The Two Essential IT Project Documents
You can probably run small software projects with a simple task list, but anything that is going to take a substantial amount of time and money needs clear descriptions of what is intended, who is going to do it, and how it’s going to get done. These two documents are the key reference points for your internal planning and external team.
project planning document
You will need to describe what the project is for, who is involved, deliverables and a few other basic pieces of information. Every project has these, even if they aren’t written down. I pulled these together into a single document, which has all the core requirements for describing a project.
This is different from Project Management Software, such as Microsoft Project or Jira, which are focused on scheduling the tasks and people. The Management Plan describes the project, while the Project Management Software keeps track of the individual tasks, resources and dates.
Statement Of Work
The agreement between a customer and an outside firm can be very simple. This sample Statement Of Work (SOW) is a basic template where you can describe the work to be done, the resources that need to be supplied, the time frame and the payment arrangements. There are a few other clauses, such as how any resulting software is owned, but the idea is to provide an document that is easy for the client and the vendor to agree on. This template can be used as a basic contract, or an addendum that specifies what is going to be done.
Since vendor contracts are often difficult to change, a neutral Statement Of Work is a good way to set out the expectations. It contains the functional requirements and the legal terms and conditions for a consulting engagement. With minor changes it can be used for a software implementation, hardware delivery, or other kinds of work. This SOW is not intended to cover all the legal details that the lawyers love.
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