Project Plan Template Word: What to Include

What to include in a project plan template in Word

These sections belong in the document, in this order. Each one answers a question the signer will ask.

Here is a simple test for the finished file. A reader who opens only the Word document should know what will be delivered, when, by whom, for how much, what could stop it and how changes get decided.

• One-page summary: goal, end date, budget, top 3 risks and the decision you need. Many sponsors read only this page, so it has to stand on its own.
• Background and objectives: the problem, the expected outcome and the success criteria.
• Scope: what is included, what is excluded and the assumptions you made.
• Deliverables and milestones: each deliverable with its approval milestone and target date.
• Governance: roles, who decides what, how often the steering group meets and the escalation path.
• Communication: who gets which update, how often and in which channel.
• Budget and risks: the cost by phase, the top risks with an owner and a response, and the contingency.
• Change control: how a change is requested, assessed for impact on time and cost, approved or refused, and logged.
• Signature block: name, role, date and signature for the sponsor, the project manager and the client lead if there is one.
• Appendix: where the live schedule is kept, plus the version history.

Word features that make the plan easier to sign

Word is the right home for this document because of a few built-in features. Most templates never mention them.

• Heading styles: apply Heading 1 and Heading 2 to your sections. The Navigation Pane then lets reviewers jump straight to scope or budget.
• Table of contents: insert one from the References tab, built from those headings, and update it before each new version.
• Track Changes and comments: send the draft with Track Changes on. Every edit the sponsor makes is then visible and can be accepted or rejected.
• Signature line: Insert, then Signature Line, adds a proper signature field with the signer's name and title.
• Version in the header: put "Version 1.0, approved" and the date in the header, so a printed page always shows which version it is.
• Save as PDF: send the signed version as a PDF, so nobody edits the approved plan by accident.

Word, Excel or Google Sheets: which one to choose

You will usually need more than one file. Here is how to decide which job goes where.

Verdict: write the plan in Word and keep the schedule in a sheet. Never sign a spreadsheet. If you need the spreadsheet side, our guide to project roadmap templates in Excel covers the columns and the setup. The one rule that connects the two files: milestone dates in the Word document must match the sheet. If they differ, raise a change request instead of quietly editing either file.

• Word: the document people read and sign. Choose it for objectives, scope, governance, change control and approval. Limit: a schedule kept in a Word table goes out of date fast, because each date change means editing the table by hand.
• Excel: the working schedule, budget lines and risk register. Choose it when finance wants a workbook or the team works offline. Limit: a sponsor faced with dozens of rows rarely finds the decision you need from them.
• Google Sheets: the same working schedule, edited live. Choose it when several people update status at the same time or when the client needs live access. Limit: same as Excel for approval, and a live file is hard to "freeze" as a signed version.

A filled example: client website relaunch in 10 weeks

Here is how the Word plan reads when it is filled in. The case is an agency rebuilding a services company's website.

Summary: replace the current website with a faster site that the client team can edit without a developer. The project runs over 10 weeks, and the decision needed today is approval of the scope and the content deadline.

Success criteria: the new site is live on the client domain, every old page redirects to a new one, and 3 client staff are trained to publish pages.

Out of scope: new brand identity, paid ads and copy for new service lines.

Governance: the client marketing lead approves designs and content. The client director rules on any change to budget or launch date. The agency project manager runs a 30-minute weekly check-in.

Change control: any request outside the scope list is written down, sized for time and cost by the agency within the week, and approved or refused by the client director. Approved changes raise the version number.

Top risks: late client content (response: a fixed content deadline at the end of week 4); redirect gaps (response: a full URL list exported in week 1); approval delays (response: approval dates written into the plan). The buffer sits in the build and test phases.

Signature block: client director, client marketing lead and agency project manager.

• Discovery (weeks 1 to 2): audit the current pages and agree on the sitemap. Milestone: the client approves the sitemap.
• Design (weeks 3 to 4): build the page templates and the visual style. Milestone: the client approves the home and service page designs.
• Build (weeks 5 to 7): develop the templates, then migrate the content and redirects. Milestone: the staging site is complete.
• Test and train (weeks 8 to 9): test forms, redirects and mobile, and train the client staff. Milestone: the client signs the acceptance checklist.
• Launch and close (week 10): switch the domain, monitor and hand over. Milestone: the closure note is signed.

Project plan template for Word, PMI style

If your organization follows the PMI's PMBOK Guide, it will expect two documents. The project charter is short: it authorizes the project and names the project manager. The project management plan explains how the project will be run, usually through subsidiary plans for areas such as scope, schedule, cost, quality, resources, communications, risk and procurement.

For a large, contract-based or regulated project, use one Word heading per subsidiary plan, because auditors and steering groups will look for each one. For a 10-week project, keep the same headings but write 3 to 6 lines under each and point to the schedule for the detail. Also check that the plan says how you will monitor and close the work, not only how you will start it.

The one-page visual view the sponsor reads

Even a well-written Word plan is a long read for a busy sponsor. Senior readers often want the whole project on one page: phases on a timeline, 4 to 6 milestones with dates, the top risks and the decision needed.

In practice, build this view from the same phases and milestones as the Word document, then use it in three places.

• Before the review: send it as a PDF with the draft, so people arrive with questions instead of reading in silence.
• In the signed file: paste it as the first page, or attach it as an appendix.
• After approval: share a link to it with the team at kickoff, so everyone sees the plan the sponsor signed.