How To Create a Project Management Plan: Guide, Templates, Example

How to create a project management plan

This can be confusing, as there are a number of explainers on how to create a project management plan or a project plan that leaves out key components. A complete project management plan must include guidelines on how a project is executed, monitored, and controlled. According to the Project Management Institute, it should answer all of the questions listed below:

• What is to be done?
• When will it occur?
• How much will it cost?
• Who will do it? 
• What product(s) or service(s) will be delivered as a result of the effort?
• What is the responsibility of both the developer and the user?
• Who is responsible for accepting the product as completed?
• What determines task completion?
• What mechanics will be employed to deal with mechanics formally?
• How will actual progress be measured?

What you should include in a project management plan

The creation of your plan should start with a project management plan template. The length and level of detail included in the plan will depend on your organization and project. Many companies will already have an internal template they prefer to use, that outlines the level of information they need. The plan should always begin with a title page, version history, and table of contents. A strong project management plan will include all of the following information:

• Project scope baseline and scope management plan
• Project schedule baseline and schedule management plan
• Project cost baseline and cost management plan
• Human resource management plan
• Communications management plan
• Risk management plan

Depending on the project, there may also be additional supplemental plans such as:

• Issues management plan
• Quality management plan
• Procurement management plan
• Requirement management plan
• Configuration management plan
• Process management plan
• Change management plan
• Stakeholder management plan
• Training plan

Appendices to the plan may also include:

• The approved business case for the plan
• The approved project charter
• Key terms and acronyms
• Statement of work
• Customer requirements documentation
• RACI (responsibility matrix)
• Stakeholder management plan

How to write and develop a project management plan

Clearly, a lot of information goes into the creation of a project management plan. It’s reasonable to wonder how a project manager pulls it all together. First, you should be aware project plans are often considered ‘living’ documents. This means they are expected to be updated and changed as the project matures and/or you discover new information requiring a change to the plan. Second, it takes time and effort to pull together a solid project management plan. You can follow these steps to do it as efficiently as possible:

Step 1: Outline and define the business need

The starting point of any project management plan is to understand the reason behind the project. Ask questions like: Why is this project necessary? What problem does it solve, or what opportunity does it address? By clearly outlining the business need, you will set a clear direction for the project. Once the purpose is defined, you can identify who will be affected by the project and who needs to be involved  — these are your stakeholders. 

Step 2: Meet with project stakeholders

Even if project stakeholders have already been identified in another document, such as the business case or project charter, it’s important to review the list and make sure it’s still accurate. Then, meet with all project stakeholders to discuss the project objectives and scope. This ensures everyone is on the same page, particularly concerning assumptions, constraints, and expected outcomes. Discuss the planning process with stakeholders and make sure you have their commitment to helping with the process.

Step 3: Define key project roles

All key stakeholders should be asked to provide input for the parts of the project relevant to them. To handle this, it’s important to define which stakeholders are involved with each area of the project. This is often part of the stakeholder management plan or even part of the communication management plan. Relevant stakeholders include the project sponsor, team members, end users, and any other people directly involved, such as business experts, auditors, or quality testers.

To successfully define key project roles and manage tasks, specific tools and templates are indispensable. Here are some essential Wrike templates:

• Use the work breakdown structure template to organize team efforts into clearly defined segments.  
• Implement the change control management template to manage any project scope or objectives alterations efficiently.  
• Use the RACI template to delineate roles and responsibilities within the project. This template aids in establishing who is responsible, accountable, consulted, and informed for each task, ensuring everyone knows their specific duties and contributions.

Using these templates can significantly streamline the process of defining roles and managing stakeholder input, making the project more efficient and effective.

Step 4: Determine the project’s budget needs

Determining the project’s budget is an important step in creating a project management plan. This step defines the financial framework for the entire project. A well-planned budget ensures that resources are allocated efficiently and the project can proceed. When setting the budget, consider all possible expenses, including labor costs, materials, equipment, and any other resources that will be needed. It’s important to be accurate to avoid unexpected costs later.  The budget should be agreed upon with stakeholders and adjusted throughout the project life cycle.  

Step 5: Hold a kickoff meeting

The kickoff meeting brings stakeholders together to discuss the project and initiate planning. Some topics typically discussed during the kickoff meeting are:

• The business case for the project
• The expected outcomes and benefits of the project
• Stakeholder roles and responsibilities
• Communication and reporting information (frequency of project meetings, etc.)
• Timeline and process for completing the project plan

Step 6: Determine project deliverables

Deliverables are the specific outcomes or results that the project is expected to produce. To define the deliverables, start by breaking the project goals into smaller, manageable parts. Each part should have a clear outcome contributing to the overall project goal. Be specific and detailed in describing what each deliverable includes, how it should be completed, and the standards it must meet. Take note of milestones — they are key points along the project timeline where you can assess progress and ensure the project is on track. Setting milestones helps monitor the project’s progress and provides opportunities to evaluate and adjust the plan if necessary.

Step 7: Create the overall project schedule

A project schedule outlines the timeline for completing tasks and achieving milestones. It’s the framework that shows when different parts of your project kick off and wrap up. To get this right, you need to think about everything that could impact your project’s journey, from the people and tools you have on hand to how much you can spend and the key goals (or milestones) you aim to hit.

Start simple. Jot down every task that’s part of the project. Then, take a guess at how long each one might take and decide who’s going to tackle it. The next step is like solving a puzzle — you need to figure out the best order for these tasks. Some are dependent on others being completed first, so it’s like a domino effect.

Once the order is sorted, it’s time to put dates against each task. This is your project’s timeline.  This timeline should be realistic and flexible enough to accommodate changes or unforeseen delays. 

If you want to get started right away, you can use Wrike’s dedicated project schedule template. It will show you how to break down your project into smaller tasks, create Gantt chart timelines, and monitor progress on dashboards.

Step 8: Assign tasks to specific team members

The eighth step in creating a project management plan involves assigning specific tasks to your team members. This step should be approached with care, as it can significantly impact your project’s timeline and the achievement of your deliverables.

During this stage, you’ll allocate tasks based on the skills and availability of your team members. It’s important to match tasks with the right people to ensure efficiency and quality in the execution of the project. Consider each team member’s strengths, expertise, and workload to ensure everything is manageable and promote a balanced distribution of responsibilities.

Here are some tips to effectively assign tasks:

1. Ensure every task is well defined and has clear objectives.
2. Assign tasks based on individual team members’ strengths and areas of expertise.  
3. Be transparent about why tasks are assigned to specific individuals.  
4. Ensure team members have the resources and support to complete their tasks effectively.
5. Monitor each team member’s workload to ensure it’s manageable and balanced.  

Step 9: Decide on a streamlined communication strategy 

Effective communication is the backbone of any successful project. It ensures everyone involved is on the same page, understands their roles, and knows about project updates. Your communication plan should outline how and when project information is shared. 

Using Wrike’s communication plan template can significantly streamline your communication process, reducing the risk of miscommunication and increasing project efficiency and stakeholder engagement. This template provides a structured approach for organizing stakeholder information, setting the frequency of updates and determining the content of each communication.

Step 10: Create baseline management plans

Once your baselines are created, you need to have plans for managing them. This includes reporting against them, monitoring for and managing variances, and outlining the circumstances that would require an updated baseline.

Keep thorough documentation of all changes to baselines. This historical record can be invaluable for future projects and for understanding the evolution of the current project. Consider using a project management office (PMO) template to streamline this process.  

Step 11: Create the other management plans

As you know, planning is a huge part of a project manager’s role. The stronger your plan, the more likely your project will succeed. So, it’s not enough to simply plan how you will manage baselines. Plans should also be created to manage all other significant aspects of, or inputs to, the project. As discussed earlier, there can be a broad range of management plans, but the minimum should include resource management, risk management, and communications management. 

Project management plan example

Here’s an example of a real project management plan.

Overview: This project involves developing and launching a new software product aimed at small business owners. The goal is to create an intuitive and budget-friendly project management tool.

Business need/reason for the project: Small business owners need an affordable and easy-to-use project management tool to streamline their operations and improve efficiency. The introduction of this product is projected to boost revenue by approximately 20% in the first year, capitalizing on a lucrative and underserved market segment.

Stakeholder identification: Key stakeholders include the product development team, marketing team, selected small business owners (for feedback), and the finance department.

Key project roles:

• Project Sponsor: CFO
• Project Manager: Mary Kurt
• Development Team Lead: John Smith
• Marketing Lead: Emily White

Budget: 

Estimated at $150,000, covering software development, marketing, and testing phases.

Deliverables: 

A fully functional software tool, marketing materials, and a user manual.

Project schedule:

• Development phase: 4 months
• Testing phase: 1 month
• Marketing and launch phase: 2 months

Task assignments:

• Development tasks will be assigned to John Smith and his team.
• Emily White and her team will handle marketing tasks.

Communication strategy: 

• Weekly team meetings
• Monthly stakeholder updates

Baseline management plans: 

Regularly review project progress against the baseline schedule and budget, with adjustments made as necessary.

Risk management: 

Contingency plans are in place for potential software bugs and delays in the development phase.

Performance monitoring: 

Progress will be tracked against milestones, focusing on staying within budget and meeting the development timeline.

Project closure: 

This will include final product testing, adjustments, and a formal launch event.

By following these steps, the project team can ensure that every aspect of the project is planned and managed effectively, leading to a successful product launch.

Project management plan templates

Templates can streamline the process, providing a structured approach to organizing your project. You can get started with this project management plan template if you want to outline your process in a Word doc file. Wrike also offers a range of templates for each specific step of your project management plan, helping you manage every aspect of your plan more effectively. 

Here’s a brief overview of the types of templates available:

1. Work breakdown structure template: Breaks down the project into smaller, more manageable parts, ensuring nothing is overlooked.
2. Change control management template: Helps manage any changes to the project scope, ensuring all alterations are documented and approved.
3. Project schedule template: Provides a timeline for your project, outlining when tasks should start and finish.
4. Communication management template: Ensures clear and effective communication among project stakeholders.
5. PMO template: Assists in overseeing project management standards and procedures.
6. RACI template: A tool for defining roles and responsibilities — who is responsible, accountable, consulted, and informed for each task.

Wrike also offers a comprehensive project plan template to get you started. All these templates can be customized in Wrike to suit the specific needs of your project. Beyond templates, Wrike’s other features (including dashboards, various views, and real-time communication) can significantly aid in creating and monitoring your project management plan. This seamless integration of planning and execution tools ensures that your project stays on track from start to finish.

Why project management plans are important for success

One of the primary benefits of a project management plan is that it sets clear expectations. It lays out the project’s what, when, and how, ensuring everyone involved understands their roles and responsibilities. This clarity helps avoid confusion and keeps the project focused on its objectives.

The plan ensures all stakeholders are on the same page. By outlining the project’s scope, timeline, and resources needed, the plan becomes a shared document that everyone can refer to. Put simply, it is a tool for accountability. It assigns specific tasks to team members, sets deadlines, and provides performance metrics. This structure helps teams stay on track, meet their deadlines, and achieve their goals efficiently.

Align stakeholders and the team 

A well-crafted project management plan establishes a common understanding of the project’s objectives and expectations. By clearly outlining the project’s goals, deliverables, and timeline in the plan, everyone involved — from team members to stakeholders — gains a unified vision of what the project aims to achieve. The plan is a communication tool that bridges gaps between stakeholders and the project team. It provides a reference point for discussions, ensuring all conversations are anchored to agreed-upon goals and strategies. This transparency helps manage expectations and reduces the likelihood of miscommunication or misunderstandings. It also provides a structured approach to tackling the project, which can alleviate anxiety and uncertainty. 

Eliminate possible conflicts in scheduling 

One of the key benefits of a comprehensive plan is its ability to reveal clashes in timelines, resource allocation, and team availability well in advance. When you map out the project schedule in detail, you’re more likely to spot overlaps in task assignments or periods where team members may be overburdened. Another aspect to consider in your project plan is the personal schedules of your team members, including holidays and time off. Recognizing these in advance helps you plan around absences, ensuring that critical tasks are not scheduled during these periods.  

Monitor the project’s scope and budget

When creating a project plan, one of your primary tasks is clearly defining the scope. This definition helps your team understand the exact boundaries of what needs to be accomplished. This clarity prevents scope creep — the tendency for project tasks to expand beyond their initial limits, which often leads to overwork and delays. Equally important is the management of the project budget. A thorough project plan outlines the financial resources allocated for each phase and activity. By keeping a close eye on the budget through your plan, you can track spending and ensure that the project stays financially on track.  

Hold everyone involved accountable 

In a project plan, every task is assigned to specific individuals. This assignment establishes who is responsible for each piece of the puzzle. When team members see their names next to tasks, they understand that they are accountable for the timely and successful completion of those tasks. This level of clarity extends to stakeholders as well. The plan outlines their roles, whether that involves providing resources, making decisions, or offering expertise. By explicitly stating what stakeholders are accountable for, the plan helps prevent misunderstandings and ensures that everyone contributes as needed.

How to create a project management plan using Wrike

Whether starting a new project from scratch or revamping an existing one, Wrike’s customizable templates and intuitive design help you lay out your plan clearly and effectively. You can define tasks, assign roles, set deadlines, and monitor progress — all within the same platform. The ease of organizing and updating your project management plan in Wrike saves time and enhances collaboration among team members. Wrike’s diverse functionalities cater to various project management needs, making it an ideal choice for businesses of all sizes and types. 

Gantt charts

With Wrike’s Gantt charts, you can easily map out milestones and track the progress of tasks. This visual approach allows project managers and stakeholders to quickly identify which tasks are dependent on the completion of others, ensuring that every part of your project progresses in the right order. It becomes simpler to spot potential delays or scheduling conflicts and address them before they impact the project timeline. Gantt charts are easy to adjust and update, making them perfect for project environments with frequent changes. Integrating Gantt charts into your project management plan will help you better understand the project flow and can keep everyone aligned on the timeline for a smoother path to project completion.

Customizable dashboards

Wrike’s customizable dashboards are game-changers for efficient project planning. You can view, manage, and track various aspects of your project in one convenient location. Whether you need to keep an eye on task progress, monitor deadlines, or track resource allocation, Wrike’s dashboards can be customized to display the most relevant information. This means less time spent sifting through data and more time focusing on project elements.

Automated reports

Automated reports in Wrike offer a real-time view of various project aspects, from task completion rates to resource utilization. They can be set up to generate regularly, providing consistent updates without manual effort. As a project manager, you’re always equipped with the latest data to make informed decisions. For stakeholders, these reports offer transparency and assurance. They can see at a glance how the project is progressing, which tasks are completed, and whether the project is adhering to its budget and timeline. This level of insight fosters trust and keeps everyone on the same page.

Project management plan FAQs

What are the six important parts of a project management plan? 

There are six key components that form the backbone of a solid project management plan. These include: 

1. Scope summary: This part outlines the project’s boundaries, defining what will be included and what won’t. 
2. Detailed project timeline and milestones: This section charts the course of the project from start to finish.  
3. Stakeholders and team members identified: This ensures that everyone who has a stake in the project’s success, from team members to external stakeholders, knows their roles and responsibilities.
4. Risk assessment completed: Here, potential risks and challenges that could impact the project are identified, and strategies to mitigate them are outlined. 
5. Communication plan decided: This part of the plan details how information will be shared among team members and stakeholders, ensuring everyone stays informed and aligned.
6. Resource allocation completed: This final element involves allocating the necessary resources — including time, money, and manpower — to ensure the project can be completed efficiently. 

Why is a project management plan important? 

A project management plan provides a roadmap for the project, outlining tasks, responsibilities, and deadlines. A good plan helps manage the project’s budget effectively, ensuring resources are used efficiently and costs are kept under control. It anticipates potential risks and prepares strategies to mitigate them, reducing the chances of unexpected problems derailing the project.  

What is the right technique for crafting a project plan? 

Crafting an effective project plan requires a methodical approach, starting with gathering comprehensive information about the project. This involves understanding project goals, resources, constraints, and stakeholder expectations. Organizing this information in a structured manner ensures clarity and precision. Identifying and engaging stakeholders and team members early is essential for aligning their expectations and roles. It’s important to take time to plan with a clear technique, as disorganization can lead to effective execution. A systematic approach to planning lays a strong foundation for project success.

How can a template help with creating a project management plan?

Using a template to create a project management plan can significantly streamline the planning process. A well-designed template is a comprehensive guide, ensuring no project elements are overlooked. It provides a structured framework for organizing information, setting clear objectives, and assigning tasks. Using a template ensures consistency and thoroughness in your planning, making it less likely that key aspects will be missed or forgotten.

What steps should be kept in mind when drafting a project plan? 

Identify the right steps before drafting your project plan. This approach ensures that every aspect of the project is considered and documented systematically. It helps organize the project’s objectives, tasks, and resources clearly. By identifying these steps early, you can create a comprehensive roadmap that guides the project from initiation to completion, reducing the chances of overlooking important details.  

What tools and software can help with implementing a project management plan?

A collaborative work management software like Wrike is a powerful tool for implementing a strong and easily repeatable project management template. Wrike’s features, such as Gantt charts, customizable dashboards, and automated reports, provide a comprehensive toolkit for managing every aspect of a project. With Wrike, you can easily map out project timelines, assign tasks, and set milestones. Our dashboards allow for real-time progress monitoring, ensuring the project stays on track. Automated reports offer valuable insights into project performance, helping to make informed decisions. Furthermore, Wrike’s ability to integrate with other tools ensures seamless collaboration among team members.

Conclusion

A project management plan isn’t just a bunch of lists and deadlines; it’s the master key to unlocking a successful project. It brings everyone to the same table, ensuring everyone knows what they’re supposed to do and when. This clear understanding keeps teamwork aligned and the project on the right track. 

So, whether you’re at the planning stage or in execution, Wrike’s suite of features is designed to support you every step of the way. From plotting out timelines on Gantt charts to keeping an eye on everything with customizable dashboards and to using templates in simplifying complex processes, Wrike’s got everything you need to turn the sometimes daunting task of project planning into a smooth ride.

Further reading

• Convergent Thinking vs. Divergent Thinking: Why Planning Isn’t Always the Right Thing to Do
• Project Management Basics: 6 Steps to a Foolproof Project Plan
• 5 Best Project Management Books for Beginners and Accidental Project Managers
• How 5 PM Experts Create a Fail-Safe Project Management Plan
• 4 Tips for an Effective Project Management Plan