Allocating resources helps to complete tasks on time and keeps the project on budget. While project management software is the best solution for managing project time, templates can also help. That’s why we’ve collected seven free time management templates to help deliver successful projects.

Why Use Time Management Templates?

Time management templates help deliver successful projects. That’s because time management is a key part of project management for many reasons. Time management templates help prioritize work, which allows teams to manage their time better. This leads to greater productivity.

Time management templates can also help with making important decisions. It allows managers and team members alike to make decisions quickly thanks to tasks and activities having deadlines and priorities. This also relieves the stress that comes from procrastination, which can lead to waiting until the last minute to complete work and that can lead to shoddy quality.

The only reason not to use time management templates is that they’re static documents that don’t foster collaboration and pull users away from their work to manually update them. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that has time management features, such as secure timesheets that can easily track time spent on tasks as well as the associated labor costs. Users can log hours anywhere to streamline payroll and save money with accurate project time management. Archiving timesheets gives managers historical data on labor costs that can help better estimate time and costs for future projects. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

Best Time Management Templates for Excel

For those who aren’t ready to upgrade to project management software, these free time management templates for Excel can help them manage their projects and teams better. They can’t deliver the efficiency of a software solution, but they do a good job of creating timesheets, work schedules, project calendars and much more.

1. Daily Schedule Template

A daily schedule template helps individuals and teams map out their hours before the day begins, turning vague intentions into a structured plan. By assigning time blocks to specific tasks, it reduces the mental overhead of deciding what to work on next and keeps priorities front and center throughout the workday.

Using a daily schedule template consistently builds a habit of proactive time management rather than reactive task-switching. It also creates a record of how time was actually spent, which is useful for spotting patterns, adjusting workloads and improving personal productivity over time.

2. Weekly Schedule Template

A weekly schedule template gives teams a bird’s-eye view of the full week ahead, making it easier to balance workloads, prepare for meetings and anticipate deadlines before they arrive. Planning at the weekly level reduces the risk of last-minute rushes by surfacing conflicts and gaps while there’s still time to act.

With a weekly schedule template, managers can distribute work more evenly across the team while individuals can align their daily priorities to broader weekly goals. Reviewing and updating the schedule at the start of each week is one of the simplest habits that consistently improves how time gets used across a project.

3. Work Schedule Template

This work schedule is a time management template to plan and control the human resources of an organization or project. It lists all employees, their location, working times and responsibilities over a specific period. That period can be a day, week or month. It’s a way to ensure that employees and teams are productive and work as efficiently as possible. Use this free work schedule template for Excel to track resource utilization, streamline work scheduling processes and help meet deadlines.

Use this free time management template as a weekly work schedule, which is especially useful for businesses with variable workloads, which plan their schedules based on customer demand forecasts. It can be a monthly work schedule for longer projects with clearly defined tasks and deliverables. The time management template can also be a daily work schedule where employee performance is monitored daily. It can also be used for a work shift schedule, flexible work schedule and part-time or full-time work schedules.

4. Project Calendar Template

Another time management template is a project calendar template for Excel. This free template makes it easy to see assignments on a monthly grid, with deadlines and more. It’s a great tool for planning schedules, executing tasks and managing work throughout a project’s life cycle. Not only is it a time management template, but it is also a to-do list to help teams get their work done promptly. Therefore, it also acts as a task management tool, can help with team collaboration and communicate changes in workflow.

Project managers can use this time management template to chart the regular hours of their team, which makes it easier for them to see the availability of those team members when making assignments. The free calendar template can also be used to avoid scheduling delays by noting holidays, vacations and PTO of the team members. There are also resource management advantages to using this time management template as it helps schedule resources beyond human resources. It’s also a communication tool to keep everyone aware of their work and important dates.

5. Project Timeline Template

A project timeline is used in planning to add project tasks, due dates and milestones. Most timelines are made with Gantt charts, which are divided into two parts: a spreadsheet with the data collected on the left and a timeline showing the entire project on the right. This time management template is the first step to managing the project schedule and delivering that project on time.

Download the free project timeline template for Excel to create a project schedule. It can also be used to share the project schedule with the team and stakeholders to manage their expectations. This time management template collects all the project tasks, start and end dates, plus duration on the left-hand spreadsheet. The right-hand timeline is then automatically populated with this data. The timeline taskbars, which represent the duration of specific tasks, can then be color-coded to differentiate the different phases of the project to make the time management template easier to read.

6. Workload Analysis Template

Workload analysis is used when managing a workforce. Its goal is to evenly distribute the workload across all team members to keep them working at capacity without risking burnout and eroding morale. This time management template is also a productivity tool and delivers better work quality while increasing team member satisfaction. The free workload analysis template for Excel identifies, measures and evaluates the amount of work each team member needs to do and how to balance that to avoid over-allocation.

This workload management tool will help managers get the most out of their workforce and help to produce high-quality deliverables. It can also help with resource identification and getting an accurate picture of the resources available for the project. Analyzing things like seasonality and potential disruptions to the workforce leads to a more strategic plan that helps managers better prepare for the unexpected.

7. Meeting Agenda Template

A meeting agenda template ensures every meeting starts with a clear purpose and a structured list of topics, preventing the unfocused discussions that make meetings feel like a waste of time. By distributing the agenda in advance, participants arrive prepared, which shortens meetings and produces better decisions.

Poor meeting management is one of the most common sources of lost time in the workplace. A meeting agenda template forces organizers to think through what needs to be decided before the meeting starts, making it easier to stay on track and end on time. It also creates a reference document for following up on action items after the meeting concludes.

8. 30-60-90 Day Plan Template

A 30-60-90 day plan template breaks a longer planning horizon into three focused phases, making large goals easier to sequence and execute. Commonly used for onboarding new hires or launching initiatives, it helps define what needs to be learned, contributed and led within the first three months.

Beyond onboarding, a 30-60-90 day plan template is useful any time a team needs to structure progress toward a milestone over a medium-term window. By setting expectations for each phase, it creates accountability checkpoints that keep work moving without requiring constant check-ins from management.

Pros and Cons of Using Excel for Time Management

Excel templates are only going to be helpful to a point. They serve a purpose, but eventually hit a wall and will be more frustrating than useful. That doesn’t mean Excel templates for time management are without merit. Here’s a short list of their pros and cons.

Pros of Excel for Time Management

• Easy to use
• Cost-effective
• Organize data

Cons of Excel for Time Management

• Needs technical expertise to get the most out of Excel templates, such as knowing formulas, conditional formatting and filtering
• Poor collaborative tool, as templates are static documents
• Risk of data loss or corruption
• Manual updates are time-consuming

Go Beyond Excel Time Management Worksheets With ProjectManager

It’s clear to see time management templates have their uses, but they fall short of project management software. Their limitations will frustrate managers who want to track time to ensure that teams are working efficiently and keeping to their schedule. To get the most out of time management and other project management techniques use ProjectManager, award-winning project and portfolio management software that uses multiple project views to plan, manage and track time throughout the project’s life cycle. For example, our Gantt charts schedule tasks and resources and filter for the critical path. Use timesheets to track time and labor costs or leverage other tools to monitor progress and more.

Track Time With Dashboard and Reports

Monitoring the team’s progress with real-time project and portfolio dashboards is easy. They offer a high-level overview of the project, collecting live data and displaying it on easy-to-read graphs and charts that show time, but also costs, workload and more. Use this tool as an instant status report to spot issues and keep projects running on schedule. For more detail, toggle over to the customizable reports that can be generated with a keystroke and filtered to show details for managers and more general data to keep stakeholders informed. For example, timesheet reports can show the hours teams have submitted, get time estimates and streamline payroll.

Use Calendars and Resource Management Features

One of the multiple project views accessible with our software is the calendar. It can help managers plan availability for their team, which can be set when onboarding the team. The calendar can show if there are vacations, PTO or even global holidays. Managers can use the color-coded workload charts to easily see who is overallocated and then balance the workload right from that chart. This keeps teams working at capacity without burning them out.

Related Time Management Content

For those looking to explore time management beyond the time management template, there are many opportunities to do so on our site. We published weekly blogs, guides, eBooks and free templates on all aspects of project management as it relates to various industries. Here are some of the recent posts we’ve published on time management.

• Project Time Management Software
• 15 Excel Spreadsheet Templates for Tracking Tasks, Costs & Time
• Time Estimation in Project Management: Tips & Techniques
• Project Time Management: Strategies, Tips & Tools
• A Quick Guide to Time Blocking
• Time and Materials Contract (T&M): When to Use One

ProjectManager is online project and portfolio management software that connects teams whether they’re in the office, out in the field or anywhere else in the world. They can share files, comment at the task level and stay up to date with email and in-app notifications. Join teams at Avis, Nestle and Siemens who use our software to deliver successful projects. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

The post 8 Free Time Management Templates for Excel and Word appeared first on ProjectManager.

Timeline templates can schedule projects faster and improve workload management, prioritization, change management and progress tracking. This collection covers a range of timeline formats, from Gantt charts and milestone charts to implementation plans and event timelines, giving teams a visual scheduling tool for any project type. Download these free timeline templates to schedule projects from inception to completion.

The following free timeline templates can be used to make a timeline in a variety of tools, from Excel spreadsheets to Google Docs and Sheets. There are ones that service construction and manufacturing, though any industry will profit from project timeline templates.

Free timeline templates provide essential tools for accurate scheduling, such as a PERT chart and critical path templates. All of these timeline templates help with planning, keep the entire project team on track and accountable, and quickly onboard new team members.

1. Excel Timeline Template

Use this Excel timeline template to map activities, processes or projects over a year. Project managers can use this free timeline template to see who is responsible for what, whether they’re a team member or a department in the organization.

The flexibility of this timeline template allows it to serve several different purposes. It can be used as a project timeline to estimate the duration of a project and visualize the order tasks will be completed. It can also be used as a product roadmap to show product development teams the activities they need to execute from ideation to final launch. Finally, using this free template timeline as a strategic roadmap shows all the projects an organization will execute over time to achieve the overall strategic goals and objectives of its strategic plan.

Timeline templates are useful, but they’re not great for project management. They require manual updates, which takes time away from more important tasks. These are static documents so they aren’t collaborative. Therefore, even free timeline templates aren’t the most efficient way to create, manage and track a project schedule, project management software is.

ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that has powerful roadmap tools to manage programs and portfolios. They collect all projects and display them on a Gantt chart with resource management, time tracking and task management features. Users can filter by assignee, project manager or customer to make forecasts, see which projects are open and who’s assigned to tasks, as well as highlight key metrics to keep stakeholders informed. This is all done in real time to keep everyone on the same page. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

2. Gantt Chart Timeline in Google Docs

Gantt charts are used in project management to build schedules and organize tasks. They are part spreadsheet and part graphical representation of the project schedule. The timeline is displayed as a bar chart that shows the start and finish dates of all project tasks.

Making a Gantt chart in Google Docs allows teams to store and share the document online. This fosters collaboration in a way that a static Excel document can’t. This free timeline template can provide a high-level view of the project for reporting purposes when updated and shared with stakeholders.

3. Gantt Chart Timeline Template for Excel

Excel spreadsheets have their limits, but for those looking for an easy way to build a Gantt chart, this free timeline template is the way to go. It doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of Gantt chart software, but can organize tasks and create a timeline showing the entire project on one page.

On the left-hand side of the timeline template is a simple spreadsheet. All project tasks can be listed, with their start and end dates. Then add the duration each task is expected to take. Once this information has been fed into the template, the right-hand side bar chart automatically populates. Users can then add color to differentiate project phases.

4. Gantt Chart Timeline Template for Google Sheets

Gantt charts are notoriously difficult to create, which is why many opt for project management software. But for those not ready to upgrade and still need a Gantt chart to schedule project work, there are timeline templates that have done the hard work.

Using this free timeline template fosters collaboration, unlike Excel spreadsheets, as it’s cloud-based. Plus, many people are already used to working with Google’s products. The Gantt chart template for Google Sheets can easily be shared and fully integrated with other Google products. It’s understandable why some prefer this type of timeline timesheet.

5. Milestone Chart Timeline Template for Excel

A milestone chart shifts focus from day-to-day tasks to the moments that define project progress – key deliverables, phase completions, approvals and deadlines. For stakeholders who don’t need the full detail of a Gantt chart, a milestone timeline provides a clear, high-level view of where the project stands and what is coming next.

This milestone chart template for Excel maps project milestones along a horizontal timeline with dates and completion indicators that make it easy to track progress at a glance. It works well for executive reporting, stakeholder presentations and project kickoffs where clarity and simplicity matter more than granular scheduling detail.

6. PERT Chart Timeline Template

PERT charts are used in project management to schedule projects. They organize and coordinate tasks. PERT is an acronym for program evaluation review technique, and a PERT chart is a timeline template that breaks down each task so they can be analyzed to estimate the minimum time needed to complete the project.

The PERT chart works by using nodes, which are represented by rectangles or circles on the timeline template, to show events and milestones that occur during the project. Vectors connect the nodes. These are lines that stand for the different tasks that must be completed. This allows project managers to visualize dependencies between steps.

7. Critical Path Timeline Template

The critical path in project management is the longest sequence of tasks that must be completed on time for a project to finish successfully. It identifies essential and non-essential tasks. This allows project managers to make informed decisions if there are issues regarding time, cost or scope.

This free timeline template will improve accuracy and flexibility when scheduling projects, especially more complex ones. Project managers can see which tasks need to be prioritized and how long it’ll take to complete them. This timeline template can also be used to communicate clearly between the project manager and stakeholders.

8. Project Calendar Timeline Template

Timeline templates come in a variety of styles. A project calendar is a type of timeline that captures a month’s worth of activity. This allows the project manager and the team to see the entire month’s tasks in one place, including highlighting important dates.

This project timeline can foster better task management, team collaboration and communication when workflows change. Project managers can use the calendar to show the team’s availability when there are holidays and other things that can interfere with assigning tasks efficiently.

9. Google Sheets Timeline Template

Another way to create a project timeline template is with Google Sheets, which is the Google version of a spreadsheet. It’s a free alternative to project management software and one that many people are already familiar with. It’s easier than Excel and better and, like Google Docs, cloud-based, which means there’s no downloading or saving files.

Google Sheets timeline templates are not real Gantt charts. There’s no workflow automation, for example, and they’re not as easy to use as Gantt chart software. But they can schedule projects, show the duration of tasks and mark milestones and deliverables.

10. Master Production Timeline Template

For those in manufacturing, a production schedule helps balance supply and demand when producing a commodity. This free timeline template is built for manufacturing. It’s flexible enough to respond to fluctuating demand and sets up inventory to avoid stockouts.

Use this free timeline template as part of the larger supply chain management. It can manage resources, but also assist sales by keeping them aware of production schedules to give customers more accurate fulfillment dates.

11. Construction Timeline Template

Construction projects use timelines to schedule work. These projects are very structured and lend themselves to the hierarchical structure of a Gantt chart that can coordinate not only tasks but also resources, costs and tracking.

Opening up this free timeline template in ProjectManager gives users access to powerful Gantt charts that link dependencies, filter for the critical path and set baselines. But it also links with multiple project views, such as kanban boards, task lists, calendars and more. There are resource management features to balance workload, risk and issue tracking, dashboards and reports to monitor progress in real time, more than any mere template can do.

12. Implementation Plan Timeline Template for Excel

Translating a plan into action requires more than a task list. An implementation plan template structures the work into phases with owners, deadlines and dependencies, giving teams a timeline they can follow from day one. It bridges the gap between the project plan and the work happening on the ground.

This implementation plan template for Excel breaks the project into sequential steps with columns for task description, assigned owner, start date, end date and status. Teams can use it to coordinate cross-functional rollouts, system deployments or process changes where a clear, phased timeline keeps everyone aligned and accountable.

13. Event Plan Timeline Template for Excel

Events are time-bound projects with multiple workstreams running simultaneously – venue, vendors, staffing, marketing and logistics all converging on a single date. An event plan template gives organizers a structured timeline to coordinate every moving part and ensure nothing is missed as the event date approaches.

This event plan template for Excel breaks the event into phases from initial planning through execution and post-event wrap-up, with tasks, owners and deadlines organized in a clear timeline layout. Event managers can adapt it to conferences, product launches, fundraisers or any occasion where scheduling and coordination determine success.

ProjectManager Works Better Than Timeline Templates

Creating a timeline, managing it throughout the life cycle of a project and tracking progress to ensure that it adheres to the schedule can be done on templates. The only question is why? Templates are static documents. They’re taking teams away from their work to manually update the timeline templates. They’re not collaborative. It’s like managing a project without real-time data to make insightful decisions. Project management software solves the problem of templates. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that makes it simple to create, manage and track timelines in real time, whether for one project, a program or a portfolio. We’ve already shown the power of Gantt charts or roadmaps for scheduling projects, but there are also features to manage those resources on the timeline and monitor their progress and costs.

Use Resource Management to Balance Workloads

The project timeline only sets up the project for successful completion. The resources are what execute it, whether the team or the tools, equipment and materials they require to do their jobs. Those resources can, first, be scheduled on the Gantt chart or roadmap, but then they need to be monitored to ensure that the work is being done. Secure timesheets can help track labor costs and provide a window into the percentage of work done for each team member. Then use the team page or color-coded workload chart to view resource utilization. Managers can quickly see who is overallocated or underutilized and then balance their workload from that page to keep everyone working at capacity and staying on schedule.

Monitor Progress With Real-Time Dashboards and Reports

Keeping to the schedules means managers have to have real-time data to track the actual progress against the planned progress. Once they’ve set the baseline in the Gantt chart, this information is automatically updated and delivered throughout the software. For example, the taskbars on the Gantt chart are shaded to represent the percentage complete for that task. But there are more robust tools, such as the real-time project or portfolio dashboard, which displays easy-to-read graphs showing key performance indicators (KPIs), such as time, tasks, workload and more for a high-level overview of the project. Get deeper into the data with customizable reports on project status, portfolio status, workload, variance, timesheets and more. Filter the report for details or to be more general for stakeholders, which can get the reports in a variety of formats to stay updated.

Related Free Template Content

These free timeline templates are but a drop in the deep bucket of free templates available on our site. We have free project management templates for Excel, Google and Word that address every phase of managing projects across multiple industries. Below are some of the roundup posts that collect templates under a theme.

• 25 Must-Have Project Management Excel Templates and Spreadsheets
• 15 Excel Spreadsheet Templates for Tracking Tasks, Costs and Time
• How to Create a Timeline in Excel (Free Templates Included)
• How to Make a Gantt Chart in Excel Step-by-Step (Template Included)
• 15 Free Word & Excel Templates for Business

ProjectManager is online project and portfolio management software that connects teams whether they’re in the office, out in the field or anywhere in the world. They can share files, comment at the task level and stay up to date with email and in-app notifications. Join teams at Avis, Nestle and Siemens who use our software to deliver successful projects. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

The post 13 Must-Have Timeline Templates appeared first on ProjectManager.

Product management templates give your team a repeatable starting point for every phase of development. Instead of rebuilding your tracking systems from scratch for each product, you work from a proven framework that keeps tasks, timelines and stakeholders aligned from the start.

Below are seven free product management templates covering the full product lifecycle, from initial planning through go-to-market execution. Download any of them free and customize for your team.

1. Product Development Template

A product development template gives your team a structured framework for moving from concept to release. Every product involves a sequence of dependent tasks across multiple teams, and without a shared system, those hand-offs break down. This template organizes each phase of development with pre-built columns for start and finish dates, assigned team members, task priority, planned and actual costs and completion percentage.

The template supports subtasks for breaking down complex phases into actionable steps and allows file attachments directly on tasks so design specs, schematics and feedback all live in one place. Switch between Gantt, kanban, sheet and calendar views depending on how your team works best.

2. Agile Sprint Plan Template

Sprint planning keeps your development team focused on the right work at the right time. An agile sprint plan template helps your scrum team organize work for each iteration, defining deliverables, assigning tasks and tracking progress through the sprint lifecycle. Without a consistent planning structure, backlogs grow unmanageable and sprint goals drift.

The kanban board view includes customizable columns like Backlog, In Progress, Ready to Deploy and Return from Test so your workflow matches how your team actually operates. A roadmap view connects individual sprints to the full release timeline so product managers and stakeholders can see the big picture alongside the sprint detail.

3. Product Roadmap Template

A product roadmap template translates your product vision into a timeline your whole organization can follow. It answers two questions every stakeholder has: what are we building, and when will it be done. The template organizes tasks and milestones by week, month or quarter, with columns for deliverables, team assignments and dependencies, so every function from engineering to marketing knows what is coming and when.

Dependency linking prevents bottlenecks from cascading across phases, and critical path filtering helps you focus when timelines get compressed. Real-time cost tracking and resource balancing ensure the roadmap stays achievable as priorities shift.

4. Product Launch Template

A product launch template helps you coordinate everything that needs to happen once your product is ready to meet its market. Communications, assignments, timelines and stakeholder updates all need to be tracked across multiple teams simultaneously. A great product can still fail without the right launch structure connecting it to the audience it is built for.

The kanban board view is especially useful here, with columns for each launch phase and cards for tasks like defining user stories, building prototypes and gathering feedback. Time tracking and one-click status reports keep every stakeholder informed without requiring additional meetings.

5. Product Backlog Template for Excel

A product backlog template is a prioritized list of every feature, enhancement, bug fix and work item your team needs to complete before a product is done. It is the foundation of agile planning, and without a well-maintained backlog, sprint planning becomes guesswork. This Excel template gives each backlog item a unique ID, type, description, priority rating and story point estimate so nothing gets lost or deprioritized by accident.

Additional fields for sprint assignment, assignee and acceptance criteria make it easy to move items from the backlog into an active sprint without losing context. The template can also be opened directly in ProjectManager kanban board view for real-time collaboration across your team.

6. Product Requirements Document Template for Word

A product requirements document template defines what a product needs to include before a single line of code is written. It serves as the source of truth for development and QA teams, documenting objectives, assumptions, user stories, feature lists and release criteria in one organized structure. Without it, development teams build from assumptions that can diverge from what stakeholders actually want.

The nine-section template includes space for strategic fit, scope and exclusions alongside the core requirements, so the team knows not just what to build but why. Success metrics and release criteria give QA and stakeholders a clear standard for when the product is ready to ship.

7. Go to Market Strategy Template for Excel

A go to market strategy template ensures your product launch is backed by a documented, executable plan rather than improvised decisions made under deadline pressure. It covers the five components every successful launch requires: product and value proposition, market analysis, buyer persona definition, budget planning and execution timeline. Without this structure, teams often discover gaps in positioning or resource allocation only after the launch is live.

The market analysis section helps you quantify total market size and available market size so you can assess demand before committing resources. The budget planning section allocates costs across promotional channels, sales channels and distribution methods so nothing is underfunded at launch.

Manage Product Development With ProjectManager

Templates are a starting point. Managing an actual product through every stage of development requires real-time visibility, team collaboration and the ability to track work across multiple views simultaneously. ProjectManager is online project management software built for product teams of every size.

From sprint planning and backlog management to roadmap visualization and launch coordination, ProjectManager gives product teams a connected platform where every plan stays current and every stakeholder stays informed. Try it free for 30 days.

Plan and Track Sprints on a Gantt Chart

ProjectManager Gantt chart lets product managers map out every sprint, milestone and dependency in a single view. Set start and finish dates, link dependent tasks to prevent delays and filter for the critical path to see which tasks drive the timeline. As work gets done, progress updates in real time so the plan always reflects where the product actually is.

Monitor Product Health with Real-Time Dashboards

ProjectManager portfolio dashboard gives product leaders instant visibility into status, budget, workload and progress across all active product initiatives. Color-coded health indicators surface problems before they escalate, and customizable reports make it easy to share updates with leadership without spending hours pulling data together.

Related Content

• 18 Free Software Development Templates for Excel, Word and More
• 8 Agile Templates: Which Free Agile Template is Right for You?
• 6 Project Report Examples (Free Download)
• 8 Free Status Report Templates for Excel

The post 7 Free Product Management Templates appeared first on ProjectManager.

Managing all those marketing assets is challenging. Get a headstart on your next marketing project by using these 19 free marketing templates for Excel and Word. They’ll help you from the planning stage and budgeting to tracking your campaign to ensure you stay on schedule and within your budget. We have dozens of free project management templates to choose from. Here’s a selection of marketing-related templates covering everything from planning and budgeting to competitive analysis and customer journey mapping.

1. Marketing Plan Template

Organize the phases of your marketing plan by downloading our free marketing plan template for Word. Our free marketing plan template gives you a place to define your strategy and how you intend to implement it over the month, quarter or year.

You can use the marketing plan template to highlight your goals and current position in the market. Use it to schedule tasks over a timeline with start and end dates, track KPIs and much more. A marketing plan offers a high-level view of the marketing campaign and helps you market your brand, product or service more effectively.

Use our free template to build a framework for your marketing plan within the context of the potential customers you want to target. It helps you reduce risk and increase the chances that your marketing will be successful.

2. Marketing Budget Template

Marketing costs money, but you don’t have unlimited funds. That’s why you need our free marketing budget template for Excel. It ensures you get a good return on your investment and don’t overspend on your marketing campaign.

The free marketing budget template outlines the financial investments related to your marketing project broken up by year or quarter. It helps you collect your costs, from paid advertising and sponsored web content to marketing personnel, software and more.

Using a marketing budget template goes hand-in-glove with the marketing plan, as it’s an integral part of the larger marketing plan. It helps you forecast what you need to spend to deliver a successful marketing campaign.

3. Marketing Campaign Template

Using our free marketing campaign template will help you plan how you introduce your product or service across multiple platforms. The template helps you use market research to better map out a product or service launch and communicate the plan to everyone on your marketing team.

You can use the template to organize everything you need for a successful marketing campaign including the goals of the marketing campaign, who you’re going to target, the media plan and how you’ll execute it. Not only that, but you have the tools to keep track of the marketing campaign, including collecting key performance indicators (KPIs).

Use our free marketing campaign template when the product or service you created is done but hasn’t launched. Our free marketing campaign template will help you successfully promote the product or service, connecting with your target audience. See your plan on our kanban board, which visualizes the workflow and gives marketing managers visibility into their team’s process. If they see issues, they can quickly reallocate resources to keep work moving forward uninterrupted. Teams can manage their backlog and collaboratively plan sprints.

Get your free

Marketing Campaign Template

Use this free Marketing Campaign Template to manage your projects better.

Get the Template

4. Marketing Action Items Template

We’ve talked a lot about planning for campaigns or events, but we haven’t covered how you’ll go about accomplishing your goals. Our free action items template for Excel will help you outline the steps you have to take to successfully complete that marketing plan.

Action items are the steps you have to take to implement your marketing plan. In other words, they’re the activities or tasks that’ll carry the project over the finish line in time. This helps you figure out how you’re going to get the marketing project work done.

Once you have the action items laid out, you can then begin to assign them to the marketing team. Without first knowing what the action items for the marketing project are, it would be impossible to fully plan for either a small or larger project.

5. Marketing Project Timeline Template

All marketing initiatives have a deadline that you have to align with a product launch or campaign. Whatever the marketing project is, without a schedule you’ll never get it done in time. You can quickly schedule your marketing push with our free project timeline template for Excel.

A timeline is a visual tool to see your entire marketing campaign in one place. It helps you see when tasks need to be completed, which in turn can make you allocate resources more wisely. It’s also the backbone of any thorough marketing schedule.

When you’re done filling out our free project timeline template, you’ll see where your major deliverables and milestones are and have a better idea of how much the project will cost and the resources you’ll need to complete it.

6. Marketing Media Plan Template

Marketing campaigns work best when every message knows where it’s going and why. A media plan template maps out the channels, timing and budget needed to reach the right audience with the right content. It considers goals, demographics and performance metrics to ensure money isn’t wasted on low-impact placements. With a clear implementation plan in place, teams coordinate seamlessly and make smarter decisions about which tactics will drive the greatest ROI.

This media plan template brings every element of campaign planning into one structured document. Traditional media like TV, radio and print are organized alongside digital channels such as SEO, paid search, email and social. Fields for audience targeting, dates, spend, and key metrics support accurate forecasting and ongoing optimization. By aligning investments with performance data, this template helps marketers stay focused on results and maintain full visibility into campaign effectiveness.

7. Strategic Roadmap for Marketing Template

Marketing firms and teams must keep strategy in mind. All campaigns and tactics should feed into a higher goal. That’s where the free strategic roadmap template for Excel comes in. It allows for the long view, which is often how businesses stay in business.

A strategic roadmap template visually communicates the strategy of a marketing firm as well as those steps that will be taken to achieve its long-term goals and objectives. This marketing template is a powerful tool for ensuring that everyone from leaders to marketing team members are on the same page when it comes to why the firm is doing what it’s doing.

The strategic roadmap template has a timeline that gives a bird’s-eye view of where the firm currently is and where it wants to be in the next five to 10 years. This is an essential tool to prepare and disseminate strategy throughout the organization.

8. Marketing Project & Task Tracker Template

Of course, all of this planning and scheduling is for nothing if you’re unable to track the work as your marketing team is executing it. That’s why you need the free project task tracker template for Excel to know if your actual progress is keeping up with your planned progress.

Having a project task tracker template means you have the tools to see if you’re keeping to your schedule. If you’re not, then you have the opportunity to get back on track before it’s too late. Best of all, you can follow the task throughout the marketing project life cycle, from planning through execution.

Our free project task tracker lets you list all your tasks and describe them. You can add any dependent tasks that need to be done before, after or during. Plus, you can add the marketing team members assigned to that task. Then add priority, start and end dates, the actual end date and whether the status is opened or closed to keep track of your tasks.

9. Marketing Event Plan Template

Whether it’s a tradeshow, corporate retreat or networking party, events are projects and they need to be planned to be successful. Our free event plan template for Excel lays out everything you need to do and helps you avoid any glitches that will negatively impact your event.

You’ll find places to list the tasks you need to complete to have the event, including the resources you need to execute that work. Every task will have an owner, an estimated time it’ll take to complete and a checklist to mark if it’s been started and to note when completed.

This is your first step to scheduling your event and figuring out a feasible timetable to get everything ready. The more accurately you can forecast the amount of time it’ll take to prepare for the event, the less likely you’ll miss deadlines and threaten the success of the event.

10. Marketing Calendar Template

Capture important dates in an easy-to-read format to make sure you don’t miss deadlines, meetings and more with our free marketing calendar template for Excel. Use the free template to view your marketing campaigns by the month, quarterly or over the course of a year.

Marketing calendars are essential pieces to a larger marketing plan. Marketing plans can be complicated, whereas a marketing calendar is easy to read at a glance to make sure you’re meeting the necessary milestones.

A marketing calendar template is also a great tool for communication with stakeholders. They don’t need to get into the weeds of your marketing campaign. They’re interested in your progress and your schedule, both of which can be tracked on a marketing calendar template.

11. Competitive Analysis Template

Companies rarely operate without rivals, and understanding their strengths and weaknesses is key to winning market share. A competitive analysis template examines how competitors position their products, price offerings, promote themselves and serve customers. Marketing teams use these insights to spot differentiation opportunities, evaluate projects and identify threats and refine messaging that resonates more strongly. With clearer visibility into the landscape, brands can make more confident decisions about where to compete and how to outperform others.

This competitive analysis template organizes detailed research into a structured view of the market. It includes competitor descriptions, marketing mix elements and a full SWOT breakdown to compare value propositions side by side. Teams can evaluate pricing approaches, distribution strategies, branding tactics and customer experience quality in one place. By highlighting strategic gaps and emerging opportunities, the template supports smarter positioning and helps guide tactical moves that strengthen your market advantage.

12. Event Proposal Template

Marketing comes in all shapes and sizes. There’s direct mail, billboards, digital ads, websites and much more. But one of the most effective ways to connect with the target audience is in an event. Whether that’s a tradeshow, webinar or launch party, this free event proposal template for Word is the perfect document to get things moving.

This marketing template is a detailed document that takes the coming event and defines its goals and objectives to better serve the client. It is a thorough tool that is designed to win the bid, which is the first step of any event planning process.

All the pertinent information is collected on this customizable marketing template, from its purpose, target audience and event stakeholders to the even schedule. That comprehensiveness will show the client that the firm understands the event and mapped out all the steps to ensure its success.

13. Go to Market Strategy Template

Bringing a product to market takes more than a launch date; it requires a clear plan for how the product will win customers. A go to market strategy template links target buyers, messaging, pricing and distribution into one coordinated approach. It helps teams focus on the channels that drive adoption, remove barriers to purchase and align marketing and sales activities. With a solid GTM strategy, launches become more predictable and growth more achievable.

This go to market strategy template organizes everything needed for a successful product introduction. It begins with the product’s value proposition and a detailed profile of the target audience, then defines promotional, sales and delivery channels with associated costs. A structured timeline helps teams coordinate development, marketing and launch activities. By centralizing planning and budget details, the template ensures alignment across teams and supports smarter decision-making at every stage of market entry.

14. Customer Journey Map Template

Customers experience a brand long before and long after a purchase is made. A customer journey map template captures every step of that relationship—from initial awareness to retention—to reveal what people think, feel and need along the way. Marketers use it to find friction points, strengthen engagement and align messaging with real customer motivations. With a clear map, teams improve satisfaction and guide more prospects toward becoming loyal advocates.

This customer journey map template breaks down the full buying experience into stages such as awareness, consideration, purchase, onboarding and retention. It links customer actions to emotions, pain points and touchpoints to show where support or improvements are needed. Persona details add context for decision-making, while backstage processes highlight operational responsibilities. With these insights in one place, teams can design more seamless interactions and elevate the overall customer experience.

15. Creative Brief Template

Marketing, advertising and design projects require project briefs just as construction, manufacturing or engineering projects do. Only they’re not called project briefs, they’re called creative briefs. If you’re managing one of these projects, then you need our free creative brief template for Word.

The creative brief is used to plan the project, define its objectives and keep everyone involved clear on what the project is about. It’s created at the beginning of the project but referred to throughout the project life cycle as a roadmap to keep everyone working together.

Our free creative brief template details the target audience, your competitors in the marketplace, what the key message is and how it should be delivered plus more. It’s the rule by which you measure the project requirements to ensure that you’re keeping to them.

16. Marketing Proposal Template

Clients want confidence that a marketing initiative is worth the investment, and a marketing proposal template helps provide that clarity. It explains the current situation, the approach being recommended and the results the strategy is designed to achieve. Rather than diving straight into tactics, the proposal builds a narrative that connects marketing work to business goals. This alignment makes decision-making easier and strengthens the relationship before a project even starts.

This marketing proposal template provides a structured format for pitching a complete marketing plan. It includes an executive summary, SWOT analysis and detailed buyer personas to ground decisions in research. Strategy sections specify channels, messaging and performance metrics, while the scope of work, timeline and budget make deliverables transparent. Terms and conditions complete the package, giving clients everything they need to confidently approve and move forward.

17. Marketing Report Template

Knowing whether your marketing efforts are working requires more than a gut feeling. A marketing report template gives teams a consistent format for measuring campaign performance, tracking key metrics and communicating results to stakeholders. Without regular reporting, budgets get renewed or cut based on anecdote rather than evidence, and high-performing channels go unrecognized.

The marketing report template includes sections for campaign objectives, key performance metrics, channel-by-channel results, budget vs. actual spend and recommendations for the next period. Keeping the format consistent across reporting cycles makes it easy to spot trends and compare performance over time. Leadership teams use these reports to make informed decisions about where to invest and where to pull back.

Use this template for weekly, monthly or quarterly marketing reviews. It works equally well for internal team reporting and for presenting results to clients or executive stakeholders.

18. Product Launch Template

Bringing a new product to market is one of the most cross-functional projects a marketing team manages. A product launch template gives you a structured framework for coordinating every deliverable across marketing, sales, product and operations so nothing gets missed in the push to launch. Without a plan, launch day becomes a scramble rather than a culmination.

The product launch template includes a timeline of pre-launch, launch day and post-launch activities, with columns for task owner, due date and status. It maps out everything from messaging development and channel setup to media outreach and performance tracking in the weeks that follow. Having all workstreams in one document prevents the siloed planning that leads to last-minute surprises.

This template is especially useful for marketing teams launching into new markets or audiences where coordination risk is highest. It pairs naturally with the go-to-market strategy template and the marketing campaign template already in this collection.

19. SWOT Analysis Template

Effective marketing strategy starts with an honest assessment of where your brand stands. A SWOT analysis template gives marketing teams a structured framework for evaluating internal strengths and weaknesses alongside external opportunities and threats. This four-quadrant exercise brings strategic clarity to planning conversations and helps teams prioritize where to focus their efforts and budget.

The SWOT analysis template includes a dedicated quadrant for each dimension, with prompts that guide the team through examples relevant to a marketing context, from brand perception and channel performance to emerging competitors and shifting audience behaviors. Working through it as a team surfaces assumptions and blind spots that a single strategist would miss working alone.

Use this template at the start of annual marketing planning or whenever the team is reassessing positioning, entering a new market or responding to a significant competitive shift.

Go Beyond Templates With ProjectManager

Download the above free marketing templates and you’ll be able to better manage your campaigns. However, templates can only take you so far. They are, after all, static documents. If you need to change anything, it’s time-consuming, and time shouldn’t be wasted in business. ProjectManager is online software that does what the free templates do and more, plus it does it in real time so you have more insight.

Use the Tools You Want to Collaborate

One thing templates can do is help you collaborate. You can’t have multiple marketing teams working on the same document or allow different versions to float around. Our software has multiple project views, all of which are updated in real time so you’re always working on the most current version. Managers can play on robust Gantt charts with timelines that can link dependencies, add milestones and set a baseline to track planned vs. actual effort in real time. Design teams can use kanban boards for a visual workflow and other teams can use task lists or calendars.

See How You’re Doing in Real Time

The task track template requires that you add to the document. Our real-time dashboard tracks the marketing project automatically. There’s no setup required as in competitors’ lightweight products. Our live dashboard collects data and displays it in colorful graphs giving you a high-level view of your costs, workload and more. We even have customizable reports for more detail, and they’re easy to share to update stakeholders.

Marketing teams, be they in copy, design or another department, need to collaborate across tools. Our collaborative platform allows them to comment at the task level, share files and tag anyone on the project team. Real-time communication is facilitated by email notifications and alerts in the tool so you don’t have to leave your work to stay in touch with team members in different departments or locations.

ProjectManager is award-winning software that empowers teams to work better together and gives managers the tools they need to plan, manage and track work in real time. Use task, resource and risk management features to further drive successful projects. Join teams at businesses as varied as Avis, Nestle and Siemens who use our software. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

The post 19 Marketing Templates for Planning, Strategy & More (Free Excel Downloads) appeared first on ProjectManager.

If you’re looking for other free project management templates, you’re in the right place. Our site is a hub for a variety of content related to the field, including weekly blogs, videos and, yes, free templates. There are downloadable templates for every phase in the project life cycle. We’ve cherrypicked the best change management templates and have listed them below.

1. Change Management Plan Template

A change management plan is a document that explains how an organization will manage project changes in detail. It describes the roles and responsibilities of the change management team, the change request evaluation process and any procedures and documentation that will be utilized.

This free change management plan template for Word includes a variety of tools to help establish a change management process for your projects, including a change log, stakeholder map, cost-benefit analysis grid and more.

As powerful as that template might be, it pales in comparison to ProjectManager. Our robust Gantt charts are more than a spreadsheet and timeline, you can link all four types of dependencies to avoid delays and then set a baseline to capture the cost, resources and schedule of your plan. Our software then automatically reports on the planned effort versus the actual effort in real time. Now you can see if you’re on schedule and, if not, reallocate resources quickly to get back on track. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

2. Gap Analysis Template

By definition, change takes you from one point to another. It might not be something you want, but more often than not, it’s something the client wants. They deliver a change order and, once approved, it’s your job to figure out how to get from point A to point B. The free gap analysis template for Excel helps you analyze where you are and where you want to be.

A gap analysis isn’t strictly for change management. It’s often used as a tool to help organizations meet long-term goals, stay innovative and generally improve their processes. But this project management chart can help you gather the information you’ll need to implement that change through a revised plan, including what resources you require and the timeline in which it must be completed

3. Change Readiness Assessment Template

Assessing the readiness of your team before a change is critical for ensuring its implementation is feasible. To do so, it’s necessary to evaluate different areas that play a role in the change implementation process such as the resistance to change, resource availability, communication planning and more.

The change readiness assessment process helps project managers understand what actions are needed to prepare their organization for implementing a change, such as training employees, identifying stakeholders, and establishing communication channels.

4. Change Impact Assessment Template

Organizations need to estimate the potential impact that a change might have on their finances, ability to operate, project intake process, resource capacity and any other areas that might be affected before implementing it so they can compare its benefits against potential risks.

Change impact assessment forms are ideal for listing down all the variables that need to be considered when assessing the impact of a change and assigning numerical values to them.

5. Change Implementation Plan Template

There’s a lot of planning involved when implementing a change. First, organizations identify the tasks that need to be executed, make a schedule, allocate resources, estimate costs and make a budget.

This free template helps change managers list tasks, indicate who they’re assigned to, due dates, duration and many other details that help them keep track of the change implementation process.

6. Project Plan Template

That makes for a nice segue into the next on our list of free change management templates. In a gap analysis, you build an action plan, but our free project plan template for Word fills in the missing pieces. Now you have a tool to help you scope your work and break it down into small pieces that’ll make it easier to execute and manage.

Besides listing all the activities and tasks that implement your change, you can also note milestones, phases and the resource requirements you’ll need. Some fields capture the schedule, any task dependencies as well as assumptions and constraints. This costs money, so there’s also a place to estimate the budget, add a risk log and lay out the change management process.

7. Project Timeline Template

Part of the plan, perhaps one of the most critical aspects, is the schedule. You can create a schedule on our free project timeline template for Excel. This is one of the free change management templates that go the extra mile. There’s a spreadsheet that lists your tasks, start dates, end dates and duration. As you add them, they populate a visual timeline to the right. You can color-code the phases and see the timeline for the change you’re implementing all on one page.

8. Change Request Form

Change can come out of the blue. There could be a weather-related issue or equipment problem. But more often than not, that change is being requested, usually by a client after you’ve already started executing the project. To ensure that the change doesn’t cause delays, make sure it’s delivered with our free change request form template for Word.

You can use this free change management template to collect every aspect of the change on one page. Write a brief description, impact on the project and whatever other information decision-makers will need. Remember, this is a change request. That means all parties have to agree on it, which makes the change manageable without derailing the larger project.

9. Change Log Template

A key part of any change management plan is a change log. It’s how you control change in your project. Our free change log template for Excel gives project managers greater visibility. It’s identified and team members have been assigned to respond to it. Therefore, they have accountability and you can track the effort.

Once you download the free spreadsheet, you can number the change to make it easy to know which change you’re tracking. There’s space to note when the change was first identified, who on the team has been assigned to respond to it and what the priority is. You can note the status, too, to better track its life cycle.

10. Stakeholder Analysis Template

Whether changes come from stakeholders or not, they have a vested interest in the project. Project managers must keep them updated on the progress of the project and that includes any changes that occur. Our free stakeholder analysis template for Excel is a great tool for identifying and managing your project stakeholders.

You’ll find fields to define stakeholders, including adding basic information about them, such as their title, email and influence of power on the project, whether it’s high, medium or low. Next, you can note each stakeholder’s relationship to the project as well as note their priority, subject matter expertise (SME) and relevant skills. Finally, there’s a space to outline how to communicate with each, including frequency.

11. Communication Plan Template

Speaking of communication, that might be one of the most important aspects of change management. The worst thing about change when it comes to your project is not acknowledging it. There must be transparency and for that to happen you need to use our free communication plan template for Word.

This template goes through everything, such as the background of the project—its vision and objectives, goals and timeframe and communication staff and tools to review the effectiveness, communication plan and record outcome. There’s also a place to explore situation analysis, lessons learned guidelines, messaging, delivery channels, schedule and, of course, stakeholders.

12. Cost-Benefit Analysis Template

Not all changes are a priority. That’s why you have to note the priority to know how to respond. One way to do that is with our free cost-benefit analysis template for Excel. It’s one of the change management templates you’ll find yourself reaching for more often than not. It can help you decide if the change is worth the investment.

Some changes aren’t debatable. If there’s a quality issue, it must be addressed. However, not all changes are the same and certainly, not all are created equally. With the free template, you can look at quantitative costs against quantitative benefits to calculate if the money you put in is worth the benefits you get out of the change.

13. Project Budget Template

Changes cost money. To ensure those costs are in line with your budget or you can offset them in terms of the schedule or scope of the project, you can use our free project budget template for Excel.

A budget helps you estimate all the tasks that make up your project. That includes all the resources you’re going to need, too. Yes, this is for the entire project, but it can be applied to just the change or you can add some wiggle room in the budget to help you pay for whatever changes are deemed necessary.

14. Change Order Form Template

Construction project managers are all too familiar with change. They deal with complex projects and change management is essential to keep them on track. That’s why they always use a change order form, and you can too by downloading this free change order form template for Word.

The change order form has a place to write why the change is being requested, the opportunity it provides to the project and a description of that change. You can add the cost involved in implementing the change and the estimated duration. There’s a total cost and signature line to ensure that everyone has agreed on the price, change and timeframe.

15. Transition Plan Template

Change management is not just about planning what will change; it is about managing how people and processes move from the old state to the new one. A transition plan template gives you a structured format to document every step of that movement, from current-state activities being phased out to new responsibilities being phased in. Without a clear transition plan, organizations often experience productivity losses and confusion even after the change itself is technically complete.

The transition plan template includes sections for defining the current state, the target state and the specific steps required to bridge them, along with timelines, owners and dependencies. It provides a ground-level complement to the change management plan, translating high-level strategy into the day-to-day actions people need to take. Tracking completion of each transition activity ensures nothing is left half-finished when the formal change launch is declared done.

This template is especially useful for technology migrations, departmental restructures and process overhauls where the handoff between old and new ways of working needs to be explicitly managed. Use it alongside the communication plan to keep stakeholders informed at each stage of the transition.

16. Risk Assessment Template

Every organizational change introduces risk, and the teams that manage change best are the ones that identify and address those risks before they materialize. A risk assessment template gives you a systematic way to surface potential problems, evaluate their likelihood and impact and assign mitigation responsibilities before the change goes live. Skipping this step is one of the most reliable ways to turn a well-planned change into a reactive crisis.

The risk assessment template includes a register for each identified risk, along with columns for probability, severity, risk score, mitigation strategy and the owner responsible for that mitigation. Scoring risks on a consistent scale makes it easy to prioritize where to focus attention and ensures that high-impact risks are never obscured by a long list of minor concerns. The document also serves as an accountability record throughout the change lifecycle.

This template pairs naturally with the change impact assessment and change management plan already in this collection. Together they give change leaders a complete picture of what could go wrong, what it would affect and who is responsible for preventing it.

17. After Action Report Template

Every change initiative generates lessons, and capturing them while they are still fresh is essential to improving how your organization manages change in the future. An after action report template provides a structured format for reviewing what went as planned, what did not and what should be done differently next time. Without this debrief, the same mistakes tend to repeat across projects because no one formally documented what went wrong or why.

The after action report template includes sections for documenting the original objectives, what was accomplished, what fell short, contributing factors and recommended improvements for future initiatives. Completing it as a team rather than individually tends to surface perspectives that a single author would miss. The finished report becomes a reference document that can inform planning for the next change initiative.

Use this template at the close of any change initiative, whether it went smoothly or not. The most valuable after action reports are often the ones written after a change that succeeded technically but created more disruption than expected.

ProjectManager Helps With Change Management

Some of the free change management templates listed above are helpful, but some might be frustrating as they have to be manually implemented. Older versions can be floating around which can cause costly mix-ups. ProjectManager is award-winning project management software that has the features you need to plan, manage and track your change management plan in real time.

Work on Multiple Project Views

Project managers will create the change management plan on a Gantt chart, but teams use different tools to implement those changes. That’s why we have multiple project views that are all updated in real time together so everyone is always working on the most current information. Whether teams use kanban boards to visualize their workflow or a robust task list to track their work, our tool gives you the freedom to serve cross-functional teams and not make them adjust to the software.

Keep Track of Progress on Real-Time Dashboards

Rather than use static change management templates to track change, we have real-time dashboards that give you a high-level view of the project. They capture live data and display it in easy-to-read graphs and charts that show the overall health of the project, but also costs, time, workload and more. There’s no time-consuming configuration as with lightweight tools. It’s plug-and-play.

Want more detail? Use our customizable reports. They’re generated in a keystroke and can be filtered to show only the data you want to see. Then share them with your stakeholders to keep them updated on changes to the project.

Related Change Management Content

Change management is a big field. Change management templates only brush the surface. ProjectManager isn’t only superior project management software, it’s a site to learn about every phase of project management. Here is a selection of change management-related content.

• 15 Project Management Tools and Techniques Every PM Should Know
• 20 Must-Have Project Management Excel Templates
• Change Control Board: Roles, Responsibilities & Processes
• How to Make a Change Management Plan
• What Is Change Control in Project Management?
• Change Orders in Project Management
• 13 Plantillas de Gestión de Cambios Gratuitas para Excel y Word
• 13 Modèles de Gestion du Changement Gratuits pour Excel et Word
• 10 Modelos de Gestão de Mudanças Gratuitos para Excel e Word

ProjectManager is online project management software that empowers teams to plan, manage and track changes in their projects. Our collaborative platform connects teams across departments or continents, allowing them to share files, make comments and more. Besides fostering collaboration we have task management, risk management and resource management features to keep teams productive and projects on schedule. Get started with ProjectManger today for free.

The post 17 Free Change Management Templates for Excel and Word appeared first on ProjectManager.

Once the vision is defined, then the practical work begins, and strategic planning templates can facilitate that work. ProjectManager is not only powerful project and portfolio management software but also has over 100 free project and portfolio management templates for Excel and Word, including these strategic planning templates covering strategic analysis frameworks, competitive intelligence and scenario planning tools.

Why Should You Use Strategic Planning Templates?

Strategic planning templates are useful tools for project management offices (PMOs) and portfolio and program managers who oversee multiple projects and ensure they’re aligned with the organization’s strategic goals. They cover everything involved in the strategic planning process, from defining the vision statement to creating a roadmap and more.

Using premade strategic planning templates is also helpful because there’s no busy work involved. All you have to do is add relevant details. Strategic planning templates are consistent, which helps when archiving strategic planning documentation. This makes it easier to reference those documents when needed and review them when creating a new long-term plan.

While strategic planning templates help get you started, once you execute the strategic plan, you’ll see their limitations. These are, after all, static documents that must be manually updated which can impact collaboration. Strategic plans are implemented across the organization and departments must work together, share resources and prioritize the common goal. In reality, strategic planning templates aren’t designed to be that dynamic.

Portfolio management software goes where strategic planning templates cannot. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software with powerful strategic roadmaps that collect all your projects and displays them on one Gantt chart. You can manage resources, track time and manage tasks for all your projects in one place. Our roadmap can be filtered by assignee, project manager or customer to help you make forecasts. You can view which projects are opened and who’s assigned to what tasks and highlight key metrics to keep stakeholders informed. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

Free Strategic Planning Templates for Excel and Word

If you’re not ready to upgrade yet, ProjectManager also has over 100 free project management templates for Excel and Word that can help you with every phase of your project and across multiple industries. Below, we’ve listed 12 free strategic planning templates that can help you get started in reaching your strategic goals. Download them now.

1. Strategic Plan Template

Everything you need to outline your strategic plan is in this free strategic plan template for Word. When completed, you’ll have defined a strategic target and how to get the entire organization there. It will also show how the organization will track progress to ensure its goals are met over a specific period.

Our free strategic plan template has a place to define your vision and mission statements, and even make a SWOT analysis to identify the organization’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. You can list your business goals, marketing and operational plans, financial projections and the team that will be tasked with meeting your strategic goals.

2. Vision Statement Template

Strategic planning templates are nothing if they’re not driven by a clear vision. An organization’s vision is defined and distributed on a document called the vision statement. It succinctly explains the meaning and purpose of the organization, helping everyone understand its long-term goals.

Download our free vision statement template to kickstart the brainstorming that will generate a powerful vision statement for your organization. The vision statement template is made up of five steps, with each associated with a question, to walk you through the process of coming up with the right vision statement for your organization.

3. Strategic Roadmap Template

Once you have a vision, you know where you want to be over the next five or so years. Getting there requires a strategic roadmap, which is a tool that visualizes the major phases in your long-term plan to achieve your vision. This is one of the more important strategic planning templates in that it helps you make important decisions in terms of strategy, resource allocation and more.

Using our free strategic roadmap template for Excel gives you a high-level overview of the project or multiple projects you’ll be managing. On the left-hand side, a spreadsheet lists your tasks, start and end dates, including duration. Once those are imputed, they automatically populate the horizontal bar chart to the right. You can color-code the timeline to make it easier to distinguish different projects or phases.

4. Strategy Map Template

A strategy map is another strategic planning template that’s also a visual tool. It’s used to show the cause-and-effect of an organization’s strategic objectives by breaking them into four perspectives: strategic, financial, customer and business process. The strategy map template then communicates these objectives to the departments in an organization.

Our free strategy map template for Excel is customizable so you can identify your key objectives and place them appropriately across the four perspectives, with arrows showing the cause-and-effect relationships between them. This makes it clear how one objective from one perspective will influence the other objects from different perspectives.

5. SWOT Analysis Template

SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. It’s an analytic tool that organizations use to assess their competitive position and develop long-term planning strategies. This makes it an ideal addition to your strategic planning templates.

Our free SWOT analysis template for Word is a useful strategic planning template as it’s divided into four quadrants and four descriptors. Strengths are positive and internal to an organization, while weaknesses are negative and internal. Opportunities are positive, but external, while threats are negative and external. Using the template helps you sort through this data to inform your strategic plan.

6. Smart Goals Template

When using strategic planning templates, the first thing you need to define are goals. But those goals should be SMART, as in specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound. Using our free smart goals template for Word will help ensure you can achieve your long-term goals.

Our SMART goals template is a simple, but powerful tool for defining goals. It’s broken up into the five categories of SMART goals. For each, there are a series of questions to answer. This will lead you to the right goals for your organization and its business environment.

7. Organizational Chart Template

Once you have all your strategic planning templates filled out and you’re ready to implement the plan, there’s one last thing you need to do; define the internal structure of your organization. Creating a visual flowchart clarifies who has power over what and who to report or request guidance from.

Our free organizational chart template for Excel will help your organization run better, which is essential if you want to reach your long-term goals. The tree diagram design makes it easy to see department heads and those who report under them.

8. Action Plan Template

A strategic goal is just an idea until it’s executed. The ability to turn those goals into actionable tasks requires an action plan, which is a strategic planning template that lists tasks, duration and costs all in one document.

Our free action plan template for Excel helps you organize tasks and subtasks by phase and who’s assigned to them. In the timeline section, add start and end dates. Be sure to include the materials required to execute those tasks and their associated costs.

9. Resource Plan Template

Getting everyone up to speed on strategic plans is one thing, scheduling their work is another. That’s why having a resource plan is critical when assembling your strategic planning templates. Using our free resource plan template for Excel helps you schedule your resources.

The template has a column to list your resources and another to identify their department and the total number of hours assigned to each resource, including their rate and total cost. The other part of the template is a weekly calendar that allows you to map when you need your resources.

10. Balanced Scorecard Template

Another strategic planning template is the balanced scorecard template. This document gets its name by evaluating strategic and more traditional financial measures to provide balance in the scorecard. It helps align business activities with the vision and strategy of the organization.

The template itself includes categories such as financial, customer, internal processes and learning, although you can add or remove categories as needed. From there, add strategic objectives and key performance indicators to define and set goals, determining how to meet them along the way. As a result of this template, internal and external communication improves while teams can monitor organizational performance against strategic goals.

11. KPI Dashboard Template

Key performance indicators (KPIs) are another good measure of strategic performance as they are quantifiable. If you’re not sure what the goals are for the project or even for the organization as a whole, how can you achieve them? Use this KPI dashboard template to monitor and analyze KPIs to track performance.

It’s useful for tracking individual, team and department performance in terms of timelines, tasks, workload analysis, resource planning and more. As more data is added to this strategic planning template, it’s easier to identify and address trends that can negatively impact the project.

12. Operational Plan Template

An operational plan highlights the specific actions and resources needed to achieve the organization’s strategic goals. Usually, the operational plan includes additional details on activities, timelines, objectives, responsibilities and needed resources. The goal is to help deliver on the business’s strategic initiatives.

The template itself can cover daily, weekly or monthly timeframes. It’s more than a strategic plan, it also outlines the timelines, scope of work, processes and more. Use this free strategic planning template to outline the metrics that measure the progress of the work to keep it on track.

13. Gap Analysis Template

A gap analysis template helps organizations identify where they currently stand and what needs to change to reach their strategic goals. By mapping the difference between the current state and the desired future state, it gives leadership teams a clear picture of which capabilities, resources or processes are missing. This structured comparison is one of the most direct ways to translate a vision into an actionable improvement agenda.

The gap analysis template includes sections for the current state, the target state and the specific gaps between them, along with columns for root causes, required actions and responsible owners. This structure makes it easy to prioritize which gaps matter most and assign accountability for closing them. The result is a bridge between high-level strategy and the practical steps needed to execute it.

This template is useful at the start of any strategic planning cycle, during a reorganization or whenever performance is falling short of expectations. Use it alongside the strategic plan template to ensure your goals are grounded in an honest assessment of where your organization stands today.

14. Competitive Analysis Template

Understanding your competitive landscape is a prerequisite for any credible strategic plan. A competitive analysis template gives you a structured framework for evaluating key competitors across the dimensions that matter most to your business, from pricing and product features to market positioning and target customers. Without this clarity, strategic decisions are made in a vacuum rather than in context.

The competitive analysis template includes rows for each competitor and columns for criteria such as strengths, weaknesses, market share, pricing and key differentiators. Filling it out side by side reveals patterns that are easy to miss when examining competitors one at a time. Leadership teams use this output to sharpen their own positioning and identify opportunities the competition has overlooked.

This template is most valuable during the strategy development phase, before finalizing your strategic plan. Pair it with a SWOT analysis to connect external competitive intelligence with an honest assessment of your own capabilities and weaknesses.

15. Scenario Planning Template

No strategic plan survives contact with reality unchanged. A scenario planning template helps leadership teams prepare for multiple possible futures rather than betting everything on a single forecast. By developing best-case, base-case and worst-case scenarios in advance, organizations can make more resilient decisions and respond faster when conditions shift.

The scenario planning template includes a matrix for mapping key uncertainties against their potential impact, along with space to define strategic responses for each scenario. This structure forces teams to make their assumptions explicit rather than leaving them buried in a single-point forecast. The result is a strategy built to adapt rather than one that is brittle under pressure.

Scenario planning is especially valuable in industries with high volatility, regulatory uncertainty or rapid technological change. Use this template during annual planning reviews to stress-test your goals and ensure your team has a clear playbook for the futures most likely to unfold.

16. Stakeholder Analysis Template

Every strategic initiative affects people inside and outside the organization, and understanding who those people are before you start is essential to gaining their support. A stakeholder analysis template helps you identify key stakeholders, assess their level of interest and influence and plan how to engage them throughout execution. Skipping this step is one of the most common reasons strategic plans fail once they move from planning to implementation.

The stakeholder analysis template includes a grid for mapping stakeholders by influence and interest level, along with columns for communication approach and engagement actions. High-influence stakeholders who are not aligned with the plan can block progress, while those who are supportive can become active champions. This template makes both dynamics visible before they become obstacles.

Use this template early in the strategic planning process, before major decisions are finalized. It integrates naturally with a communication plan to ensure each stakeholder group receives the right message at the right stage.

17. PESTLE Analysis Template

Before setting strategy, organizations need to understand the external environment they are operating in. A PESTLE analysis template provides a structured framework for evaluating Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental factors that could affect your business. This broad scan of external forces helps leadership teams surface risks and opportunities that internal data alone would never reveal.

The PESTLE analysis template includes a dedicated section for each of the six factors, with space to describe the specific forces at play, their potential impact and the strategic implications for your organization. Working through each dimension systematically ensures no major external force goes unexamined. Teams often feed the completed PESTLE directly into their SWOT analysis, translating external findings into concrete strategic threats and opportunities.

This template pairs naturally with the competitive analysis and scenario planning templates in this collection. Together they give strategic planning teams a thorough picture of the external landscape before committing to a direction.

How ProjectManager Helps With Strategic Planning

Strategic planning templates are helpful. They can organize your thoughts and focus ideas, but they fall short when it comes to planning, managing and tracking your projects. They can’t track details in real time and pull you away from more important work as you manually update each strategic planning template. Plus, they’re not collaborative. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that helps you with strategic planning and monitoring its execution in real time to keep you on track to meet your long-term goals.

Manage Resources and Labor Costs

When you onboard your team to our software, you can set their availability, including PTO, vacation and even global holidays for remote workers. This makes it easy to assign them work. Then toggle over to the workload chart, which is color-coded to make it easy to see your team’s workload. If some are overallocated, just balance their workload right from the chart. Our secure timesheets streamline payroll but also allow you to track labor costs and keep to your budget. You can also see how far each team member is in completing their work.

Track the Progress and Costs of Strategic Initiatives

You can track your resources, costs, time and more with our real-time portfolio dashboards. They give you an overview of your projects, like having a status report whenever you want one. Our project and portfolio dashboards automatically collect live data and display it on easy-to-read graphs and charts. There’s no time-consuming and complicated setup as with lightweight alternatives. If you want more details, use our customizable reports, which filter data to show only what you want to see. They can also be shared to keep stakeholders informed.

Creating action plans to reach your strategic goals can be done on our robust Gantt charts or roadmaps, but teams across different departments are going to need different tools to execute their tasks. Our software has multiple project views, from the visual workflow of kanban boards to task lists, sheet and calendar views. Teams can work how they want. All project views update together so everyone is always working on the same page.

ProjectManager is online project and portfolio management software that connects teams whether they’re in the office, in the field or anywhere in the world. They can share files, comment at the task level and stay updated with email and in-app notifications. Join teams at Avis, Nestle and Siemens who use our software to deliver successful projects. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

The post 17 Free Strategic Planning Templates for Excel and Word appeared first on ProjectManager.

There are over 100 free project management templates for Excel and Word available to download right now on our site. They cover every phase of managing a project and can be used across industries. We’ve cherry-picked the best free goal-setting templates and goal-tracking templates and listed them below to help deliver successful projects.

1. SMART Goals Template

Not all goals are created equal. If you set unrealistic goals for yourself or a project, you’re setting yourself up for failure. Instead, be smart. Using a free SMART goals template for Word is the first step to achieving your goals because this goal-setting template ensures that the goals are grounded in reality. Once the goals are set, use this goal-tracking template to ensure you’re meeting your goals.

This is achieved through the simple process of vetting goals. That’s where the SMART part comes into play. This acronym stands for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound. The goal-setting template is divided into three columns. The first column is for what each letter in SMART stands for. The second column asks a series of questions to help define that goal as related to a specific SMART goal. Finally, there’s a space for answers. When this process is complete, the goals collected will be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound.

2. Strategic Roadmap Template

Setting goals is only the start. Now, those goals must be communicated to the team responsible for executing the individual tasks that will lead to achieving those goals. Using this free strategic roadmap template for Excel is a great visual aid for achieving the goal of disseminating the goal across the organization. This goal-setting template is a powerful tool to deliver long-term strategy, key goals, objectives and outcomes.

Using this free goal-setting template helps lay out all the strategy elements to prepare an organization for moving from where it currently stands to where it wants to be at a future date. Having a strategy and executing it are two points that are very distant from one another. The strategic roadmap template helps fill that gap.

The trouble with this goal-setting template is that it’s not very collaborative. Project management software is more conducive to sharing strategic plans. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that has robust roadmaps that can be shared with teams. More than that, we have resource management, time tracking and task management features that help teams reach those goals. Our robust roadmaps view all projects related to the strategic goal in one place where projects can be filtered to view which are open. The roadmap highlights key metrics for stakeholders, links dependencies, filters for the critical path and sets a baseline to track variance to stay on schedule. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

3. SWOT Analysis Template

You can’t set goals blindly. Before setting goals, it’s important to understand where an organization stands. Knowing the competitive landscape and how the company fits into it is essential to developing a strategic plan. That’s where a free SWOT analysis template for Word comes in. It’s another acronym, this one standing for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Filling out the goal-setting template helps to gather the data necessary to make the next, right move.

This goal-setting template is divided into four quadrants, one for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The left-hand vertical axis is divided into two parts, one for external and the other for internal. Across the top axis is a column for positive and another for negative. Then it’s just a matter of placing the information about the company and its competitors into the proper quadrants. This will guide the development of a more impactful strategic plan.

4. Gap Analysis Template

A gap analysis is a tool to gather information that will help build an action plan. The free gap analysis template for Excel is designed to show how an organization can move from its current state to the desired future state. Use this goal-setting template to understand how to hit a strategic or business goal by determining the actions that must take place. Use it for project management, business process improvement and product management.

To use this goal-setting template, first list the focus areas, such as business processes to improve or an HR skill gap. Next, determine the current and future state of that focus area. Then, estimate the gap percentage and list the action items to close that gap (including priority, start and end dates as well as required resources). These action items will be assigned to someone and a status column helps track their progress.

5. To-Do List Template

Once goals are set, then comes the real work. Using this free to-do list for Excel is a task management tool that organizes and prioritizes work to make executing that work more efficient and effective. This goal-setting template collects all the tasks a team member is responsible for and keeps them in one place, which makes it easier to manage. It’s also a goal-tracking template in that it provides a sense of progress as each task on the list is completed.

It’s easy to get started with this goal-setting template. Just list all the tasks assigned to a team member and estimate the duration of each task, which includes the start date and due date. As tasks are being worked on, set the percentage complete with the drop-down menu, which goes in 25 percent increments from zero to 100. Then note the progress and add any notes that don’t fall into the previous columns.

6. Milestones Template

One of the easiest ways to track progress toward your goals is by using milestones. A milestones template maps out the key checkpoints in a project’s lifecycle; major events such as the end of a phase, delivery of a major deliverable or critical approvals. This structure makes it easy to track when important dates are approaching or overdue, coordinate handoffs or phase completions, and communicate critical deadlines with your team or stakeholders.

These milestones mark progress in a clear, visible way, helping teams and stakeholders stay aligned on what’s important and when. By focusing on major achievements instead of every small task, a milestone plan simplifies scheduling, highlights priorities and helps avoid surprises.

7. Progress Report Template

Setting goals without tracking their progress is a loser’s game. One way to make sure that the actual progress is aligned with the planned progress is with this free progress report template for Word. A progress report documents how far a project has progressed against where the project plan says it should be at this point. This goal-tracking template captures a snapshot of the project’s progress within a specific time frame to show if things are moving forward as planned.

This goal-tracking template begins with a summary to show the big picture before diving into the details that follow. Those details include all the tasks that were executed over the period covered in the progress report, any issues that came up and the money spent over that time. There’s also room to list any accomplishments and expected accomplishments that will show up in the next progress report.

8. 5-Year Plan Template

It’s never too early to start setting long-term goals. This 5-year plan template is designed to define your long-term objective and break it down year by year, noting annual end-goals, strategies or processes to get there, required resources and measurable success metrics.

It gives long-term direction, helps prioritize resources and provides a framework for decision‑making over time. With a clear 5‑year plan, everyone understands the vision and can align their efforts to support sustainable growth, avoid chaos, and measure progress against shared objectives.

9. Status Report Template

Another goal-setting template is the free status report template for Excel. A status report is different from a progress report. The former is a broad overview of a project’s current state, while the latter focuses on the project’s progress over time. Regardless, both are important goal-tracking tools.

This goal-setting template opens with a summary of the project, such as its name, date, project manager as well as the reporting period. There follows a summary of key accomplishments, completed work, planned work, milestones, deliverables and action items. Then there’s a rundown of the project’s health, such as the budget, schedule, quality and scope. There is also a risk management overview and recommendations for going forward.

10. Project Deliverables Template

A project deliverables list defines the concrete outputs a project is expected to produce, including the reports, features, products, or services that must be delivered when the project ends. With this project deliverables template, you capture each deliverable’s name, description, who’s responsible, and its due date, all in one organized sheet. You can monitor status (e.g., not started, in progress, complete), add notes or comments and adjust deadlines or ownership as needed.

By specifying deliverables early, it ensures everyone understands what “done” means, aligns expectations among stakeholders and reduces the risk of scope creep or missing outcomes. This clarity helps guide planning, coordinate work, and validate project success.

11. Requirements Gathering Template

Knowing the requirements necessary to execute a plan is a key part of achieving one’s goals. Using this free requirements gathering template for Word collects what’s required and communicates that information between the user and developer. The user will show what they require and the developer ensures that it’s all accounted for in the requirements-gathering process.

The free goal-setting template has a cover page that not only names the project but also has a box that tracks the versions and why changes were made to the requirements gathering template. Next, there’s a section for the project plan, its purpose, scope and timeframe, with milestones, goals and dependencies. Constraints and restrictions are outlined. Then the requirements are broken down into seven subsections to capture everything from user requirements to risk management.

12. Project Overview Template

A project overview is a high-level description of the project and one of the documents used to get a new project started. Use this free project overview template for Word to convince senior management of the project’s viability and to get the project team on the same page in terms of the goals and objectives of the project.

This goal-setting template captures everything from the business case, which summarizes the project and its value, to the project deliverables. There’s also a section to capture opportunities and problems, goals and objectives and what’s in and out of scope for the project.

13. Annual Work Plan Template

An annual work plan is a strategic document that lays out what a team or organization aims to accomplish over the course of a year. Use our free annual work plan template to turn broad goals into concrete objectives, define the initiatives needed and assign responsibilities, timelines and resources.

The template offers a central place to organize objectives, giving your team a shared roadmap and helping everyone stay focused on what matters most during the year.

14. Project Summary Template

A project summary is part of a project proposal, which is used to convince stakeholders or clients that the potential project is worth funding. To achieve this goal use our free project summary template for Word. This project goal-setting template can also be a standalone document or part of a project proposal. Either way, it’s a comprehensive overview of the project, briefly stated, but including key details.

This goal-setting template captures important information, such as the project schedule, including durations, milestones and deliverables. There’s space for the project budget, which includes financial projections to show costs and return on investment (ROI). The resource plan is outlined and there’s a risk management overview to show how roadblocks and other challenges will be dealt with.

15. Eisenhower Matrix Template

The Eisenhower matrix is a simple yet powerful prioritization method that helps you decide which tasks to tackle first by evaluating two criteria: urgency and importance. Use our free Eisenhower matrix template to divide tasks into four categories: “urgent & important,” “important but not urgent,” “urgent but not important” and “neither urgent nor important.”

You can quickly see which tasks deserve your immediate attention, which should be scheduled later, which can be delegated and which can be dropped. By doing so, the template helps you convert a chaotic to‑do list into a prioritized, actionable plan

16. Vision Statement Template

Goal setting requires more than a list of objectives; it needs a clear picture of where the organization is ultimately headed. A vision statement template gives leadership teams a structured format for articulating that future state in concrete, memorable terms. A strong vision statement acts as a north star that aligns every goal, milestone and decision that follows it, making it one of the most foundational documents in any goal-setting process.

The vision statement template guides you through defining the organization’s core purpose, the future state it is working toward and the values that will guide the journey. Working through each prompt as a team surfaces disagreements about direction early, before they show up as misaligned goals later. The finished statement becomes a reference point for evaluating whether individual goals are actually pointing in the right direction.

Use this template at the start of any strategic planning or annual goal-setting cycle. A well-crafted vision statement makes every subsequent goal-setting conversation more focused and more grounded in what the organization is actually trying to become.

17. KPI Dashboard Template

Setting goals is only half the work; knowing whether you are on track to hit them requires consistent measurement. A KPI dashboard template gives teams a centralized view of the key performance indicators tied to their goals, making it easy to spot which areas are progressing and which need attention. Without this visibility, goal reviews become backward-looking and reactive rather than forward-looking and corrective.

The KPI dashboard template includes a structured layout for listing each key metric alongside its target, current value, trend direction and owner. Color-coded status indicators make it easy to read performance at a glance without digging through raw data. Teams typically update the dashboard on a weekly or monthly cadence and use it as the agenda for goal review meetings.

This template is especially useful for teams managing multiple goals across different functions, where a single shared view of performance prevents siloed tracking and keeps everyone accountable to the same picture.

18. Action Plan Template

A goal without a plan is just a wish. An action plan template bridges the gap between the goals you set and the day-to-day work required to achieve them, laying out every task, owner and deadline in a format the whole team can follow. It is the document that turns strategic intent into operational reality, making it an essential companion to any goal-setting process.

The action plan template includes columns for each action item, the goal it supports, the assigned owner, the due date and the current status. Breaking goals down into discrete tasks makes them less abstract and easier to delegate. Regular reviews of the action plan reveal whether the team is executing at the pace needed to hit the goal on time.

Use this template alongside the SMART goals template to connect clearly defined goals to the specific actions that will deliver them. Together they create a complete picture from goal definition through to execution and follow-through.

ProjectManager Helps With Goal-Setting and Tracking

Using these goal-setting templates is helpful, but only to a point. That’s because all templates, whether for Excel or Word, are static documents. That means that each must be manually updated, taking teams away from their tasks and giving managers data that is already outdated once added to the template. To leverage an advantage that templates can’t provide, use project management software. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that delivers real-time data and has workflow automation with approval settings to ensure quality deliverables while streamlining processes.

Monitor Goals With Real-Time Dashboards

There are goal-setting templates that can monitor progress and help make sure the actual effort is aligned with the planned effort. But those templates are always a day late and a dollar short. Get a high-level overview of the project’s key performance indicators (KPIs) with our real-time dashboards for individual projects, a program or a portfolio of projects. Easy-to-read graphs and charts capture time, cost, workload and more, automatically updating as teams log their statuses. Best of all, there’s no lengthy and complicated setup needed as with lightweight alternatives.

Get More Details With Customizable Reports

When more detail is required, toggle over to the reporting feature. Reports can be generated in minutes and show project or portfolio status, variance, timesheets, workload and more. Filter the reports to go deep into detail for managers and their teams or create a more general overview that can then be shared with stakeholders to keep them up to date.

Related Template Content

Looking for more free templates. Other template roundups collect free templates around a theme, whether that’s change management, construction or project management. Below are links to those posts.

• 15 Goal-Setting Strategies for Individuals and Teams
• How to Create SMART Goals (Example Included)
• How to Set CLEAR Goals: CLEAR Goal Examples
• How to Set FAST Goals: FAST Goal Examples
• How to Set a Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG)
• 14 Free Change Management Templates for Excel and Word
• 18 Free Excel Construction Templates
• 25 Must-Have Project Management Excel Templates and Spreadsheets
• Plantillas de seguimiento de objetivos para Excel y Word (gratis)

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

The post 18 Free Goal-Setting and Tracking Templates for Excel and Word appeared first on ProjectManager.

Whether you’re managing inventory, requesting quotes or scheduling maintenance, having a clear and structured template can save time, reduce errors and improve accountability. Anyone who is a small business owner, department manager or part of a larger corporate team will find these service templates helpful

Free Service Templates

Below are a selection of templates from the over 100 free project management templates for Excel and Word that users can download immediately from our site. These templates cover all aspects of managing projects across multiple industries. The ones we’ve chosen for this roundup will help improve customer service and business efficiency.

1. Service Proposal Template

Download this free service proposal template for Word to outline the scope, approach and pricing for a service offered to a potential client. This service template acts as a persuasive pitch and a formal plan, helping clients understand exactly what’s being offered, how it will be delivered and at what cost. It includes sections like an executive summary, company background, service details, deliverables, timelines, pricing and terms and conditions.

This service template saves time and ensures a polished, consistent presentation with every client opportunity. It allows service providers to customize key details while maintaining a professional format that communicates value. A well-crafted template improves the chances of winning business and sets the stage for clear expectations and smooth collaboration. Whether you’re a freelancer, consultant, agency or service-based company, a strong service proposal template is essential for closing deals and building trust with clients.

When that proposal is accepted, it’s time to move from a template to project management software. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software designed to handle the dynamic nature of a project in a way that static templates cannot.

The agreed-upon information in the service template can inform our robust Gantt chart, which schedules tasks, resources and costs. But it can also link all four types of task dependencies to avoid cost overruns, filter for the critical path and set a baseline to track progress in real time. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

2. Service Quote Template

Use this free service quote template for Excel to offer clients a detailed estimate for requested services before work begins. The service template includes a breakdown of the services to be provided, pricing for each item or task, total estimated cost, timelines, payment terms and any conditions or disclaimers. The quote serves as a non-binding proposal, giving clients clarity on what to expect in terms of both scope and cost.

Using a service quote template helps ensure professionalism and consistency in the quoting process. It saves time by providing a repeatable structure that can be customized for different clients or projects. A well-designed quote template also helps reduce misunderstandings, facilitates client approval and can even form the basis of a later service agreement or invoice.

Freelancers, consultants or a part of a larger service business will find that a clear and accurate quote template is a key tool for winning business and setting the right expectations from the start.

3. Scope of Work Template

Download this free scope of work template for Word to define the boundaries of a service engagement before work begins. It captures what is included in the project, the deliverables to be produced, the timeline and any exclusions or out-of-scope items. By clearly documenting the scope upfront, both the service provider and client share a reference point that reduces misunderstandings and helps manage expectations throughout the engagement.

Using a scope of work template creates a paper trail that supports accountability and change management. When requests arise outside the agreed scope, the document provides a clear basis for discussing adjustments or additional costs. It’s a critical tool for freelancers, consultants and service teams who need to protect their time and deliver consistent results.

4. Statement of Work Template

Use this free statement of work template for Word to formalize a service engagement with detailed specifics on tasks, milestones, acceptance criteria and payment schedules. While a scope of work defines what is included, the statement of work goes further by specifying how and when the work will be performed. It’s often used alongside a service agreement to give both parties a complete picture of the engagement before work begins.

A well-drafted statement of work reduces ambiguity and keeps projects on track by setting measurable benchmarks for progress and completion. It’s especially valuable for complex or multi-phase service engagements where deliverables and timelines must be clearly defined at the outset. Service providers across consulting, IT, construction and professional services use statements of work to establish clear terms and protect against scope creep.

5. Service Agreement Template

This free service agreement template for Word outlines the terms and conditions under which services will be provided by one party to another. It’s a formal contract between a service provider and a client, clearly defining the scope of work, payment terms, deadlines, responsibilities, dispute resolution methods and other relevant conditions. The main goal of a service agreement is to protect both parties by setting clear expectations and providing a framework for accountability and legal recourse if issues arise.

Using a service agreement template helps ensure consistency, professionalism and legal coverage in client engagements. It saves time by offering a ready-made structure customizable to fit different projects or industries. It’s suitable for a freelancer, contractor, agency or business owner.

A solid service agreement minimizes misunderstandings and supports smoother, more transparent working relationships. It’s a critical tool for formalizing agreements and building trust in any service-based business.

6. Service-Level Agreement Template

This free service-level agreement template is a structured document that outlines the specific commitments and performance standards a service provider agrees to meet when delivering services to a client or internal team.

It defines key metrics such as uptime guarantees, response times, resolution times and service availability, along with roles, responsibilities and procedures for monitoring and reporting on performance. The service template also typically includes provisions for penalties or remedies if service levels are not met.

This service template ensures consistency and clarity in how service expectations are set and managed. It’s a foundational agreement that helps prevent misunderstandings, strengthens accountability and supports better communication between parties.

SLAs are especially common in IT services, customer support, SaaS, telecommunications and other industries where service reliability and responsiveness are critical. Organizations can customize this well-designed SLA template to efficiently draft agreements that align with business goals and customer expectations while maintaining professional standards.

7. Terms of Service Template

Download this free terms of service template for Word to outline the rules, responsibilities and conditions users must agree to to use a product, service or platform—especially common for websites, apps and software services.

The service template includes sections on acceptable use, user obligations, intellectual property rights, disclaimers, limitation of liability, privacy policies and procedures for account termination or dispute resolution. The goal of the template is to protect the service provider legally while setting clear expectations for users.

Using this service template allows businesses to create a consistent and legally sound agreement quickly, which can be customized to fit their specific operations or industry requirements. It helps prevent misunderstandings, reinforces user accountability and can serve as a safeguard in the event of legal disputes.

It should be used when launching a new online service, mobile app or digital platform. A well-drafted terms of service document is essential for operating professionally and minimizing risk.

8. Service Blueprint Template

Use this free service blueprint template for Excel as a strategic visual tool to map out the entire service delivery process—from the customer’s experience to the behind-the-scenes operations that make it possible.

The service template breaks down a service into key components such as customer interactions, frontstage (visible) employee actions, backstage (invisible) processes and supporting systems. The template includes a flow of activities, with layers representing each component, helping teams understand how the service works holistically.

This service template is especially valuable for designing, analyzing or improving complex service offerings. It helps identify pain points, inefficiencies or opportunities for enhancement by connecting customer actions and internal operations.

This level of visibility is crucial for aligning teams, improving consistency and enhancing the overall customer experience. It’s useful when launching a new service, optimizing an existing one or training staff. A service blueprint template is a powerful tool for service design and delivery.

9. Service Request Form

Download this free service request form for Excel to formally request specific services or support from a department, team or service provider. The service template includes information such as the requester’s contact details, a description of the needed service, urgency or priority level, preferred timelines and any relevant supporting documentation.

These forms are commonly used in IT support, maintenance, customer service, facilities management and other operational areas to streamline how service needs are communicated and addressed.

The main benefit of using this service template is that it brings structure and clarity to the request process, ensuring that all necessary details are captured from the start. This reduces misunderstandings, improves response times and supports more efficient service delivery. By centralizing and organizing requests, teams can prioritize tasks, allocate resources more effectively and maintain a clear record of service activities.

10. Job Sheet Template

Download this free job sheet template for Excel to document the details of a service job before and during execution. It captures the client’s information, job description, assigned technician, scheduled date, materials used and time spent on-site. Field service teams use job sheets to ensure technicians arrive prepared and that all work details are recorded accurately before the service report and invoice are generated.

Using a job sheet template standardizes how field work is recorded across teams and locations. It improves accountability, supports billing accuracy and gives managers a clear record of service activity. Whether you’re running a facilities management team, a maintenance crew or an IT support desk, job sheets connect a service request to its completion and form the basis for accurate reporting and invoicing.

11. Service Report Template

This free service report template for Word is used to record and communicate the details of a service job after it has been completed. It includes information such as the client’s name, service date, technician or employee involved, a description of the work performed, time spent, materials used and follow-up recommendations. The service template acts as an official record of the service provided, useful for the provider and the client.

Using a service report template helps ensure consistency, accuracy and professionalism in documentation. It streamlines reporting across teams, supports quality control and provides valuable data for internal reviews, billing or customer communication. In industries like maintenance, IT support, field services and consulting, a clear and well-organized service report is essential for accountability, customer satisfaction and operational transparency.

12. Service Invoice Template

Use this free service invoice template for Word to bill clients for work completed. The service template includes essential details such as the provider’s and client’s contact information, an itemized list of services rendered, hourly rates or fixed charges, total amount due, invoice number, payment terms and due dates.

Using a service invoice template ensures that all billing communications are clear, professional and consistent. It saves time by providing a repeatable format that can be quickly tailored to each client or job. A well-structured invoice template not only supports accurate record-keeping and timely payments but also reinforces your brand’s credibility.

ProjectManager Delivers Service Better Than Templates

These free service templates are useful tools until it’s time to deliver that service. Then, it’s clear that these static documents are unequipped to handle the dynamic nature of managing a project. That’s why there’s project management software. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that delivers better service planning, execution and monitoring.

Besides our powerful Gantt chart, there are task lists, kanban boards, sheet and calendar views that allow teams to use the tools best suited to their work. Custom and automated workflows, with task approval settings, ensure quality deliverables. There are also resource management and time-tracking tools.

Manage Resources Efficiently

Keeping to the agreed service template requires allocating resources efficiently to ensure the project is delivered on time and on budget. This starts with scheduling on Gantt charts and continues when onboarding the team, when project managers can set their availability, such as PTO, vacation, global holidays, skills and pay rate. This streamlines the assignment process and puts the right resources at the right time and place.

Resource allocation can be viewed for one or multiple projects by visiting the color-coded workload chart. It shows who is overallocated or underutilised, and can balance their workload without leaving the chart to keep everyone working at capacity but not burning the team out. A team page provides a daily or weekly summary of their activities, which can be filtered by priority or progress. Tasks can be updated, too, without leaving the page.

Stay on Track With Real-Time Dashboards and Reports

Project managers need to monitor more than just resources to keep the project on its course. For a high-level overview, they can toggle to our real-time dashboards. These dashboards require no setup and automatically collect live data that’s displayed on easy-to-read graphs and charts showing metrics such as time, cost, workload and more.

For greater detail, visit the customizable reports. Generate reports on status, variance, workload, timesheets and more with a keystroke. Each report can be filtered to focus on key data points or offer a general overview of progress, which can then be shared with stakeholders in a variety of formats. Even the secure timesheets help by tracking labor costs to help stay on budget.

Related Business Operations Content

Service templates are part of the larger business operations process. For those who would like to explore this area in more detail, follow the links below. They lead to some of the blogs we’ve posted on the subject.

• The Importance of Operational Project Management for Business
• How to Make an Operations Plan
• Business Project Management Basics
• How to Write a Business Plan

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 updated with email and in-app notifications. Join teams at Avis, Nestle and Siemens who use our software to deliver successful projects. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

The post 12 Service Templates: Service Agreement, Service Invoice & More 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. Performance Review Template

At its core, a performance review is a structured evaluation where managers assess an employee’s work, productivity and professional behavior during a specific review period. The process documents accomplishments, identifies improvement areas and provides feedback that supports employee development, performance management and long-term organizational goals.

This performance review template provides a structured Word document that guides managers through the employee evaluation process. It organizes employee information, performance criteria, goal tracking and review summaries so supervisors can document feedback clearly and conduct consistent employee performance appraisals across teams.

• Employee Information Section: Records key details such as the employee’s full name, job title, department, review period and reviewer name to clearly identify the employee being evaluated and establish the timeframe of the performance review.
• Performance Criteria Evaluation: Allows managers to assess job knowledge, technical skills and overall role competency while documenting concrete examples that illustrate how effectively the employee performs assigned responsibilities.
• Quality of Work Assessment: Evaluates accuracy, attention to detail and consistency of the employee’s work output to determine whether deliverables meet expected standards and organizational quality requirements.
• Productivity and Efficiency Review: Measures how effectively the employee manages time, meets deadlines and uses available organizational resources while maintaining consistent performance throughout the review period.
• Communication and Teamwork Evaluation: Reviews collaboration, interpersonal communication and the employee’s ability to work productively with colleagues while contributing to team objectives and workplace coordination.
• Goals and Development Planning: Documents completed goals, analyzes unmet objectives and establishes new goals that guide employee performance improvement and professional development during the next review cycle.
• Performance Summary and Signatures: Provides space for an overall performance rating, written feedback, employee comments and signatures from both the reviewer and employee to formally acknowledge the evaluation discussion.

2. Performance Improvement Plan Template

Sometimes employee evaluations reveal consistent performance gaps that require structured follow-up rather than simple feedback. A performance improvement plan is a formal document used to address performance issues, clarify expectations and guide employees toward meeting job requirements. Managers use it to document concerns, define corrective actions and monitor measurable progress over a defined improvement period.

This performance review template provides a structured action plan managers can use to document performance issues, define SMART performance goals and track corrective actions. It guides supervisors through outlining expectations, timelines and evaluation metrics so employee improvement efforts remain organized, measurable and clearly documented.

• Administrative Information: The template begins with employee and manager identification details such as employee name, job title, department, contact information and review date to ensure the performance improvement plan is clearly documented and easy to reference.
• Purpose of the Improvement Plan: A dedicated section explains the reason the performance improvement plan is being implemented, helping managers clarify the context behind the employee evaluation and the specific performance concerns that triggered corrective action.
• Performance Issues Documentation: Managers describe concrete examples of unmet performance goals, missed expectations or behavioral concerns so the employee clearly understands the problems that must be addressed during the improvement period.
• SMART Performance Improvement Goals: The template includes space to define clear improvement goals using the SMART framework so employees know exactly what outcomes they must achieve and how their progress will be measured.
• Action Plan and Expectations: Supervisors outline the steps employees must take to correct performance issues while documenting management expectations, responsibilities and specific activities required to improve work performance.
• Improvement Timeline and Evaluation Metrics: The document establishes a defined timeline for improvement while identifying key performance indicators and review checkpoints used to monitor employee progress and assess measurable results.
• Consequences and Final Assessment: The final sections explain the consequences of failing to meet performance goals and provide space for a final evaluation, followed by employee and manager signatures acknowledging the improvement plan.

3. Professional Development Plan Template

Employee evaluations often highlight more than past performance-they reveal opportunities for growth that can shape an employee’s future career path. A performance review creates space to identify those opportunities by examining achievements, strengths and improvement areas while aligning employee development with organizational goals and long-term workforce planning.

This performance review template helps employees and managers organize career growth initiatives by documenting skills assessments, development goals and action steps. It provides a structured framework for planning training, tracking professional development progress and measuring skill advancement over time.

• Personal Information Section: Records basic identifying information such as employee name, job title, department, manager and plan creation date to ensure the professional development plan is clearly associated with the individual employee and their role.
• Current Skills Assessment: Provides space to evaluate existing competencies, strengths and improvement areas while incorporating self-assessment insights and feedback from managers or colleagues to create an accurate baseline for development planning.
• Professional Development Goals: Allows individuals to define measurable short-term and long-term career objectives that focus on acquiring new skills, expanding expertise and supporting both personal career advancement and organizational needs.
• Action Plan for Skill Development: Outlines the specific actions required to achieve development goals, such as training programs, professional certifications, mentorship opportunities, workshops or practical work assignments.
• Development Timeline: Establishes a structured schedule that assigns deadlines and timeframes to each development activity so employees can track progress and remain accountable for achieving their professional growth goals.
• Resources and Learning Support: Identifies the tools, learning materials and support systems needed to complete development activities, including courses, educational content, coaching or specialized software platforms.
• Performance Indicators and Evaluation: Defines measurable performance indicators and reflection opportunities that allow employees and managers to review progress, evaluate results and adjust the professional development plan when necessary.

4. Skills Matrix Template

During a performance review, managers evaluate how effectively employees apply their knowledge, technical abilities and professional skills to their daily responsibilities. These evaluations often highlight strengths, identify skill gaps and reveal training needs. Documenting these insights helps organizations plan employee development, improve workforce capabilities and support long-term performance management strategies.

This skills matrix template helps managers visualize employee competencies across multiple skills while identifying capability gaps that may affect team performance. By recording proficiency levels, assessment sources and recommended actions, the template supports workforce planning, targeted training initiatives and data-driven employee development decisions during performance reviews.

5. Training Record Template

Performance reviews often examine more than day-to-day results-they also consider how employees build skills and complete professional training over time. Managers review training participation, certifications and development progress to understand whether employees are improving their capabilities and meeting evolving job requirements within the organization.

This training record template helps organizations track employee training programs, course completion and certification timelines. It documents training types, providers, start and completion dates and employee status, allowing managers to monitor development activities, maintain compliance records and identify additional training needs during employee performance reviews.

6. 30-60-90 Day Plan Template

A 30-60-90 day plan outlines the goals, priorities and expectations for an employee’s first three months in a role. By breaking the onboarding period into three structured phases, managers can track progress, evaluate early performance and provide feedback that supports performance reviews, skill development and long-term employee success.

This 30-60-90 day plan template organizes employee onboarding goals into three phases while documenting SMART goals, action plans, deliverables and performance metrics. Managers and employees can track progress, identify resource requirements and measure early performance results during the first ninety days in a role.

7. SMART Goals Template for Word

Setting goals without a clear framework leads to vague objectives that are hard to track and even harder to achieve. A SMART goals template helps managers and employees define goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound, giving performance reviews a concrete foundation for evaluating progress and planning the next development cycle.

This SMART goals template for Word walks managers and employees through each component of the SMART framework, providing a structured worksheet to define and validate every goal. By capturing goals that are realistic and tied to a deadline, teams can use this template to set clear expectations before a review period begins and measure outcomes more objectively when it ends.

8. Training Matrix Template for Excel

Tracking employee certifications, skill levels and training deadlines across a team is difficult without a centralized document. A training matrix template gives managers a complete view of workforce readiness, making it easier to identify gaps, plan development activities and ensure all employees maintain the qualifications required for their roles.

This training matrix template for Excel organizes employees by row and training requirements by column, making it easy to record completion status, renewal dates and skill assessments in one place. HR managers and team leads can use it alongside performance reviews to document learning progress and plan upcoming training that supports both individual goals and organizational compliance.

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

• 15 Goal-Setting Strategies for Individuals and Teams
• 15 Free Goal-Setting and Tracking Templates for Excel and Word
• How to Create SMART Goals (Example Included)
• How to Set CLEAR Goals: CLEAR Goal Examples
• How to Set FAST Goals: FAST Goal Examples
• How to Set a Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG)

If you need a tool to help you manage projects, then signup for our software now at ProjectManager. Our online software helps teams across industries plan, track and oversee projects as they unfold. Sign up for a free 30-day trial today!

The post 8 Free Performance Review Templates for Excel and Word appeared first on ProjectManager.

What Is a Construction Project Charter?

A construction project charter is a formal document that authorizes a construction project to begin. It establishes the project manager’s authority to assign resources and make decisions, and it captures the foundational information the project team needs to proceed: project objectives, scope boundaries, estimated budget and schedule, key stakeholders and the risks that have been identified at the outset.

The charter does not replace a construction project contract or detailed specifications — it precedes them. It is written at the initiation phase, before detailed planning begins, and serves as the reference document that later plans are built from. A project charter is used across industries for the same purpose; in construction, it carries additional weight because scope creep and miscommunication between owner and contractor are among the most common sources of cost overrun and schedule delay.

Construction Project Charter vs. Construction Project Plan

These two documents are often confused, but they serve different phases and audiences.

A construction project charter is a short initiation-phase document — typically one to two pages — that formally authorizes the project and defines it at a high level. It is written before detailed planning begins and is approved by the project sponsor or owner. Its audience includes the sponsor, the project manager and key stakeholders.

A construction project plan is a detailed planning-phase document covering schedule, resource assignments, procurement, quality standards, communication protocols and risk responses. It is built after the charter is approved and is far more comprehensive. The charter answers “are we doing this and why?”; the project plan answers “how exactly will we do it?”

Manage Construction Projects With ProjectManager

ProjectManager is online project management software with Gantt charts, real-time dashboards and resource tracking built for construction project managers. Try it free for 30 days.

Why Use a Construction Project Charter?

Construction projects involve large budgets, long timelines and multiple parties whose interests don’t always align. A project charter creates clarity at the moment when it costs the least — before the project is underway.

• Establishes the project manager’s authority. In construction, authority over resource allocation and decisions is often contested. The charter formally grants the project manager the authority to direct resources and make project decisions, reducing the risk of jurisdictional disputes mid-project.
• Aligns owner and contractor on scope. Scope disputes are the most common source of construction claims. A charter that defines what is and isn’t included — even at a high level — creates a written baseline that both parties have signed off on before detailed scoping begins.
• Surfaces risks before they become problems. The charter is written when the project team has enough information to identify the most significant risks but before commitments have locked in a response. Documenting construction risks at initiation creates a foundation for the risk register that follows in planning.
• Gives stakeholders a reference point. Owners, lenders, inspectors and subcontractors all interact with a construction project at different points. A charter gives each of them a single document that answers the most basic questions — what is this project, who’s in charge, what’s the budget, when does it finish — without requiring access to detailed plans.

Free Construction Project Charter Template

Rather than building a charter from a blank document, start from a structured format. ProjectManager’s free project charter template is ready to fill in — add your project details, scope, budget and stakeholder list.

Download it free and adapt it to your construction project.

How to Create a Construction Project Charter

Follow these steps to build a charter that gives your construction project a solid foundation before detailed planning begins.

1. Define the project objective

Write a single statement that describes what is being built, why it is being built and what success looks like. A good construction project objective is specific enough to be verifiable: not “renovate the facility” but “complete a full interior renovation of the 4th-floor office suite, returning a fully functional workspace by September 30.” The objective anchors every subsequent decision in the project.

2. Define the scope at a high level

Identify what is included in the project and — equally important — what is not. In construction, explicitly stating what is out of scope is as valuable as stating what is in. A commercial renovation charter, for example, might specify that structural work is excluded and all finishes are owner-supplied. A clear project scope statement reduces the chance of additions being treated as inclusions later.

3. Estimate the budget and schedule

Record the approved or estimated budget and the target completion date. These are high-level figures at the charter stage — not the detailed cost breakdown or schedule that comes later in planning — but they establish the constraints the project team is working within. If the budget is an estimate pending full design, note that and record the approval threshold at which a revised charter would be required.

4. Identify stakeholders and assign the project manager

List every party with a meaningful stake in the project’s outcome: the owner, the general contractor, key subcontractors, the lender if applicable, regulatory bodies, and end users. For each stakeholder, note their role and the nature of their involvement. Name the project manager explicitly — the charter is the document that makes their authority official.

5. Document key risks and assumptions

Capture the three to five risks most likely to affect the project at the time the charter is written — permitting delays, ground condition uncertainty, long-lead material procurement — and the assumptions the project is being planned on. Assumptions that turn out to be wrong are one of the most common triggers for scope and budget changes; documenting them creates a record that supports change management later.

6. Get sponsor sign-off

The charter is not effective until it is formally approved by the project sponsor or owner. Signature from the authorizing party transforms the charter from a draft document into an official authorization. Some construction projects require sign-off from multiple parties — owner, lender, lead contractor — in which case the charter is the document that captures all approvals in one place.

What to Include in a Construction Project Charter

A construction project charter is a short document. Every element below should fit on one to two pages; if it is longer, it is likely including detail that belongs in the project plan.

1. Project title and description — The formal name of the project and a brief description of what is being built or renovated.
2. Project objective — A single statement defining the goal of the project and what success looks like.
3. Scope summary — What is included and what is explicitly excluded from the project.
4. Budget — The approved or estimated total project budget, with a note on whether it is fixed or subject to revision after detailed design.
5. Timeline — Target start date, major milestones and target completion date.
6. Project manager — Named individual, with a statement of their authority to direct resources and make project decisions.
7. Stakeholders — Key parties and their roles: owner, contractor, lender, regulatory contacts, end users.
8. Key risks and assumptions — Top risks at time of initiation and the assumptions the project is being planned on.
9. Sponsor approval — Signature(s) from the authorizing party or parties.

Construction Project Charter Example

The following example shows how a general contractor would complete a construction project charter for a commercial tenant improvement project.

Project: Tenant improvement — 22nd floor office suite, 400 Main Street
Owner: Meridian Capital Group
Contractor: Summit Construction Group

Manage Construction Projects With ProjectManager

The charter gets the project authorized. Executing it requires tools that connect the authorization to the actual work — a live schedule, resource tracking and progress visibility that doesn’t require a site visit to access.

Build and Track Construction Schedules on a Gantt Chart

ProjectManager‘s Gantt charts let construction project managers build their full project schedule — phases, tasks, dependencies, milestones — in one interactive view. Assign tasks to subcontractors, link dependencies and set the baseline from the charter’s approved timeline. When scope changes, the Gantt updates immediately so the impact on the completion date is visible before a change order is drafted. Use it alongside a construction Gantt chart to keep every phase of the project on track from permit through punch list.

Related Content

• What Is a Project Charter? (Template & Examples Included)
• Construction Project Management: A Quick Guide
• Project Scope: Definition, How to Write It and Why It Matters
• Construction Risk Management: A Quick Guide
• Construction Gantt Chart: Benefits, Uses and Free Template

The post What Is a Construction Project Charter? (Example & Template Included) appeared first on ProjectManager.