What is The Project Management Life Cycle?
A project life cycle is a framework with five steps of planning, and a project life cycle template helps project managers accomplish the projects prosperously. The basic job of a project manager is to understand all the stages of a project comprehensively.
Planning and knowledge of these five steps & project life cycle template will help the project managers to organize and manage the project properly and it proceeds without any troubles.
The five steps include the initiation & planning phase followed by the execution phase the controlling and monitoring phase, and finally the closure phase.
Project Life Cycle Template Excel is a valuable tool used to efficiently manage and organize projects from inception to completion.
This template serves as a comprehensive guide, offering a structured framework that simplifies the entire project management process.
The template typically consists of several well-defined phases, including initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and control, and closure.
Check out Project Initiation Plan Template as a Related Template.
Project Life Cycle Template Consists of the Following Templates
It becomes easy for a project manager to handle the project details when it is broken down into manageable phases. All these stages are goal-oriented and have their own characteristics and result in the production of deliverables.
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Project Initiation and Planning Template
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Project Charter Template
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Project Scope Template
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Project Business Case Template
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Project Proposal Plan Template
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Project Management Tracking Template
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Project Cost Estimation Template
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Project Portfolio Tracking Template
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Work Plan Template
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Project Closure Template
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Project Acceptance Template
- Project Gap Analysis Template
Project Initiation and Planning Template
A project initiation document is very important for the beginning of any project, and a very primary part of the project life cycle template. In the absence of this document, the organization assumes that all the employees know the actual responsibilities, expectations, and milestones as well as the little details of the project.
It acts as initial brainstorming to execute projects. Various initiation templates are available that help in defining the objectives, roles, responsibilities, milestones, and other details for success.
Related: Agile Project Initiation Documentation
Project managers outline the project’s objectives, scope, and key stakeholders. This sets the foundation for the entire project and ensures everyone involved is on the same page.
The planning phase focuses on breaking down the project into smaller tasks, estimating resources, defining timelines, and creating a detailed project schedule.
Project managers can allocate responsibilities and monitor progress effectively using this well-organized layout.
Project Charter Template
A project charter document helps in organizing and documenting the requirements and expected results of a project. This resource provides a foundation to take project decisions and makes sure that they align with the goals of an organization.
Various customizable templates are available that provide a real-time work execution platform that results in better planning, and management and also provides reports about project progress.
Project Scope Template
The project scope is a comprehensive outline that includes resources, tasks, timelines as well as deliverables of the project. The project is quite extensive and also highlights the key,
- Stakeholders
- Techniques
- Risks
- Assumptions about the project
Whether you are dealing with a small project or a large one, you can use a simple project scope template to make your work easier and more manageable.
The template includes details of the project at the top for the signatures of the stakeholders and the approval section at the bottom.
Project Business Case Template
A business case is created during the beginning of the project and highlights why, how, what, and how the project or business is going to be executed. When starting a new project, the first things you need to know are the advantages of the proposed business change and the way to communicate these advantages to the business.
It is sometimes difficult to quantify the merits and demerits of a project. A project business case template provides a weighing method to create a score for all the proposed options and enables you to score risks.
Project Proposal Plan Template
The project proposal template helps the project managers in saving their time during the busy project phases. This template contains enough information about the project and you can create a new proposed plan for every new project.
project life cycle template splits the proposal into distinct delineated sections that provide an arranged layout. It is very easy to use and read. It can be helpful while dealing with different types of proposals like school proposals. These templates can be edited according to the need.
Project Management Tracking Template
A project manager can use this multiple-project tracking template to track any kind of project. It can also be used to track the efficiency of employees and the tasks assigned to them.
With the help of a project life cycle template, you can complete your project successfully within the estimated time and resources you have planned in the planning phase because it can tell you where you are going off track and you can control the situation before it creates problems.
Project Cost Tracking Template
By using this template, you can monitor and manage the expenses of the project. Describe the project and tasks within it and then assign these tasks to employees also describe the equipment and resources used.
Manage and monitor the cost of all these factors by using this template. It helps to avoid cost overruns. You can also track planned versus actual costs.
Project Portfolio Tracking Template
Multiple projects can be tracked with a project portfolio template. It displays color-coded options that highlight the status of the project, itemized costs, priority, duration, hours, and timeline along with a blank template where you can enter data.
This tracker template splits the project into its tasks or phases with assigned deliverables, owners, and percent complete.
It has a timeline that provides a schedule on a weekly basis that shows the start date. You can also remove or add columns to design a customized template based on information about the project you desire to track.
Work Plan Template
Work plans are, often shown as Gantt charts, displaying all the activities involved in a project, when all the tasks and activities will be done, and to whom these tasks are assigned.
Normally, a work plan is submitted as a part of a proposal. When your project is started, you can use a work plan like a monitoring tool to track whether the project is on the right track.
Project Closure Template
It is usually a single-page document that provides portions for the summary of the project, responsibilities, project schedule, budget, deliverables, and lessons learned.
The project closure document has individual sections for predicted outcomes and actual outcomes to evaluate the success of the elements of the project. It also includes room for recommendations and acceptance signatures at the end of the template.
Project Acceptance Template
A project acceptance is a document that signifies the written, formal acceptance of the entire project and is a major part of the project life cycle template. It makes sure that all the requirements of the project have been fulfilled and all the deliverables are accomplished.
In the organizations where formal acceptance processes are followed, each phase becomes acceptance prior to the final acceptance report being signed. By the time all phases are accepted, typically project acceptance is somehow more than a formality.
Excel template facilitates the documentation of lessons learned and project outcomes. This information is valuable for future projects and contributes to continuous improvement in project management practices.