Initiation

1. Formal initiation can happen at the beginning of the project or at the beginning of every phase of the project 

2. For formal project initiation, the most important step is the development and approval of the project charter 

3. Project chartering ensures that only the approved projects can start and ensures that all the key stakeholders are clear about the project goals, success criteria, assumptions, milestone dates, major risks and their roles and responsibilities towards the project 

4. Project charter contains;

   1. Business case of the project 

      1. Why are we doing this project?

      2. How much is the investment required?

      3. In how many years we can get the investment back? (Payback period)

      4. How much is the Net Present Value (NPV) of this project? (Sum of the future cashflows - Initial Investment)

      5. What are the alternatives considered? (Alternatives Analysis) 

      6. What is the opportunity cost?

   2. High level scope 

      1. Scope included

      2. Scope excluded 

   3. Major milestones with dates 

   4. The list of assumptins made 

   5. Constraints (Time, Cost & Scope)

   6. Dependencies 

   7. Project's success criteria 

      1. Time

      2. Cost

      3. Scope

      4. Value delivered

   8. Key stakeholders of the project 

      1. Owner organization

      2. Sponsors 

      3. Consultants

      4. Contractor 

      5. Sub-contractors 

      6. Project Manager etc 

   9. Key stakeholders roles and responsibilities 

      1. RACI Chart 

   10. The Project Manager's name, Roles and responsibilities 

5. Project charter is approved by the Sponsor or the senior management representative 

6. Project charter gives authority to the project manager 

7. Any major changes to the charter must be re-approved by the sponsor or the senior management representative 

Stakeholder Register 

The second major step during project initiation is the development of the stakeholder register of the project 

1. Stakeholder - Anyone who has an interest in the project is a stakeholder. 

2. Stakeholders interest in the project can be positive or negative 

3. Once the stakeholders are identified, then they are analysed and classified 

4. Usually classification happens bsed on;

   1. Level of interest of the stakeholder in the project 

   2. Authority of the stakeholder to influence the project