team members’ roles & responsibilities.

24. Team Charter Document

A team charter is a project management document that shows the roles, responsibilities, deliverables and resources of a project team. It helps project managers understand the workload and objectives of each team member for better resource planning.

25. Stakeholder Analysis Document

Stakeholder analysis helps identify individuals with a vested interest in a project. A stakeholder analysis template is the ideal type of project documentation to use before the project’s execution phase. It analyzes the stakeholders who can be impacted by a project, decision or initiative. Use this template to better understand stakeholder needs, expectations and influence to develop effective communication and engagement strategies.

What’s Worth Documenting for a Project?

No matter your organization’s structure, the ability to record and document all aspects of a project is vital to being a successful project manager. Multiple reports, charts, graphs, documents, change requests and status updates need to be maintained throughout the project life cycle, and documentation works to stitch the disparate pieces of a project together and bring it to a successful finish.

However, your time is limited, and so is patience in most organizations for tedious paperwork. How can you maintain efficiency and effectively document the project? Consider the following to determine what’s worth documenting:

• Client-Related Everything – Imagine that a client suddenly questions a decision that was made months ago. The client says that they chose one direction but your company decided to go down another path during implementation. Clear documentation on client meetings, including notes with dates, times and attendees, helps resolve misunderstandings.
• Legal Dictates – For certain projects, legal teams are required to review documentation during the project. For public projects, there might be oversight and review processes that analyze a project after its completion. Know the documentation requirements your legal team needs before your project begins. Playing catch-up is risky in this kind of environment.
• The Right Amount of Process – While you don’t want to get lost in documenting so much of the plan and process that you’re not actually processing, you do want some definition around the project plan and goals. Let your organizational structure guide how many processes to document. For example, trying to operate process-free on a project that requires legal documentation will only get your project in trouble. When in doubt, the best approach is to document.
• Changes to the Project – Ongoing project reports are essential to document, especially as project goals shift. Ideally, you’ll have a real-time online project management tool so your resources and task changes are scheduled live and issues are captured as they occur. However, larger impacts to the project plan should be added to project documentation in a version-controlled manner.

Project Documentation Best Practices

So what are the best strategies you should use to keep your documentation effective, efficient and timely? To align your documentation according to best practices, you should:

• Take the Time – Use your calendar! Many people think that calendars are only for scheduling meetings. It’s not. Use it to schedule 2-3 hour blocks of uninterrupted time to assemble an essential document. Instead of taking calls or conversing with a coworker, take the time to get in the zone of writing. With focused time and attention, you’ll be able to make significant progress. Likewise, schedule 10-15 minute blocks in your calendar each week to review and update documentation.
• Have the Right Level of Detail – Putting documentation together for engineers is different from the documents you present to executives. Engineers need details you can provide, while executives don’t have time to be bogged down with details. They just want bullet points, the bottom line and the next steps. It’s up to you to determine the right level of documentation for the right audience.
• Use Smart Storage – Your documentation needs to be easy to locate. Documentation is useless if it’s buried under a rock where nobody can find it. This includes making sure that the infrastructure is in place to access the documentation online and that the folder structure and hierarchy are easy and intuitive to understand.
• Share with Others – Most people hate putting documentation together but love it when it’s packaged up for them. You’ll be pleasantly surprised that people actually read the documentation! Use your online project management software to store your documents online with the project, ideally in a collaborative, secure environment.
• Version Control and Up-to-Date – Keeping project documentation current and updated is challenging. It’s easy to get to the point of the initial version, but it’s painful to go back and update documentation and maintain version control. The biggest help is the document repository infrastructure you have in place. Automatic version control allows you to manage this process and the consumers of your documentation always trust that they have the latest version.

How ProjectManager Helps With Project Documentation

ProjectManager is work and project software that connects hybrid teams and fosters collaboration. All project documents can be stored on the tool and everyone who needs access to documents will have it. You can create project plans and so much more, making ProjectManager the only software you need for project success.

Make Project Plans on Interactive Gantt Charts

One of the most important project documents is your project plan. You can make and share this with our Gantt chart, which organizes all your tasks, links dependencies and plots milestones to help you stay on schedule. It even filters for the critical path. Our online Gantt charts deliver real-time data and are easy to share so everyone is always working from the most current data.

Monitor Your Project With Real-Time Dashboards

Your project documentation only sets the stage for the execution of your project. To keep to those plans, you need to have a way to monitor progress and performance in real time. Our live dashboard automatically collects, calculates and delivers real-time metrics for time, workload and more. Unlike other tools, there’s no setup necessary. You see what’s happening as the project unfolds.

Go Deeper Into the Data With One-Click Reporting

When a high-level view isn’t enough, you can generate project reports with a keystroke. Get more information on your costs, progress and more. All reports can be filtered to show only the data you want to see. You can attach reports to stakeholder emails or print them out for presentations.

ProjectManager is a flexible tool that allows you to update your project documentation as needed as projects change. Everyone is updated with email notifications or in-app alerts, so there’s never any confusion about what’s expected. Use a tool that manages your project plan, resources, cost and team while storing all the project documentation you have to deliver success.

Related Content

• How to Write a Project Summary (Free Template Included)
• How to Write a Project Description: A Quick Guide
• How to Write an Executive Summary: A Quick Guide
• Ultimate Guide to Gantt Charts
• Ultimate Guide to Project Tracking
• How to Use a Project Decision Log for Optimal Results
• Documentation de projet : 15 documents de projet essentiels
• Projektdokumentation: 15 Wichtige Projektdokumente

Sure, documentation can be the bane of your project, but you need it. Some tools can help you do it easier, better and faster. The online software suite from ProjectManager is a great collaborative tool to create and store your project documentation for easier access and document sharing with your team. Get started for free.

The post Project Documentation: 25 Essential Project Documents appeared first on ProjectManager.

Whether you need to plan a project, track progress, run a status report or balance a budget, you’ll find a project management template for Excel in this list that suits your needs.

Using Excel for Project Management

Microsoft Excel does a lot of things well: mathematics, analysis and organization. But, it’s not intuitive for project management due to its blank spreadsheet format. So, without using pre-built project management templates or spreadsheets, it’s hard to execute project management on Excel, especially as a team.

Think of all the things you have to process along the way to a successful project—scheduling, resource planning, defining tasks and milestones, etc. The days of Post-It notes and notebooks filled with scraps of paper are long gone. Thankfully, today project managers can use Microsoft Excel templates for project management—or better yet, project management software.

Best 45 Project Management Templates for Excel

Visit our project management templates page and you’ll find Excel and Word templates for creating all the project documents you need to manage your project. But, if you just need free Excel project management templates and spreadsheets, then look no further. Here are 38 essential project management Excel templates you can download and use right now. Transform your bland Excel spreadsheets into expertly-designed project management templates, and take your project management Excel processes to the next level.

1. Gantt Chart Template for Excel

A Gantt chart is a visual tool that helps you see at a glance the scheduling of tasks and their dependencies over the project timeline. That makes it an ideal project planner template for Excel.

While it’s true that a Gantt chart template can be overly complex in Excel spreadsheets, especially when you need more advanced scheduling features like task dependencies and resource allocation, they remain a vital part of any project manager’s toolkit. That’s why we recommend using online Gantt chart software to help plan tasks and projects collaboratively with your team.

Online Gantt chart tools integrate into project management & planning software, so they update in real time. This allows for easy drag-and-drop changes and can be color-coded to customize as you need. ProjectManager is project management software that does this and more. Try it for yourself today!

But to quickly make a Gantt chart from your task lists, download this free Gantt chart Excel template, also known as a project timeline template, for an easy way to create a project schedule. Simply add tasks and deadlines to this Excel spreadsheet and visualize how long your project will take.

2. Project Plan Template for Excel

A project plan brings structure and clarity to any initiative by defining what needs to be done, who will do it and when the work must be completed. It connects goals with actionable steps so progress can be tracked against the project schedule, project budget and project scope. By centralizing information about tasks, responsibilities, risks and resources, teams stay aligned from day one. A well-built project management plan reduces surprises, keeps decision-makers informed and helps ensure successful delivery of final outcomes.

This project plan Excel template organizes every major project planning element into one easy-to-navigate file. It includes fields for goals and success criteria, stakeholder information, task breakdowns, timelines and resource requirements, allowing entire teams to work from the same source of truth. Budget and risk sections help monitor constraints as the project advances. With a layout built for both planning and reporting, this template supports seamless coordination from project kickoff through completion.

3. Project Execution Plan Template for Excel

Turning a project’s vision into reality requires a practical roadmap that guides daily execution. A project execution plan brings structure by linking work packages to timelines, resources and performance expectations. It ensures everyone understands what needs to happen, in what order and who is accountable for each step. With clear visibility into progress, managers can respond quickly to risks or delays, keeping the initiative aligned with scope, schedule and budget targets from start to finish.

This project execution plan Excel template organizes the execution phase into a structured, trackable format. It includes fields for team roles, task priorities, estimated durations and completion percentages to ensure accountability at every step. Cost and resource columns make it easy to compare budgeted versus actual usage, helping prevent cost overruns and bottlenecks. With live status updates and timeline visibility, this template supports proactive management and ensures execution stays aligned with the overall project plan.

4. Project Charter Template for Excel

A project charter is the official document that authorizes a project to begin during the project initiation phase and defines its purpose, scope and leadership. It clarifies why the initiative exists, what success looks like and who has decision-making authority. By aligning sponsors, managers and stakeholders from the start, the project charter document reduces ambiguity and prevents miscommunication later in delivery. It also serves as a reference point for scope control, ensuring the project remains focused on its intended objectives.

This project charter Excel template captures all essential charter components in a structured layout, including roles and authority levels, project justification, high-level requirements, goals and success criteria. It also offers sections for milestone scheduling, budget summaries and major risks so leaders have full context before approving work to proceed. With stakeholder contacts and resource expectations documented early, this template streamlines kickoff and sets a strong foundation for execution and accountability throughout the project lifecycle.

5. Project Tracker Template for Excel

Tracking the project is crucial to ensure that it remains on schedule. That means also keeping tabs on the work at a task level.

This project tracker & task list template can help as a task to-do list, and it includes columns for the planned and actual duration of the project to determine what’s working and what needs more attention.

Once you integrate your project and task tracking template into a project management software system, you can then produce Gantt charts to get a clear visual on the project timeline, as well as get that data delivered to your dashboard to note project progress in real time. And, of course, you can import your Excel and Microsoft Project files seamlessly into ProjectManager. Our software can transform your static Excel files into stunning, dynamic project management tools.

6. Project Management Dashboard Template for Excel

The project dashboard is what keeps you in the driver’s seat as you travel through the lifecycle of the project. It allows you to monitor the project, tracking the task status, budget and more in one place.

From this free project management dashboard for Excel, you create graphs and charts that give you a visual and easily digestible look at your task and workload management, as well as cost. It’s a sure way to stay on top of a project generally and know where you have to drill down into specifics.

You can add more power to your PM dashboards when you use online project management software. That way, when team members are updating task statuses, the dashboards populate with real-time data.

7. Project Network Diagram Template for Excel

A project network diagram visualizes the sequence of work and how tasks depend on one another to move forward. By mapping the flow from start to finish, teams can identify the critical path—the series of activities that directly determines the project’s duration. This helps project managers anticipate delays, allocate resources strategically and improve scheduling accuracy. With clear dependencies and timing shown, a network diagram enhances planning, communication and on-time delivery of project goals.

This project network diagram Excel template lays out each task along with its duration, predecessors and dependency type, making workflow relationships easy to understand. It visually connects activities to show how progress flows step-by-step, helping users pinpoint time-sensitive tasks that require close monitoring. Whether used during initial planning or ongoing tracking, this template supports better coordination and provides a reliable foundation for critical path analysis and schedule optimization.

8. Project Status Report Template for Excel

The need for a project status report is obvious. If you don’t have good intel on what’s happening in the project, then you’re managing blindly. You have no idea if you’re on track or if resources are being blocked.

With this free Excel project status report template, you have a tool to greatly improve your project communications, both with stakeholders when you’re delivering a presentation and also with team members.

It’s up to you to decide on the frequency of the reports. But with a project status report template, a lot of the busy work that can pull you away from a project is already done, giving you greater access to the information you need.

9. Project Budget Template for Excel

A project budget is a financial plan that estimates the costs required to complete a project within its approved scope and timeframe. It includes expenses for labor, materials, equipment, services, and other necessary resources. By allocating funds to each task or phase, the budget helps teams monitor spending, control cost variances, and maintain financial accountability. Throughout execution, it serves as a reference point to evaluate performance and ensure the project remains financially viable.

With this free Excel project budget template, you can literally see when you’re in the red because it’s color-coded. And this document, more than just one that’s crucial to the start of a project, is also a way to track that budget across the lifecycle of the project.

This template has room to cover all your costs, from easy ones to collect — such as labor and materials — to ones that change or carry over from project to project. Budgets are estimates, but with this free template, those numbers will be more accurate.

10. Critical Path Template for Excel

The critical path method helps with planning and scheduling projects. It can determine the duration of the project more accurately, allocate and optimize resources efficiently and even identify risks. But calculating the critical path is complicated and pulls project managers away from more important work. Download this free critical path template for Excel and avoid the pitfalls of manually doing critical path analysis.

Use this free Excel template during the planning phase to discover the sequence of tasks that must be completed on time in order to successfully deliver a project: figure out the earliest start, earliest finish, latest start and latest finish for each task. Users can also determine slack, which is how long a task can be delayed before it negatively impacts the project schedule.

11. PERT Chart Template for Excel

PERT charts are tools to plan and schedule project tasks. PERT stands for program evaluation review technique and the PERT chart is a visual representation of the project’s timeline, which shows the relationships between various tasks. Download this free PERT chart template for Excel to visualize a project’s timeline and the relationship between various tasks. This will give project managers valuable insight into analyzing the time required to complete each task.

This free project management template for Excel works by relying on a weighted average of three factors: the most pessimistic, optimistic and likely estimates for a project’s duration. Use the PERT Chart template to do the work instead of having to calculate the complex formula.

12. Work Breakdown Structure Template for Excel

A project is made up of deliverables and those deliverables are created by tasks. The work breakdown structure (WBS) is a way to visualize the project deliverables, the tasks, and the subtasks, that are necessary to make them.

ProjectManager has a free WBS template that structures the process of breaking down the large project into smaller and smaller tasks, in a hierarchical visual that allows you to see the entire scope of the project work.

This is a key element of project planning, but it’s also critical to estimating project costs and setting up a realistic schedule. Better still, because our WBS free template is an Excel spreadsheet, it can then be uploaded into the ProjectManager software to initiate a project, assign tasks to team members and monitor and track progress once the project is executed.

13. Project Calendar Template for Excel

Another must-have project management Excel template is a project calendar. The calendar grid is familiar to most everyone, which makes it a valuable communication tool. It also provides a high-level overview of the project and its progress for stakeholders.

Download this free project calendar template for Excel to improve task management, but also foster team collaboration and communicate changes in workflow. It can also be used to show team availability, holidays, PTO and more.

This free template is easy to use and already divided into the 12 months of the year. It’s fully customizable to adjust for shorter or longer projects and can schedule both human and nonhuman resources.

14. Project Estimate Template for Excel

This free project estimate template for Excel will help you forecast a more accurate budget and realistic schedule. Before you can plan a project, you need to identify all the costs that will be associated with it. This free project management spreadsheet allows you to do a more detailed collection of what you’ll need to spend on your labor, materials and project resources.

From a job description to estimate details, this project template is a great way not only to figure out your budget but collect the various vendors and contractors you’ll be employing to help you execute the project. Create as many project phases as you require. Each is subtotaled and those subtotals are then tallied automatically for a final sum. Change is impossible to avoid when managing a project, or work plan, but the more accurate your estimate, the more likely you’ll deliver on time and within budget.

15. Action Plan Template for Excel

A project is initiated to complete the realization of a goal. But achieving that objective requires a strategy and the steps to implement that strategy successfully. In short, projects require an action plan.

Projects are pragmatic and the action plan is a framework to collect your thoughts about executing the project plan effectively and efficiently. With our free action plan template, you can fill in the blanks to ensure that you’ve covered all bases and make your project start on the right foot. It’s a great companion template to an overall project plan and project charter.

From prioritizing tasks to assigning and noting the status, timeline and resources, we have you covered. And, again, the action plan can be uploaded seamlessly into ProjectManager, so you can then use all our great features to visualize workflow with kanban boards and monitor progress with our real-time dashboard.

16. Project Update Template for Excel

Project updates give stakeholders regular visibility into progress, achievements and upcoming work. These check-ins help ensure alignment by summarizing what has been completed, what challenges have emerged and what actions are next in line. With timely updates, leaders can make confident decisions, reallocate resources when needed and keep teams focused on shared priorities. Documenting updates also creates a trackable history of performance, which strengthens accountability and supports continuous project improvement.

This project update template for Excel structures updates into clear categories such as accomplishments, completed work, upcoming tasks and key deliverables. RAG indicators highlight whether items are on track, at risk or behind schedule, making progress easy to understand at a glance. Budget, scope and quality summaries provide a snapshot of overall project health, while a risk and change log helps track issues that may affect outcomes. It’s a straightforward tool for delivering consistent and actionable status reporting.

17. Project Plan Template for Word

A project plan template has everything you need to map out your project once it’s been approved. It has space for you to define your project goals, activities and tasks as well as all the resources you’ll need to execute the work. You can begin to schedule your activities, tasks and the duration of each across a project timeline. There’s even a place to identify task dependencies.

Project plans are tailored around your project and no two are the same. That’s why this project management template has a place to add appendices.  Here is where you can attach a scope, cost and schedule management plan or a work breakdown structure (WBS) as well as your business case, feasibility study and project charter. The more detailed your project plan, the more you position yourself and your team for success when the project is executed.

18. Project Risk Template for Excel

Risk is a part of managing a project. The job involves being able to anticipate what risks are likely to occur and then formulating a response to get the project back on track. That’s where this free Excel risk-tracking template comes in.

First, it allows you to list all the possible risks you believe may happen throughout the project. Next, you can define how it’ll impact the project. You determine the level of the risk and assign it to an owner so that someone is responsible for keeping an eye on it.

Now you have a plan in place to resolve that risk quickly, and a document that can be shared so the risk is never given a chance to blindside a project.

19. Project Timesheet Template for Excel

Team members need to have a way to track their work through the tasks they are assigned, and a simple timesheet can provide an easy way to keep them on schedule as well as give them the needed information to know where they are in their tasks.

The free Excel timesheet can calculate cost per hour and includes vacation and overtime columns, to accurately note the time spent on and off the project. But project timesheets are useful for several different purposes, so this is a handy tool.

When you manage timesheets with online project management software, then the rubber hits the road. You’ll be able to filter columns and customize reports, easily sharing them in an email, PDF or Excel and CSV file. Plus your team can submit timesheets based on actual tasks in the system, and you’ll get alerted by email when they do.

20. RACI Matrix Template for Excel

Using a RACI matrix template is an essential tool for organizing projects. Projects can be confusing, and if people aren’t sure of their roles, problems are going to occur. The RACI template for Excel is a free tool to identify and define the various roles and responsibilities of everyone involved with the project.

This project management Excel template is broken up by project phase on the left and across the top all the various project positions are listed. Then in the corresponding box beneath the title is filled in with R, A, C or I to explain their relation to that specific point in the project. RACI stands for responsible, accountable, consulted and informed. Defining these roles with this Excel spreadsheet leads to smoother operations.

21. Issue Tracker Template for Excel

Issues are when something is happening right now in your project. So, what do you do when this happens? You track those issues and resolve them with the help of this free issue tracker template.

The first thing, of course, is identifying those issues as they occur. This is the document in which you can collect that information. The issue tracking template serves you by making sure every step of the way, from identifying to resolving the issue, is documented.

Of course, you’ll want to share the issue tracker template, and you can with this free Excel template, but only as a static document. With project management software, that information is easy to collect and share, as well as edit in real time.

22. Project Resource Plan Template for Excel

Resources are anything you need for a project. Our free resource plan template for Excel is the first step to managing your team and resources. You can use it to identify, list and organize all your project resources as well as figure out how much of each you’ll need and what that’ll cost. You can use this project Excel template to integrate with your schedule and budget to track costs as you execute the project.

While you’ll want to start your resource plan during the planning phase of your project, it should be a living document that’s regularly updated as things change over the life cycle of the project. Once the project has been completed, you can save the template and use it when you’re planning resources for future projects that are similar. Using this free project management template for Excel keeps everyone informed, which leads to a smoother project.

23. Change Log Template for Excel

Try our free change log template for Excel and create a successful change management process. Change is going to happen in every project, whether due to requests from stakeholders or external forces, such as weather or supply chain issues. Being prepared for change and how to respond to it is going to make or break your project.

This project management Excel spreadsheet allows you to number changes that you identify in the project to track them more easily. There’s a place to capture when the change was first discovered, who owns it and who is tasked with dealing with that change. There’s even space to note its status and set the priority so you know which changes should be dealt with first. Having a change log means you can manage change and not allow change to negatively impact your project.

24. Multiple Project Tracking Template for Excel

If you’re managing a program or a portfolio of projects, then you need our free multiple-project tracking template for Excel. When you download this free project management Excel template, you have the tool you need to monitor the progress of many projects at once.

This free template provides a high-level overview of your projects, including all relevant information, all in one place. You can track tasks, dependencies, schedules and costs, which allows you to make more informed decisions when allocating resources across all your projects and helps you identify issues quickly.

Whether you’re a program manager, portfolio manager or work for a PMO, our free multiple project tracking template is going to make your job easier. It will serve you throughout the life cycle of all the projects you’re managing for resource management, communicating with stakeholders and more.

25. Project Timeline Template for Excel

Use this free project timeline template for Excel to outline the sequence of tasks in a project. This visual tool captures the entirety of the project, from start to finish, all in one place. Users can even color-code the timeline to differentiate project phases.

This essential project management Excel template is perfect when planning a project. On the left side of the template is a spreadsheet to list all project tasks and their duration. This information then automatically populates the timeline to the right.

A project timeline template is both a spreadsheet and a bar chart, with the tasks shown as bars, their length representing the duration of that task. Project managers can use this free template to visualize the project for the project team.

26. Kanban Board Template for Excel

Kanban boards come from the Toyota factory floor, developed by Taiichi Ohno, an industrial engineer and businessman, as a planning system to manage and control work and inventory. Since being introduced as physical boards with columns representing phases in production and tasks that are displayed as cards that move across the board, they’ve evolved into digital tools.

When you download our free kanban board template for Excel, you’ll get five columns and multiple cards, all of which are fully customizable so you can make adjustments to reflect the production cycle of your project. We’ve set up the kanban board to have five columns: backlog, to-do, doing, in review and done.

Cards are color-coded to show the priority level, from high (red) to medium (green) and low (blue). On each card is the name and description of the task, who it’s assigned to and what the due date is. Again, you can add as much or as little information to the card as you like. Of course, you can also use a project management template in ProjectManager and get access to dashboards, reports, resource management features and much more.

27. Project Handover Template for Excel

When a project reaches completion, the next team must be set up for success. A project handover ensures that critical information, responsibilities and supporting documentation are fully transferred so operations can continue without disruption. By confirming that deliverables meet expectations and unresolved items are clearly documented, organizations avoid service gaps and unnecessary rework. This transition reinforces accountability and preserves the value created throughout the project lifecycle as ownership moves into ongoing operation.

This project handover Excel template provides a structured checklist for transferring all critical project information to the receiving team. It includes details about objectives, completed work, progress still underway, key personnel, and outstanding deliverables requiring follow-up. Budget summaries and timeline status help clarify remaining risks before closure. With dedicated sections for team responsibilities and communication contacts, this tool creates a transparent, documented transition that supports continuity long after the project is handed over.

28. Project Documentation Template for Excel

Strong project documentation keeps everyone aligned by clearly defining goals, scope, responsibilities and progress at every phase. Artifacts such as the project charter, business case and management plan reduce ambiguity by capturing what was decided and why. Throughout execution, reports and logs maintain transparency and support informed decision-making. When a project wraps up, closing documents preserve lessons learned and confirm that outcomes match expectations. Together, these records enable consistency, accountability and smoother delivery across all initiatives.

This Excel template centralizes every key document in a single place, organized by project phase for easy navigation. It includes fields for document owners, status, creation dates and update history so teams always know which version is current. Links to storage locations ensure files are quick to access, while status tracking highlights what still needs approval. By using this template, project managers maintain complete visibility into required documentation and streamline compliance with organizational standards.

29. Production Schedule Template for Excel

To balance supply and demand when producing any commodity, you have to have a production schedule. It tracks the production of your product over a specific period. No manufacturer is going to make anything without one. Download our free production schedule template for Excel.

Use our free production schedule as part of your larger supply chain management to manage resources, help your sales team and get your goods to customers on time without negatively impacting quality. Our template helps you to make more accurate production plans and manage your inventory.

You can manage both your workers and your materials, workstations and processes, as well as track your targets, manage deliveries and more. Our free template is a must-have document when you’re in production planning.

30. Punch List Template for Excel

A punch list captures the work that still needs to be done on a construction site. The job isn’t complete until that punch list is completed. The punch list is also a great way to capture tasks that fall outside the contract and track their progress. These are only some reasons why you need to download our free punch list template for Excel.

Our free punch list template lists all the items on the punch list, including a description and who has been assigned to do that work. There’s also space to add a date for when it was first identified and when it was approved. You can also add the estimated duration for doing the work.

This is a special template, too, in that you can use it as an Excel document or open up the template in ProjectManager. If you use our software, then you’ll have access to kanban boards to visualize workflow, a real-time dashboard for a high-level view of your progress and performance as well as Gantt charts, timesheets, workload charts and much more.

31. To-Do List Template for Excel

A to-do list gets things done. Whether it’s the grocery list you stick on the door of your refrigerator or a task list for a project, being able to collect and prioritize work ensures that you don’t forget anything important and tackle the most important tasks first. Plus, it’s a lot of fun crossing off tasks once you’ve done them.

This free project management Excel template can list as many tasks as you have, each with a start date, due date and even a column that shows the percentage complete of each task. There’s also a column to note the process, for example, to indicate if the task is done. Finally, a column is set aside for notes to capture anything you need to add.

The to-do list template is a simple tool that can be used to make more complex tasks manageable. It helps motivate you to do the work because it’s no longer overwhelming, but doable. It’s a rudimentary plan, and everyone knows planning is everything.

32. Weekly Work Schedule Template for Excel

If you need help handling your human resources, get our free weekly work schedule spreadsheet for Excel. You can use it to manage your team’s weekly work and the project’s workflow. Note the days your team can work and collect the rate of pay and hours they work on their tasks. This flexible employee work schedule can apply to the regular nine-to-five work week or a more hybrid model.

Use this project management template for Excel to get info on your team members and their work schedule. You can add their name, tasks assigned to them and the project on which they’re working. There’s space to list all the days they’ll be working. This Excel template is a great place to capture data, but it’s a static document. If you want to update it, you have to do that manually. It can take time and pull you away from managing the project and your team’s work.

33. Change Request Form Template for Word

One thing that’s constant in any project is change. Those changes, however, must be managed. That’s where the change request form comes in.

Our free change request form template gives you the structure to identify, track and resolve those changes when they arise in a project. The free template has space to note what the change is, give a team member ownership to lead the task of resolving it and then get it signed off on.

When used in conjunction with ProjectManager, the change request form is more dynamic. It can act as a collaborative platform in which team members can communicate and attach relevant documents, even hand-offs and sign-offs. Keeping everything under one roof is something you’ll not want to change.

Related: How to Run MS Project on your Mac Step by Step!

34. Project Prioritization Matrix Template for Excel

Project prioritization is a way to objectively determine which projects are the best fit for meeting strategic goals when managing a project. It can also be used to prioritize tasks in a project to figure out what’s critical and what can wait. Download this free project prioritization matrix template for Excel to separate what’s critical and what’s not, as well as what must be done immediately and what can wait. This allows project managers to decide if work should be done now, scheduled for later, delegated or deleted.

Use this free project management Excel template for a variety of work, from prioritizing projects and managing time to getting consensus. It’s valuable for anyone who has to make a project decision, whether a project management office (PMO), project manager or team member.

35. Gap Analysis Template for Excel

If you’re looking to improve your business and stay innovative, then you need this gap analysis template for Excel. It’s one of the tools you can use to get a strategic analysis of where you are now and how to get to where you want to be in the future. This project management spreadsheet will help you devise an action plan to move you from your current state of affairs to wherever you plan to take your organization in the future, whether that’s an increase in market share or getting a product to market quickly.

This free Excel template has everything you need to start meeting your goals, from general information and the current state of your business to the future state you’re aiming to achieve, what the gap percentage is and the actions necessary to close that gap. You can identify who in the organization can lead the initiative and even track the status. You have to start somewhere and a gap analysis is where it all comes together.

36. Stakeholder Analysis Template for Excel

Stakeholders are invested in the project and project managers have to keep them updated and manage their expectations. That’s where this free stakeholder analysis template for Excel comes in. It helps you identify and manage all the stakeholders in your project. This free template is a cornerstone of any thorough stakeholder management plan.

The stakeholder analysis template gets you started with a project overview, which is followed by a list of all the stakeholders involved with the project. There’s a dropdown menu to note if that particular stakeholder is of high, medium or low influence. That means, how much power they have to impact the project. That information is crucial to how to manage them. Then you identify each stakeholder in the spreadsheet as they relate to the project. Note the frequency you need to communicate with each stakeholder and more to manage them and keep the project moving forward.

37. Cost Benefit Analysis Template for Excel

Crunch the numbers to learn if your project is worth pursuing with our free cost-benefit analysis template for Excel. You can see if the project can be delivered within a specific time frame and reasonable cost. This Microsoft Excel template allows you to compare what you expect to spend against the benefits or opportunities the project might provide. From a cost perspective, you can see if the project is viable.

Whether a personal or professional project, our free cost-benefit analysis template is a powerful and flexible tool. It can be used over and over again, collecting the project information, quantitative costs (indirect, intangible and opportunity) and quantitative benefits (direct benefits, indirect benefits, intangible benefits and competitive benefits). Adding up the three cost sections and the four benefits sections of the template provides a total cost to compare against total benefits. It’s an essential analysis to undertake before committing to any project.

38. Project Budget Dashboard Template for Excel

A project budget dashboard template provides a clear overview of a project’s financial status, helping project managers track expenses, compare actual costs to the budget and make informed financial decisions. It consolidates key financial metrics, such as total budget, expenditures, remaining funds and cost variances and displays them in graphs and charts.

Download the free project budget dashboard template for Excel to keep the project within their budget. This project management Excel template makes it easier to identify potential overspending or cost-saving opportunities. By using a project budget dashboard, teams can enhance transparency, improve financial control and ensure the project stays on track financially.

39. Project Task Tracker Dashboard Template for Excel

Use this project management Excel template as a tool used to monitor and manage project tasks efficiently. A project task tracker dashboard provides a visual representation of task progress, deadlines, priorities and team responsibilities in a centralized format.

By using this free task tracker dashboard for Excel, project managers and teams can quickly identify bottlenecks, track overall project progress and ensure that tasks are completed on schedule. This enhances productivity, improves accountability, and helps maintain project timelines.

40. Stakeholder Map Template for Excel

Download this free stakeholder map template for Excel. This project management Excel template is a visual tool used to identify, categorize and analyze stakeholders based on their level of influence and interest in a project. It helps project managers understand stakeholder relationships, prioritize engagement strategies, and ensure effective communication.

The template has a matrix that can be used to place stakeholders into categories by level of influence and level of interest. The four quadrants define if the stakeholder must be kept satisfied, managed closely, monitored or kept informed. Using this stakeholder map, project managers and project teams can proactively manage stakeholder expectations, address concerns and enhance project success.

41. Project Risk Matrix Template for Excel

This project management Excel template is used to identify, assess and prioritize potential risks in a project based on their likelihood and impact. It helps project managers visualize risks in a structured format, enabling proactive risk management and mitigation planning.

Use this free project risk matrix template for Excel to determine if the risk is low to very high by placing it on the matrix, which measures the severity and likelihood of the risk occurring. These two axes are broken down from insignificant to severe for severity and rare to almost certain for likelihood. By using a risk matrix, teams can prioritize critical risks, develop mitigation strategies and improve project resilience.

42. RAID Log Template for Excel

RAID stands for risks, assumptions, issues and dependencies. A RAID log template is used to track and manage these key project elements. Using this project management Excel template helps project managers and project teams to identify potential challengers, monitor ongoing issues and proactively address critical factors to better deliver a successful project.

Our free RAID log template for Excel improves decision-making, helps with project transparency and gives project teams more control over project risks and uncertainties. It is typically used when planning for a project but can be useful in the execution phase as well. At the end of the project, this template should be archived and used when researching future projects.

43. Stakeholder Register Template for Excel

A stakeholder register template is a structured document used in project management to identify, document and track stakeholders involved in a project. Download this free stakeholder register template for Excel and use it as a central reference for managing stakeholder expectations, communication and engagement throughout the project lifecycle.

This project management Excel template lists all the stakeholders involved in the project, whether internal or external. Their role is then identified and each stakeholder is defined in terms of their power and influence on the project. There’s also a column to measure their interest and expectations. Finally, contact information is collected and the preferred form and frequency of communication.

44. Lessons Learned Template for Excel

A lessons learned template is a project management Excel template used to capture insights, experiences and key takeaways from a completed project or project phase. It helps teams identify what worked well, what went wrong and how future projects can benefit from these insights.

Use this free lessons learned template for Excel to determine whether the aspect of the project being examined was a win or issue. There’s space to describe it, the impact, how to change it for future projects and then a column to collect the action items by which that change can be implemented.

45. Project Decision Matrix Template for Excel

Use this free project decision matrix template for Excel to evaluate and prioritize different project options or solutions based on predefined criteria. It helps project teams make objective, data-driven decisions by scoring each option against key factors, such as cost, quality, value to customer, safety and more, allowing them to compare the relative merits of each choice.

By using this project management Excel template, teams can make more informed, transparent and objective decisions, minimizing bias and aligning with project goals. This template can be used whenever there’s a problem of multiple choices to choose from to make a reasoned decision.

Go Beyond Excel Project Management Templates & Spreadsheets With ProjectManager

Project management software can take you way further than Excel templates for project management ever could. ProjectManager, award-winning project management software, is a comprehensive platform that lets you plan, track and report on your projects online. Because it’s an online tool, you get live visibility into your project team and their tasks.

Plan your projects from start to finish with our Gantt chart feature. This feature allows you to map your project tasks in phases and assign them to team members. You can even create dependencies and set milestones. Plus, you can import Excel files and Microsoft Project files into the Gantt chart, bringing your static templates to life. In addition, ProjectManager integrates with over 1,000 third-party apps such as Google Drive, Slack and Microsoft Office 365 so you can share your project with everybody on your team.

Team members (and managers) can choose to manage their own tasks in either the task list or kanban view. The kanban view is a favorite for visual workers involved in many projects. The customizable columns on a kanban board allow a user to easily see their progress, or sort their tasks by project or department. Of course, every view, whether it’s the Gantt, list or board, allows you to collaborate with other team members and get more work done than you ever thought possible. You’ll wonder why you ever used project management Excel processes.

Related Excel Project Management Content

While Excel is not a project management software, it can still help manage various aspects of your projects. That’s why we’ve created dozens of blogs, templates and guides to help you use Excel for project management.

• Essential Excel Report Templates
• Free Manufacturing Excel Templates
• Free Excel Construction Templates
• Free Word & Excel Templates for Business
• Excel Spreadsheet Templates for Tracking Tasks, Costs and Time
• How to Create a Project Timeline in Excel (Free Template Included)
• How to Make a Gantt Chart In Excel Step-By-Step (Template Included)
• 10 Plantillas de Proyectos Gratuitas para Excel y Word
• 12 Modèles de gestion de projet pour Excel (Gratuit)
• 11 Modelos de gestão de projetos para Excel (gratuitos)

Get all the features of these Excel project management templates and more when you use ProjectManager. All of these tools are available in our award-winning project management software to help you plan, track and report on your project in real time. See what it can do for you by taking a free 30-day trial run.

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