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10 Project Kickoff Templates for Meetings in Docs & PPT

Praburam Srinivasan

Growth Marketing Manager

April 3, 2024

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There are times in life and business when making a decision without a second thought is the best course of action. Still, when it comes to projects, starting with a strong foundation often leads to better outcomes. Project kickoff meetings with other project-related discussions offer significant advantages to your team as they establish the framework for the project timeline and goals.

Stay with us as we examine the crucial elements of the top 10 project kickoff templates and show you how to use their potential. These templates will come in handy for laying the bedrock for success throughout different project phases. 🚀

What is a Project Kickoff Template?

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A project kickoff template provides project managers and their teams a structured framework that fosters alignment and clarity during and after a project launch. By incorporating several important elements, this tool plays a pivotal role in supporting seamless processes, including:

• Defining expectations : It establishes a clear understanding of project goals , scope, and success criteria from the get-go, preventing misunderstandings and misalignments down the road
• Outlining crucial steps : Within the template, a well-structured roadmap delineates the sequential steps and phases of the project. It offers a strategic perspective, ensuring that tasks are organized logically and in alignment with the project’s overarching vision
• Identifying task owners : The template simplifies the assignment of specific tasks to respective team members, ensuring that ownership is clearly established

A good project kickoff template should encapsulate essential information, establish clear expectations, and foster effective communication among team members. Here are key features to look for:

• Clear objectives and scope : Outlining the project’s objectives and parameters allows team members to share a common understanding
• Roles and responsibilities : Determining clear roles and responsibilities before the project begins ensures accountability and eliminates confusion regarding who is in charge of each task
• Project timeline : Including significant checkpoints and due dates offers a visual map that helps the team monitor project development and adhere to the schedule
• Communication plan : Setting steady communication channels for prompt updates, involving all stakeholders promotes smooth information flow and collaboration
• Risk assessment and mitigation : Identifying potential risks and mitigation strategies prepares the team for challenges and enables proactive problem-solving

10 Project Kickoff Templates to Use in 2024

You are prepared to begin a new project, and now is the time to meet with your team to discuss how to carry it out effectively. All participants should leave the project kickoff meeting with a clear understanding of the project’s scope and the deliverables required for its successful completion. So, you need a project kickoff template to ensure the initial session is productive.

With so many options on the market, how do you choose the right one? Check out our recommendations for the best templates to launch your project successfully! 🔝

Any project’s success depends on the success of the kickoff meeting. It provides a framework for setting expectations, discussing roles, assigning tasks, and understanding project schedules. The importance of these meetings highlights the need for effective tools to prepare for the session. ClickUp’s Project Kickoff Template does exactly that by speeding up the planning process. 

This template helps you organize and manage important project meetings . It includes custom statuses, fields, and views for better tracking. With features like comment reactions, nested subtasks, and multiple assignees, you’ll have more flexibility and control over how you manage your project meetings.

With the help of this template, you can:

• Precisely convey project objectives 
• Define attainable goals and timelines
• Maintain methodical planning and alignment throughout the project’s lifecycle ♻️

By using this template, you can easily assign roles and responsibilities to team members and clearly state the project’s objectives and goals to foster a shared vision. You can then carefully document important decisions and action items , keeping a methodically organized and forward-moving project direction. This comprehensive integration of crucial elements opens a clear path to success, enhancing the efficacy of your project management initiatives.

Crafting an adept project implementation plan helps define the project scope, establish precise timelines, outline deliverables, and more. ClickUp’s Project Implementation Plan Template makes it easier to monitor a project’s development with Custom Statuses , Custom Fields , Custom Views , and Project Management . 

Using this template, you can seamlessly devise a comprehensive scheme that spans from project initiation to its culmination. Visualizing essential tasks, deadlines, and interdependencies becomes effortless within this singular, organized hub. The transparency enables real-time monitoring of progress and resource adaptation for a seamless execution process. ⏳

In order to guarantee the project’s timely completion, this template assists in supervising essential elements like resource allocation, budget planning, and timeline coordination. Consider these six steps to create a strong project implementation plan with this ClickUp template :

• Collaborate on creating a shared Doc in ClickUp to ensure the team’s understanding of project goals
• Use the Gantt Chart feature to visually outline the project’s timeline and track progress
• Assign tasks using ClickUp to ensure team members understand their responsibilities
• Leverage ClickUp’s custom fields to input and oversee budget details and expenditures
• Strategize against potential risks and devise preparatory measures using Board View
• Facilitate progress check-ins and stay within the timeline by configuring recurring tasks in ClickUp

It can be difficult to navigate the complexities of project planning, and the solution lies in a seamlessly adaptable template that streamlines the process, fostering efficiency and transparency. ClickUp’s Example Project Plan Template combines all essential planning elements in a single platform . 

You can create detailed plans with intuitive visual aids that improve overall comprehension, effectively arrange tasks, encourage smooth communication across multifaceted teams, and track progress against predetermined objectives, ensuring the project gets completed on schedule.

With this template, creating a clear timetable becomes a breeze. You can map out tasks and important milestones with ease, ensuring your project stays on track. The template also helps you identify task relationships so you can plan more effectively and avoid disruptions . Once you share this detailed plan with your team, it brings everyone on the same page, promoting agreement and better understanding among team members. 👥

Whether a small project or a big venture, ClickUp’s High-Level Project Plan Template makes planning and managing any enterprise easier, regardless of its scope or complexity.

It lets you:

• Create a big-picture view of your project
• Organize tasks and deadlines for each project phase
• Set clear goals for your team at every stage 🎯

Using this template entails fantastic perks: 

• You’ll get a clear view of your project’s progress
• It helps you plan ahead with a straightforward timeline
• Everyone works better together because the responsibilities and assignments are visible to all team members
• You can set achievable goals that keep your team motivated and on track
• Keeping track of project progress and indicating task statuses like Deployed , In Progress , and To Do 
• You can use five custom characteristics, including Copy Stage , Approver , Project Team , Completion , and Design Stage, to preserve important project information and see progress
• Five distinct views in various ClickUp configurations, such as the Deliverables List , Copywriter Board , Graphic Designer Board , Timeline , and Getting Started Guide , make all the information accessible and arranged

Project templates are invaluable for saving time and resources during planning . They provide a structured foundation, ensuring all vital steps are incorporated into the plan and fostering clear communication among team members and stakeholders. 

This approach empowers teams to focus on the core project intricacies. ClickUp Planning a Project Template is your ally in streamlining project management . It guides you through each project stage, enabling you to grasp the project core, tailor plans to your needs, organize tasks effectively, and align team members for seamless execution.

Let’s see how you can make the most of this template:

• Use the Project Schedule View to plan when tasks should be done
• Assign tasks in the Team Members View and track progress
• Visualize the progress with the Status Board View
• Stay organized using the Task List View for tracking
• Access the Getting Started Guide View for help
• Sort tasks into statuses ( Complete, Stuck, To Do, In Progress ) for monitoring
• Keep stakeholders updated by changing statuses as tasks move forward
• Monitor and analyze tasks for maximum productivity 🔍

Meetings hold the potential to boost collaboration and productivity, yet without a clear plan, they can become a waste of time. ClickUp’s Meeting Agenda Template steps in as your meeting ally, ensuring that every gathering is purposeful and efficient. This template helps you:

• Outline meeting topics, objectives, and goals
• Break down tasks and action items for clarity
• Assign responsibilities to team members

The beauty of it lies in its versatility. It’s suitable for any type of meeting or event.

ClickUp’s Meeting Agenda Template ensures that every discussion topic is given proper attention, leaving no subject overlooked. It provides participants with a thorough overview of the meeting’s key points , assisting in effective preparation. The meeting also gets a sense of structure and order, which significantly increases its overall effectiveness.

Most importantly, an agenda template promotes active participation from all attendees , leading to more interesting and fruitful discussions. ✨

The main objective of project, resource, and operations managers is to ensure that projects follow schedules and produce successful results. No matter how carefully a project is planned, timely completion with positive results can be challenging.

ClickUp’s Project Deliverables Template defines project phases and milestones comprehensively to offer a clear picture of each team member’s role and set attainable deadlines. Each deliverable, whether a task, product, or service, gets its timeline, associated responsibilities, and anticipated outcomes. The template extends its value to encompass budget allocation , essential milestones, and a contingency strategy should challenges arise.

Having these components at your disposal empowers you to ensure accountability in your team, enabling meeting deadlines and achieving successful outcomes.

The Project Deliverables Template elevates project management by aligning expectations, managing resources, and steering projects in the right direction . 🏆

When it comes to efficient project management, having a well-crafted Statement of Work (SOW) is a game-changer. The SOW outlines project goals, timelines, and deliverables, creating a shared understanding between your company and clients or contractors. 

ClickUp’s Statement of Work Template helps you effortlessly create a comprehensive SOW , define project specifics with precision, and keep all stakeholders aligned throughout the project journey.

The project’s scope and each participant’s role are clearly laid out, setting realistic expectations. It also determines a clear timeline regarding the completion, which helps with planning. By making responsibilities clear from the beginning, you can avoid misunderstandings among team members. Most importantly, it helps lower the chances of things going off track or not getting done right, which makes the whole project more likely to succeed.

You can take advantage of this template by:

• Creating tasks and assigning them to team members
• Using Goals to gauge and monitor progress toward objectives
• Employing the Gantt Chart to craft deliverable timelines, ensuring punctual completion
• Leveraging Milestones for tracking progress and setting payment deadlines 🚩

With ClickUp’s Statement of Work Template, you can ensure projects are completed on time, within budget, and with the desired outcomes.

The comprehensive PowerPoint Project Kickoff Meeting Agenda Template by SlideTeam is a robust collection of 23 slides designed to facilitate the initiation of new projects . The deck encompasses vital elements such as project description and scope, core team details, project management team composition, rapid communication plan (RACI), project management cycle, work breakdown structure, project cost estimate, Gantt chart , communication plan, and tracking plan, among others.

This template empowers users to effortlessly build a presentation that covers all aspects of launching a new project. Its versatile nature allows easy customization of every element, ensuring presentations can be customized quickly to specific project requirements.

The template expands its usefulness to project agenda presentations , making it easier to communicate the project core, methodology, and organizational structure. It helps in outlining milestones, the project’s history, its business requirements, and its importance to stakeholders and the company. 💼

Essentially, this template acts as a complete toolkit for project managers and teams , enabling them to clearly communicate project details, involve stakeholders, and prepare for productive meetings. 

If you want to streamline your corporate planning efforts, the PowerPoint Corporate Project Kickoff Template by SlideTeam can help you with it. This presentation template comes with two pre-designed slides that seamlessly integrate into any presentation format, allowing you to make the most of your valuable time. The pre-made slides are a simple way to organize the agenda for your project kickoff meeting.

With this template, you can effortlessly polish your presentation, engage your audience, and ensure a successful corporate planning kickoff. This presentation covers all key components of a project kickoff meeting agenda designed for corporate planning.

It seamlessly opens in PowerPoint , offering you the flexibility to tailor it to your exact requirements. Easily eliminate any unnecessary text and replace it with your desired content. Modify colors and adjust layouts in a few clicks. 🙌

Your Project Kickoff Toolkit for Seamless Starts

Planning complex projects requires thorough preparation and close collaboration with your team members and clients. These templates provide the complete toolkit for team leaders organizing a project launch or kickoff meeting. By leveraging these tools, you can set clear objectives, boost effective teamwork, and reach positive results, regardless of your project’s scope and demands. 💫

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Project Kickoff Meeting: A Comprehensive Guide for Project Managers

• Project Management

A project kickoff meeting is a critical event in the lifecycle of any project, serving as the formal starting point where the project team, stakeholders, and sponsors align on project objectives, scope, roles, responsibilities, and processes. This meeting sets the tone for the entire project, ensuring everyone involved has a shared understanding of the project’s goals and how it will be executed. In this article, we’ll explore the key elements of a successful project kickoff meeting, drawing insights from a detailed discussion in Episode 38 of the PMP Exam Prep Power Hour and a sample presentation used for educational purposes.

What is a Project Kickoff Meeting?

A project kickoff meeting is the first official meeting between the project team and the key stakeholders, where the project manager introduces the project, clarifies objectives, discusses the project plan, and establishes a foundation for communication and collaboration. The primary purpose of this meeting is to ensure that all parties are aligned on the project’s vision, goals, and approach, and to set expectations for the project’s progress.

Importance of the Kickoff Meeting

The project kickoff meeting is essential for several reasons:

• Alignment on Objectives: It ensures that all stakeholders and team members have a clear understanding of the project’s goals and what is expected to be delivered.
• Establishing Roles and Responsibilities: It clarifies who is responsible for what, preventing confusion and overlap in responsibilities.
• Building Relationships: It provides an opportunity for team members and stakeholders to meet and begin building relationships, which is critical for effective collaboration.
• Setting Expectations: It sets the tone for the project’s communication, timelines, and processes, establishing a shared understanding of how the project will be managed.

When to Conduct a Kickoff Meeting?

The timing of the kickoff meeting can vary depending on the project’s complexity and duration. Generally, it is recommended to hold the kickoff meeting within the first week of the project. For shorter projects, the kickoff meeting might be scheduled within the first few days. For longer or more complex projects, it might be reasonable to allow up to two weeks to gather the necessary information and stakeholders.

Preparing for the Kickoff Meeting

As the project manager, you are responsible for planning and conducting the kickoff meeting. Preparation is key to a successful meeting. Here are the steps you should follow:

• Stakeholder Identification: Identify who should attend the meeting. This includes key stakeholders, project sponsors, team members, and any external parties who have a significant role in the project.
• Agenda Creation: Develop a detailed agenda that covers all critical topics, such as project overview, objectives, scope, roles, communication plan, risks, and next steps.
• Document Review: Review all relevant documents, including the project charter, contracts, and any preliminary project plans. This will help you understand the project’s context and prepare for potential questions.
• Presentation Preparation: Create a presentation that clearly outlines the project’s key aspects. This should include slides on the project’s vision, objectives, scope, timeline, roles, communication plan, risks, and action items.
• Coordination: Ensure that all necessary logistics are handled, including scheduling the meeting, booking a room or virtual meeting space, and sending out invitations.

Conducting the Kickoff Meeting

During the kickoff meeting, follow the agenda to ensure that all critical topics are covered. Here’s a breakdown of the main sections of a typical project kickoff meeting:

• Welcome and Introductions: Start with a brief introduction, welcoming the participants and introducing key team members and stakeholders. This sets a friendly and collaborative tone for the meeting.
• Project Overview: Provide a high-level overview of the project, including the project’s vision and objectives. Explain why the project is important and what it aims to achieve.
• Scope and High-Level Plan: Discuss the project’s scope, including what is in scope and what is out of scope. Present the high-level project plan, including major milestones and deliverables.
• Roles and Responsibilities: Clarify the roles and responsibilities of each team member and stakeholder. Use a RACI matrix (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) to clearly define who is responsible for each aspect of the project.
• Communication Plan: Outline the communication plan, including how often meetings will occur, what reports will be distributed, and how stakeholders will be kept informed.
• Risk Management: Identify potential risks and discuss how they will be managed. This includes any assumptions that have been made and what the impact would be if those assumptions prove to be incorrect.
• Quality and Change Control: Discuss the quality standards the project must meet and the process for managing changes to the project scope or objectives.
• Action Plan: Present an immediate action plan, detailing the first steps the team will take to move the project forward.
• Q&A and Closing: Open the floor to questions from participants to clarify any uncertainties. Finally, summarize the key points discussed and reiterate the importance of alignment and collaboration.

Sample Kickoff Meeting Presentation

To aid in understanding, a sample kickoff meeting presentation has been provided. This sample is designed to guide project managers through creating effective kickoff meeting slides. The presentation covers all the critical elements discussed above and is adaptable to various project types and organizational templates.

Download the Sample Presentation: Sample Project Kick-Off Meeting Presentation (PPT/PDF)

This template can be customized to fit the specific needs of your project and organization. It provides a solid foundation for ensuring that your project starts on the right foot.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Do we need to conduct a kickoff meeting in adaptive or hybrid life cycles?

Yes, a kickoff meeting is essential even in adaptive or hybrid life cycles. While these approaches may involve more iterative planning and continuous refinement, the kickoff meeting ensures that all stakeholders and team members are aligned on the high-level goals and framework for the project. It sets a common understanding before diving into detailed discussions like user stories or backlog refinement.

Does the client need to attend the kickoff meeting?

It depends on the project’s nature and the client’s role. In some cases, the client’s presence is crucial for setting high-level goals and expectations. This is particularly beneficial for fostering a shared understanding and establishing a strong working relationship. However, there may be scenarios where the kickoff meeting is conducted internally first, with a separate session involving the client later.

Is a kickoff meeting mandatory for every project?

While a kickoff meeting is highly recommended, especially in projects with new teams, complex scopes, or multiple stakeholders, there can be exceptions. For example, if the project is a continuation of previous work with the same team, a formal kickoff might not be necessary. However, it’s crucial to ensure that all parties have a shared understanding of the project’s goals, whether through a formal meeting or another communication method.

The project kickoff meeting is a foundational event that significantly influences the success of a project. By ensuring that all stakeholders and team members are aligned on the project’s goals, scope, and approach, the kickoff meeting helps prevent misunderstandings and sets the stage for effective project execution. With thorough preparation and clear communication, the project manager can use the kickoff meeting to build momentum and confidence in the project’s success.

Use the insights and resources provided in this article to conduct a successful project kickoff meeting and set your project on the path to success. Join our PMP program to accelerate your exam preparation and elevate your project management skills, ensuring you are fully equipped to succeed in your certification journey and beyond.

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Guide to Project Kickoff Meeting [free presentation slides]

Editorial Team

The project life cycle involves several meetings with stakeholders and different parties. The main agendas revolve around issues related to the project, such as the project status, plans, deliverables, and possible changes.

All these meetings have their significance. However, one stands out-the kickoff meeting. In this article, we will look at what project kickoff meetings are, their purposes, when they take place, and any other information you may want to know.

What is a Project Kickoff Meeting?

The project kickoff meeting is the first meeting held by the project stakeholders when flagging a new project or unveiling a new phase. It is usually attended by high-level stakeholders such as the management, project sponsor, project manager, and a few team members.

The inclusion of the team members is to encourage the voicing of opinions. Project kickoff meetings can also occur within the project team and usually involves the project manager and the team members. When conducted between the project team, its primary essence is to allow the project managers to outline the common goals and encourage team building.

A kickoff meeting can act as a tool for motivating the team members to meet the project objectives . It prepares the team members and the client teams on expectations, communication, and project collaboration.

When Does a Project Kickoff Meeting Take Place?

The kickoff meeting takes place at different times in large and small projects. It usually occurs immediately after the initiation phase and is generally attended by all the project team members.

This is usually an opportunity for the team members to get to know each other since they will be meeting for the first time. Generally, smaller projects require only one kickoff meeting. Larger projects have a different approach.

Kickoff meetings for larger projects are normally conducted when the planning is complete and the project is on the verge of execution. Remember that most of these projects have several phases, which may call for kickoff meetings at the beginning of every stage.

Other situations also call for virtual kickoff meetings. If the project is spread across a large geographical area, it would be advisable for the team members to communicate over the internet to save time and money.

What is the Purpose of a Kickoff Meeting?

Every project kickoff meeting must have a purpose. This may differ from meeting to meeting depending on the unique needs of the given project and the project stakeholders. However, project meetings also have an overarching purpose: to set the pace for the project and lay down the framework.

The kickoff meeting plays a vital role in the project management lifecycle and the project initiation process. It gets the project off the ground and officially opens up the project work. The kickoff meeting also acts as a jumping off point for the project team and client team.

Other purposes include:

• Introducing Team Members

Most project team members will be meeting for the first time during the project kickoff meeting. It serves as an opportunity for the stakeholders and team members to interact and know about one another.

• It allows agreeing to work together efficiently.

The best way of agreeing on how to work on a project is through a joint session. Project kickoff meetings bring together project team members and other stakeholders, allowing them to decide how they will work together to realize given project objectives.

Such agreements ensure that once the project kicks off, it will move on efficiently, and any other hiccup can be solved. 

• Creating a mutual understanding

Project kickoff meetings help create a mutual understanding of what a successful project resembles, giving the project team members an idea of what to work for. Every project has its parameters of measuring success, which will be laid down during the meeting.

This meeting can also be used to create a shared understanding of the project background so that the stakeholders and team members deeply understand whatever they are working on. Knowing the project background can also act as a motivating factor.

It offers a chance to get the team, key stakeholders, and the project sponsors on the same page to efficiently execute the projects. It also serves as an opportunity for the agency tasked with delivering the project to get crucial information for the project’s success.

If there is a client involved, the project kickoff meeting can be a chance to instill confidence in the client and reassure them that they have made the best decision in choosing you and your project team. It works for different parties.

Closely related to the purpose of the project kickoff meeting are the objectives. Let’s take a look at these:

Project Kickoff Meeting Objectives

The objectives of the project kickoff meeting are dependent on the project. However, some cut across different projects. Here are some of the specific items that should be done in the project kickoff meeting:

• Agreeing on the project goals and purpose.

The project team members and stakeholders should have a sit-down and agree on the project’s goals and purposes. These should be clearly outlined to help all the parties involved understand what they are working towards.

• Setting groundwork for communication

During the meeting, the leader or project chairman should set the tone for clear communication and teamwork for the entire project duration. This will help in the efficient execution of the project objectives, allowing the team to meet the set timetable.

• Establishing roles and responsibilities

On normal occasions, the project kickoff meeting brings together the project team members for the first time. Therefore, no one should leave the conference without knowing the team’s roles and responsibilities. Everyone should know what is expected of him/ her during the onset of the project.

• Setting deadlines and deliverables

The meeting should be used to set the project timeline, deliverables, and the status update and frequency. Remember, these are things that must be decided on before the real work begins, and there is no better time to do that than during the project kickoff.

 However, it is worth noting that all these may shift during the progression of the project. Therefore, the kickoff meeting should help come up with a baseline for forward propulsion. During the meeting, parties should also discuss the detailed aspects of the project.

Some of the issues to cover include the methodology and the scope of the project. A successful meeting should set the pace and tone for the rest of the project. Therefore, leaders and organizers should ensure that it is done right since it can determine a given project’s success.

How to Conduct a Successful Project Kickoff Meeting

Now that you know the importance of the project kickoff meeting, you should always strive to get it right if you are the project manager or the organizer. The proceedings can either ensure that a given project will be successful or not.

On many occasions, large projects have both internal and external kickoff meetings. The former involves the team members and the management, with its main aim being creating an understanding of the project. The team members are prepared for meeting the client and prevented from making unnecessary inquiries.

The external kickoff meeting takes place once the internal one is done. Here, one gets to understand what is expected in a given project, clear any doubts they may be holding on to, and understand the project’s process.

These are the steps you can follow to conduct a successful kickoff meeting:

• Set the agenda

This is the first thing to consider when organizing such a meeting. The issues to be discussed should be decided on beforehand. While setting the agenda, be sure to include an introductory session. You should introduce the project, its objectives, milestones, assumptions, challenges, and have a question-answer session at the end of the presentation.

Also, ensure that you use presentations to explain your reasoning. The agenda should be sent to the attendees before the meeting is conducted for preparation and active contribution.

• Conducting the meeting

When conducting the meeting, you need to introduce yourself and ask the other attendees to do the same. Once everyone has talked, tender the agenda, explain the meeting objectives, and discuss what needs to be addressed in the meeting.

After that, you can explain the project, its objectives, a brief of the project, and every team member’s roles and responsibilities . You should also discuss the communication and reporting system to be used for the entire project duration. This can cover how to communicate with the stakeholders. Also, set the agenda to be discussed with the client and have a Q& A session.

While conducting the meeting, ensure that you explain the project charter and what it contains. Make sure that you set the expectations such as the leave procedures, work assignments, and even rotation.

Remember to discuss the critical stakeholders, their needs, and roles in the execution of the project. While on this, explain the communication and reporting system. You can specify the communication frequency and the report formats.

The final topic to cover during the meeting is the project. Explain the project to the attendees, its business needs, and why the client and the company need it. It would help if you invited the client when covering this part to make it more personal. However, make sure that the client knows in advance to prevent awkward moments.

You can also discuss any critical risks and challenges that the project may face once it is on track and how to overcome them.

• Close the meeting

A successful meeting does not end at the presentation part. The final piece, which is closing the meeting, should be done in a particular way. End the court meeting with a question-and-answer session and encourage the attendees to clear any doubt.

Also, thank the participants for coming and encourage them to reach out if they need any clarification on the project. Remember that you should prepare the meeting minutes when the meeting ends and send them to the participants and other members who could not attend the meeting.

Project Kickoff Meeting Agenda

One of the main reasons why most project kickoff meetings do not yield any success is that the organizers fail to get the agenda right. To help you come up with good agendas for your session, we have included a few notes for you:

• Introductions – The agenda should give each member time to introduce themselves and outline their role in the project. Also, remember to include a quick icebreaker to get everyone talking.
• Project Background : The agenda should include time for discussing how the project sits with the client’s high-level business strategy. This can also include any other relevant project.
• Briefing : This should be the third thing on your agenda. It should cover the project details, purpose, goals, and the problem that the project aims to address.
• Project success : This agenda deals with what makes a successful project, success measurements, key metrics, and other business parameters.
• Project management : This agenda deals with project management topics such as the plan, timelines, tasks and deliverables, methodology, risks, dependencies, reporting, and other information.
• Any other business : The AOB in the agenda deals with any different relevant topic that can be discussed. It would be best to allow the client’s team to talk about anything that they need to cover in the meeting.
• Next steps :  One of the agendas should be discussing the next steps and action items for the different teams and stakeholders.

The points to be discussed in the meeting should be clear enough and communicated before to save time and ensure project efficiency. The agenda should also be broken down to enhance easier understanding. Attendees should not ask for clarifications of the agenda.

Project Kickoff Meetings Best Practices

Here are some of the practices that will ensure that your project kickoff meeting is successful:

• Sticking to your agenda

An agenda is the most critical tool to keeping any meeting on track. It is more of a creative brief for creative projects. Therefore, to lead a successful discussion, ensure that you develop an agenda and stick to it.

The meeting serves as an opportunity to bring everyone together and on the same page about the project. It can be quite tempting to deviate and focus on trivial issues, which may eat into the meeting time, throwing everything off track.

Therefore, ensure that you stay high-level and ignore the trivial issues. The participants or project manager should stick to the meeting’s main goals, which are the what, why, how, and who. The ‘why’ is usually essential as it offers background information allowing everyone to understand why the project matters to the company at large.

• Define roles and responsibilities

One should explain how all the attendees fit into the project and what is expected from them to help everyone understand whatever they are working on. To ace, this, start by introducing everyone in the project and explain their contribution.

You can also tie the responsibilities to the project deliverables. Defining roles and responsibilities lets teams know who to approach whenever there is a problem, saving time for the project’s efficient execution.

• Ensure that you offer time for questions

The project kickoff meeting should be geared towards enhancing the understanding of the project. Attendees should, therefore, be allowed to seek clarifications on different aspects. The ultimate goal is to get everyone on the same page.

Therefore, project managers should take this time to clear any confusion or answer issues that need clarifications. However, the Q & A session must come at the end. Also, remember to encourage people not to ask questions that can be quickly addressed outside the group meeting to save time.

The questions asked should offer clarity for everyone in attendance. These can range from project goals, processes, and timelines.

• End the meeting with action items

The best way to have a productive meeting is to end it with clear action items. Everyone should leave the room with a clear idea of the next steps. Always strive to complete your session by pointing out given action items for every team and person in the project.

All the participants should come out of the meeting knowing exactly what to do and how to go about the next steps.

• Make a follow-up

Always make sure that you follow up with an email. It is understandable to expect people to take notes during the meeting, but the truth is, not everyone will. Therefore, as the project manager or organizer, you should ensure that you follow up with an email summarizing the proceedings and the necessary action items.

However, this does not mean that you should include all the nitty-gritty. Just cover the main things you feel the participants should have at the back of their minds. Making a follow-up will also give the participants a guide to refer to whenever the need arises.

A project kickoff is not a waste of time. It can ensure project success if done right. It offers a chance for parties to align their expectations and goals and lay down the framework for the project. Ensure that you implement the tips discussed in our article for a successful project kickoff meeting.  

Click  here  to download Project Kick-Off Meeting Presentation Slides Template.

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Project Kickoff Presentation

Number of slides: 10

About to start a new project with your team? Get ready for the Project Kickoff meeting! This is, in fact, the most important stage of the entire project process as your team and the client will get together to review how the project is going to be implemented, double-check base elements, and guidelines, and share key information. The Project Kickoff Meeting Presentation comes with a Project Review Slide, Project Goals Slide, and a Project Monthly Timeline Slide to have your team and the client on the same page before starting the project.

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Free Kick off Meeting Presentation Template

Project kick-off review ppt slide.

Present a clear overview of your business project plan. Start talking about the client to put the project in context. Then, show key ideas related to the execution of the project—for example, the primary goal, main resources, deadline, etc. You can also showcase the expected project development in bar charts.  

Project Meeting Goals Slide

Goals show your team what success looks like and what you are trying to accomplish with the project. Your objectives must reflect your client’s needs and expectations. This is also an excellent opportunity to assure your understanding of the project and get any additional key information from your client. 

Project Kickoff Timeline Slide

When we talk about projects, timing is everything! For that reason, you will find a project PowerPoint timeline divided by months in a Gantt chart format to display the different stages of the project and when they will be executed. Having everything laid out in a corporate, clear monthly timeline will be a huge plus for your presentation.

Effective Project management

Project Kickoff meetings are a two-way communication. Client gets details about how the project will be executed and you obtain any key information you need from them. This is the time!

Project Team PowerPoint Slide

A Project Kickoff meeting is also a great opportunity to introduce the team to the client. This corporate PowerPoint Template comes with a team slide to showcase every member and their roles.

A complete Project Kickoff Meeting Presentation

Other useful elements for your Project Kickoff Presentation are a zig zag timeline, world map, donut chart, and clustered column charts which you’ll find in this template.

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Project Kickoff Meeting: How to Write a Kickoff Meeting Agenda

Project managers put a lot of time and effort into researching the viability of their project. But all that work is pointless if they don’t communicate the purpose of the project to their team and clients. That’s why a kickoff meeting is so important.

A kickoff meeting puts everyone on the same page. The team and client know the mission statement, the vision statement and the project plan . It’s all part of the meeting agenda and makes sure the project team starts on the right foot.

What Is a Project Kickoff Meeting?

The project kickoff meeting communicates the project goals and objectives to ensure the project team and client are clear on what they should be doing in the project.

This activity is part of the project initiation phase. A kickoff meeting is usually led by the project manager. Often, there is an internal kickoff meeting with just the project team, with a later, external kickoff meeting that includes the project client, project sponsor or stakeholder.

In the meeting, the project manager explains the project scope, background information and project timeline to the team. A kickoff meeting should set the right tone for the project as it moves into the execution, monitoring and controlling phases. A well-run kickoff meeting could lead to a successful project completion.

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Project Kickoff Template

Use this free Project Kickoff Template for Word to manage your projects better.

What Is the Purpose of a Kickoff Meeting?

A kickoff meeting is primarily used to get the project team on the same page. In this project meeting, project managers explain common goals to keep in mind as the team executes their tasks. It sets up project success.

The kickoff meeting also lets the project manager introduce the project team. Everyone must know who they’re working with and what their roles and responsibilities are. This avoids conflicts later in the project that can delay work and threaten the project timeline.

The team can ask the project manager questions until they have a clear understanding of what’s expected from them before the project starts . Because this meeting occurs in person, and not over email or shared documents, you reduce the chance of miscommunication. This helps to avoid scope creep down the line.

A lot of information was shared during the kickoff meeting, including what project management software the team would be using. ProjectManager is an online project management tool with unlimited file storage to keep documents in a centralized hub that is easily accessible by the team. They can use multiple project views to attach relevant documents to their tasks to keep them on track. Try ProjectManager today for free!

Who Should Attend the Kickoff Meeting?

A project kickoff meeting typically includes key stakeholders . Some of those are the project manager, team members, the client or customers, department heads or decision makers, business managers, shareholders and regulators.

Kickoff Meeting Agenda Example

A kickoff meeting is different depending on the type of project. Some are more structured and formal, where the project manager does a lot of preparation before having the kickoff meeting. Smaller projects may have a kickoff meeting without a demo or a deck.

One thing is common, regardless of what sort of kickoff meeting it is; the agenda. More often than not, the kickoff agenda features the following items, all of which are crucial to a well-done kickoff meeting.

1. Project Background, Goals and Objectives

Part of the project proposal, the project background is a history of the project and how it came to be. It shows the research that led to greenlighting, and why the project is necessary.

This includes the why, where and how of your project implementation. You’ve detailed the current situation, what the problem is and how the project solves it. This is all backed by reliable data. The project background is used in a project proposal to get approval from stakeholders. It also helps put the project in context during the project kickoff.

2. Project Scope Overview

The project scope overview is a detailed description of the project work your team must complete to have a successful project. The terms of this work are defined by the project timeline and the project budget .

By understanding the objectives and requirements necessary to complete the project, project managers can more accurately forecast cost and time. By explaining the project scope to the project team, they have a better idea of the constraints on the tasks they’ll be assigned to execute.

3. Project Budget Overview

The project kickoff meeting gives everyone involved the opportunity to understand the project budget. They will be told of the project’s budget, goals, timeline and strategies. This also provides an opportunity to discuss any potential issues or challenges that might show up during the execution of the project. This can increase the likelihood of a project coming in under budget and on time.

4. Project Timeline Overview

The project’s deliverables are laid out on a chronological timeline, which acts as a roadmap for the project. This is the backbone of any project schedule and should include milestones, tasks, any dependencies and due dates at a minimum.

The project timeline overview is critical for the team, as they’ll be tasked with meeting those deadlines and making those deliverables. Therefore, this information must be clearly communicated. There should be no confusion from anyone on the project team about what must be done.

Make a project timeline in minutes with ProjectManager’s Gantt charts. Get started for free today!

5. Risk Management Overview

When making the project plan, a project manager will have to develop a risk management plan as well. This is the process of analyzing risks that could occur during the project. Then, you determine what steps will be necessary to respond to these issues when they arise.

You prioritize risks based on how they impact the project. That’s how you develop a risk mitigation strategy, which includes who will be responsible for which risk if it occurs. The project team must be aware of who has ownership of risks and catch these issues quickly.

6. Change Management Overview

Change management will provide a structure for dealing with changes that happen throughout the project. These can be internal or external changes. Going over change management in a project kickoff meeting shows the planning and preparation, communication, stakeholder engagement, training and development as well as monitoring and evaluation for this process. It provides an understanding of the framework so change can be managed effectively.

7. Project Communication Plan

The project communication plan outlines how a project team will communicate important information with stakeholders throughout the project. The project manager creates it and will present it during the project kickoff meeting to ensure that all understand it.

8. Roles and Responsibilities

The project manager is responsible for defining the roles and responsibilities of the project team . That is, the team member’s position on the team, the tasks they’re assigned and the duties of their particular role in the larger team and the project.

This is basically a job description. It must be disseminated to the project team during the kickoff meeting. It gives an overview of the job, a list of responsibilities and what that person is authorized to do. Also included is who they report to, so there is a clear chain of command.

9. Project Management Methods and Tools

There are many ways to manage a project. That includes a more traditional methodology such as waterfall, an iterative agile approach or a hybrid that seamlessly connects different work management styles . You also must choose a project management tool that fits the methodology used.

The project team must know how the project is being managed and what their part will be, including the project management software tool they’ll be using. In some cases, this will require a period of training for the team to get them to understand the methodology and how to use the project tools. All of this will be discussed at the kickoff meeting.

10. Project Success Criteria

Project success criteria are the standards or principles that define what needs to be accomplished in measurable terms to satisfy clients, stakeholders and end users. In the project kickoff meeting, the project success criteria will be explained so everyone is on the same page, which leads to a better working relationship and the likelihood of a successful project.

This project kickoff template helps you define the key topics that you’ll need to go over with your project management team before the project starts such as the project background, scope, timeline and roles and responsibilities.

How to Run a Project Kickoff Meeting

That’s a lot of information to pass on to the project team. How can you make sure that everyone walks out of the kickoff meeting with that knowledge intact? Here are a few pointers to make sure you run a project kickoff meeting successfully:

• Prepare: You thoroughly researched and documented the project during the initiation phase to sell it to your stakeholders, now you have to do the same to the project team. That includes making sure everyone attends, having someone taking notes to share later and having an agenda to make sure you don’t forget anything critical.
• Introduce Yourself and the Team: This is the first time the entire project team has been assembled, so take some time to have everyone introduce themselves. It’s not a bad idea to schedule a bit of time for some icebreaker questions to facilitate the necessary intimacy for better teamwork.
• Define the Project: Make sure the team is clear on what the purpose of the project is and how the project mission statement relates to the larger company’s goals and objectives. To make sure everyone understands, take time to answer any questions the team might have.
• Hand Out the Project Plan: The project plan should be a handout in the kickoff meeting, including the budget timeline, but now you can go over it in detail and make sure everyone understands the topline information, such as the project timeline, key milestones and deliverables.
• Define Project Scope: Make sure the team knows the project scope and key project information. This helps avoid scope creep by managing the team’s expectations.
• Share Roles and Responsibilities: If the team has a history together, this step might not be as important, but new teams must understand their relationships with one another.
• Explain Central Source of Truth: Have a central source of truth for the team to know the status of the project. That is, the team needs a shared place with real-time data so everyone is always clear on the project’s status and their place in it.
• Ask Questions, Next Steps and To-Do Lists: Before wrapping up, open the floor to any questions to make sure everyone is clear on what has been shared at the kickoff meeting. Take some time to explain what will happen next, including any post-kickoff meeting to-do lists for the team. Our free action items template can help.

What Other Project Management Templates Help with a Project Kickoff Meeting?

Several free project management templates can be used to facilitate the project kickoff meeting. Our site has over 100 free project management templates for Excel and Word that help with every phase of managing a project. Here are some that help with a project kickoff meeting.

Meeting Minutes Template

Use this free meeting minutes template for Word to record the pertinent notes during a project kickoff meeting. By capturing the highlights from the project kickoff meeting, which can then be shared among the meeting attendees, the information disseminated there is captured and can be referred to throughout the project.

Team Charter Template

A team charter documents the high-level information on the project, so using this free team charter template for Word is an essential document for conducting a project kickoff meeting. It’s a clear way to deliver the pertinent information for the project.

Project Scope Template

This project scope template for Word is a detailed document that includes the project activities, resources, timelines and deliverables. It also identifies stakeholders, processes, assumptions and constraints of the project. It’s an essential document for a project kickoff meeting as it covers most of the ground that should be reviewed in that meeting.

Challenges of a Kickoff Meeting

A project kickoff meeting is important, but it’s not easy. One challenge in successfully having a project kickoff meeting includes not having clear objectives. The purpose and goals of the meeting must be clearly defined. Poor communication will defeat the purpose of the meeting as well. The project manager must be a good communicator.

The project manager must also adequately prepare for the meeting. It’s the first time everyone has gathered to learn about the project. The project manager should also encourage a balanced participation from attendees. Finally, don’t neglect to talk about project risk, which everyone should be prepared to identify and respond quickly to.

Project Kickoff Meeting Video

Watch this video to learn what should be included in a project kickoff meeting. Jennifer Bridges, PMP, shares the top 10 items that will make a project kickoff meeting successful. This video will help project managers be fully prepared to deliver the project kickoff meeting and start the project off on the right foot.

Next Steps After Your Project Kickoff Meeting

Those next steps are an important springboard following the kickoff meeting to send the team into action. This is when the execution phase of the project begins. It’s a milestone that has probably been noted in the project plan.

While there will be frequent meetings throughout the project, the kickoff meeting is unique in that it involves the entire project team. It’s unlikely that everyone will be assembled at the same time and place again. This is why having the right project management software is so important.

As noted above, a central source of truth is key to keeping everyone on the project team connected. It should update in real time and provide transparency into the process. This means that everyone knows what everyone else is doing and how they fit into that picture. It’s the best way to avoid bottlenecks, block other team members and keep the project on track.

How ProjectManager Can Help After Your Kickoff Meeting

ProjectManager is online project management software that plans, monitors and reports in real time to keep hybrid teams working together better to meet the project purpose. ProjectManager is designed with multiple project views that allow teams to work how they want, regardless of their level of expertise, location or methodology.

Plan on Interactive Gantt Charts

Managers have the features they need to plan the project mission on interactive Gantt charts that organize tasks, link dependencies and add milestones. But they can also filter for the critical path and set a baseline to track project variance in real time. The project plan can then be shared with teams and stakeholders so everyone always knows what they’re doing and how it fits into the big picture.

Manage Work on Kanban Boards

Team members can use the task list, calendar or kanban board project views to manage their work and stay productive. Kanban boards visualize workflow for the agile team that needs to manage their backlog and plan sprints. Meanwhile, managers get visibility into their team’s process and can reallocate resources as needed to prevent bottlenecks and costly delays.

Track Performance in Real-Time

Progress and performance are always on-screen with live dashboards. There’s no time-consuming configuration needed. Data is collected and the numbers are crunched automatically. Then, they’re displayed on easy-to-read graphs and charts showing costs, time and other project metrics.

Everything you need to follow in a kickoff meeting to project success is in ProjectManager. From one-click reports that can be filtered and shared to email and in-app notifications to keep everyone always updated, resource management features and more, ProjectManager is the only hybrid work management tool you’ll ever need.

ProjectManager is award-winning project management software that organizes work to keep you productive from kickoff meetings to project closure. Join the tens of thousands of teams that are already using our software at organizations as diverse as NASA, Siemens and Nestle. Try ProjectManager today for free!

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• 10 steps to supercharge your project k ...

10 steps to supercharge your project kickoff meeting

You’ve put a lot of effort into getting your project off the ground—yet so often, it can feel like a project is off track before it even begins. That’s because every project team member and stakeholder brings different knowledge, expectations, and priorities to a project. If you don’t provide a chance for them to get on the same page before the work begins, the rest of the project will be an uphill battle no matter how much you try to course correct. Luckily, there’s a better way: project kickoff meetings.

What is a project kickoff meeting?

A project kickoff meeting is a chance to meet with team members and stakeholders before the project starts to align on key details and get buy-in on critical milestones. Plan to host your project kickoff meeting after you've gotten your  project charter  approved and created your project plan, but before you've actually started working on the project. When you host a kickoff meeting, you’ll outline your project purpose, goals, plan, and more—while also making time for team members to ask questions and clarify any next steps. At the end of a kickoff meeting, the entire team should have a shared understanding about what you’re working on, why, and how the work will be accomplished.

What is the purpose of a kickoff meeting? Do I really need one?

In a word: yes. Kickoff meetings are an invaluable way to communicate key project information to your team and give them an opportunity to ask questions live. Unlike sharing these details in a project plan or over email, hosting a project kickoff reduces the odds of miscommunication and ensures everyone is starting the project from the same place. Without a kickoff meeting, team members and stakeholders could have misaligned project expectations, which leads to  scope creep  and, in the worst-case scenario, project failure.

That doesn’t mean you need to host identical kickoff meetings for every project. Some projects, like customer-facing work or complex initiatives, will benefit from a formalized kickoff with significant prep—like a robust presentation or even a demo, depending on the project type. Other projects, like those that involve fewer stakeholders or are more straightforward, could have a less formal kickoff meeting without a deck or a presentation.

Types of kickoff meetings

Not every kickoff meeting looks the same. In general, every type of project kickoff meeting should include most of the same ingredients—but knowing the various types of project kickoffs can help you decide how formal or informal the kickoff meeting needs to be.

Internal project kickoff meeting

This is the project kickoff in its simplest form. The goal for an internal project kickoff meeting is to get the project team aligned and on the same page, and to provide an opportunity for them to ask questions before the project has started. Like any kickoff meeting, prepare materials in advance, but don’t worry about polishing your meeting.

Example projects:

Product marketing launch

Web production

Usability testing plan

Required materials:

A project plan  that outlines key details of your project, including success metrics, project schedule, stakeholders, etc.

SMART project objectives that capture what you will achieve by the end of your project.

A defined project scope  to set clear boundaries on what work is and isn’t part of this project.

A visual project timeline with any relevant project milestones to identify when key work will be completed.

In addition to sharing these materials during the project kickoff, plan to store project information in a central work management platform. That way, every team member has easy access to key project documents.

Executive sponsor project kickoff meeting

If your project or program has executive sponsors, you’ll likely want to host a higher-level kickoff meeting to get all executive leaders on the same page. In this type of kickoff meeting, plan to focus heavily on the project’s purpose and goals, as well as how the project will impact company objectives.

During this kickoff meeting, you shouldn’t spend too much time on individual milestones or details about the project. You’ll likely still want to hold an internal project kickoff meeting for your project team.

Product roadmap

Marketing campaign (without an agency)

Software or systems deployment

A clearly-articulated project purpose, which connects the business impact of this project to company goals.

If applicable, the business case  you created for this initiative.

Succinct project objectives to show stakeholders what you will achieve by the end of your project.

A   project plan  that outlines key details of your project, including success metrics, project schedule, stakeholders, etc.

A project roadmap , which should serve as a high-level timeline of important project blocks.

An executive summary  with all of this key project information. Plan to present the high-level version of the executive summary, then share the document with stakeholders so they can read more details after the kickoff.

A formal presentation or deck.

External or client-facing project kickoff meeting

If you’re working on a client-facing project, you’ll need to host a kickoff meeting between your project team and key stakeholders on the client side to align on project goals and deliverables. This should be the most polished version of your project kickoff meeting.

This type of project kickoff is your chance to set expectations and develop a shared understanding of the project goals. During this kickoff meeting, plan to spend some time introducing the project team, aligning on how frequently you and your client will be communicating, and clarifying what effective collaboration looks like. Make sure you and the client understand when they should be looped in to review your work or how you should communicate project progress.

Marketing campaign (with an agency)

Event planning

A   project brief  or creative brief , depending on the type of work.

A clearly-defined project scope  to set clear boundaries on what work is and isn’t part of this project.

A project roadmap , which should serve as a high-level timeline of important project blocks and include any relevant

  project milestones .

A list of project stakeholders  with their respective roles.

Where your team will communicate (e.g. Slack, email, Asana), as well as how you’ll share project status reports .

Agile project kickoff meetings

Most  Agile teams  run their projects in sprints, which are two- or four-week cycles of work. You don’t need a project kickoff for every sprint—in fact, doing so would slow your team down. But you should plan a project kickoff meeting at least once a year to ensure everyone on the team is aligned. Additionally, if your team starts a new project or if you onboard a new team member, you should host a project kickoff meeting to get everyone up to speed.

The Agile project kickoff meeting is a chance to make sure your team have everything they need during a sprint, so you can use your  sprint planning  and  sprint retrospective  meetings to focus on continuous improvement.

Success criteria, including what “done” means for your team.

Formalized team roles, especially if your team runs Scrum .

A list of which team ceremonies you host and when they take place.

A clear communication plan of where and how your team should communicate (e.g. Slack, email, Asana).

Your team’s daily standup meeting  agenda.

10 steps for a successful project kickoff meeting

As the project manager of a key initiative, it’s your responsibility to plan and present during the project kickoff. Similarly, if you’re running a  larger program  and planning a kickoff for that body of work, you’ll likely be the person driving the meeting—though you can count on the individual project leads to present their information.

If you’ve never planned a kickoff meeting—don’t worry! Here are 10 steps to hosting a successful kickoff meeting.

1. Prepare for the meeting

The first step to hosting a project kickoff meeting is to decide who needs to be there and how long the meeting should be. The level and detail of preparation will depend on how formal the kickoff meeting needs to be—are you inviting executive stakeholders or external partners? Or is this an informal kickoff with your core project team? As you prepare for the meeting:

Finalize the invite list. By now you should know what type of project kickoff meeting you’re hosting, which should inform who attends the meeting. Before you send that meeting invite, make sure to go over the attendee list one more time to ensure you’ve included all relevant project stakeholders .

Schedule a time (and duration). Make sure to save time for questions.

Assign a note taker. Make sure someone other than you is taking notes in case there are stakeholders who can’t make the meeting. If you’re meeting virtually, consider recording the meeting as well, so team members who are unable to attend can catch up later.

Create a meeting agenda. By sending out a meeting agenda ahead of time, you can ensure everyone is prepared for the project kickoff. Your meeting agenda is also a great chance to share any materials, like the project plan and timeline, that you’d like attendees to review before the meeting.

Example project kickoff meeting agenda

2. Make introductions

If this is the first meeting with the project team, there’s a chance some people on the team haven’t worked together before. Start the meeting with some introductions or  icebreaker questions  to help everyone get to know each other.

3. Start with the project’s purpose

The most important thing to align on during the project kickoff meeting is what you are working towards, and why this work matters. According to a  recent study , only 26% of employees have a very clear understanding of how their individual work relates to company goals. Without this clarity, team members don’t know what work to prioritize or  how to manage shifting priorities .

When you share your project purpose, take some time to explain how the project connects to broader business and organizational goals. Answer the questions “Why are we working on this?” and “What are we working towards?” Later in the meeting, you’ll have a chance to dive into project details and specific workflows, but sharing the project’s purpose at the onset of the meeting is the best way to get everyone on the same page.

Project purpose example

The purpose of this project is to increase brand awareness in NAMER and EMEA through a digital brand campaign in Q3.

4. Share the project plan

Ideally, you’ve already shared the project plan in the meeting agenda so team members had the chance to read it over before the meeting. During the project kickoff meeting, you don’t need to go over every little detail of the project plan—instead, focus on key information like the project timeline, important milestones, or key deliverables.

Example project plan

5. Outline the project scope

One of the most important things to discuss as a group is what’s in scope—and equally as important, what’s out of scope. Make sure everyone has the same expectations going in, so there aren’t any last-minute surprises or changing deliverables as the project goes on. Clarifying the project scope early and often is the best way to prevent  scope creep , which can delay or even derail your project.

Project scope example

Project Objective:  Launch display and video ads in Q3 to increase brand awareness in NAMER and EMEA.

Brand design team (six people), 15 hours per week for four weeks

$50,000 media spend budget

Deliverables:

Landing page design

Display ads (two variations for A/B testing), sized according to display spec sheet

Video spots (6 and 30 second spots), sized according to video spec sheet

Creative requirements:  Display

Shows logo and CTA throughout animation

Both static and HTML5 banners are needed

Features branding within first 5 seconds

Includes voiceover

Landing page

Ads and landing page should create a consistent visual experience

Out of scope:

Translating brand campaign assets

6. Establish project roles and responsibilities

You might not have to do this for a straightforward internal project, but if your project team has never worked together before or if you’re working with an external partner, make sure everyone is aligned on roles and responsibilities. Who is the main point of contact for the project? Does this project have a sponsor or executive leader? Is there an approver—or a group of approvers?

Different stakeholders need to be looped in at different stages of the project. If your project team isn’t clear on roles and responsibilities during the kickoff meeting, consider creating and sharing a  RACI chart  as an action item.

Example project roles

Responsible: Daniela Vargas

Accountable: Kabir Mandan

Consulted: Kat Mooney, Ray Brooks

Informed: Avery Lomax

7. Share where you’ll track project data and real-time updates

The average knowledge worker spends  60% of their time  on work about work like chasing information and searching for documents. All of this work about work means your team has less time to focus on their high-impact work.

To reduce work about work and empower your team to be effective, make sure you have a central source of truth for all key project work. When all of your project information is in one easy-to-find place, your team can quickly locate project documents, get real-time project updates, check on relevant project milestones, and stay updated on  project deliverables .

8. Make time for questions

After the kickoff, your project team may have questions about something you presented, like the scope of the project or certain task expectations. Make sure to leave plenty of time at the end of the kickoff meeting to answer any questions. Remember: the goal of the project kickoff is for everyone to leave the meeting on the same page and ready to get started.

9. Outline next steps

The last part of your project kickoff meeting should answer the question, “What comes next?” At this point, you should clarify where this work is being documented, and go over any action items that were captured in this meeting. It might also help to quickly outline what your team will be doing first.

Moving forward, clarify where and how you’ll share project status updates. Having too many meetings was one of the  top three barriers to productivity in 2021 . Instead of scheduling in-person or virtual status meetings, consider sharing  project status reports  virtually through a work management system. That way, team members can continue to efficiently align and connect over any new changes.

10. Post-meeting to-dos

Congratulations—the meeting is over! After you wrap up, ask the note taker to share any meeting notes in your shared project. If you met virtually, make sure to share the meeting recording and/or transcript as well. Finally, if there were any action items from the meeting, make sure those are captured and assigned to the relevant team member.

After the kickoff meeting... what's next?

Once you’ve held your project kickoff meeting, you’re ready to get started on your project work. The best way to maintain alignment and clarity after your project kickoff is to maintain a central source of truth and collaboration—like a  work management tool . By sharing all of your work, status updates, and messages in one place, you can not only get team members on the same page—you can keep them there.

Learn more about how  Asana  can help you organize work so your team knows what to do, why it matters, and how to get it done.

Related resources

New site openings: How to reduce costs and delays

Provider onboarding software: Simplify your hiring process

15 creative elevator pitch examples for every scenario

Timesheet templates: How to track team progress

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10 steps to the perfect project kickoff meeting

Every new project needs a clear sense of direction, momentum, and team cooperation to clear the finish line. One of the best ways to get your team on the same page is to set up a project kickoff meeting.

A project kickoff meeting is an opportunity to share project insights, set goals, and establish deadlines. Below, we cover the core components of a project kickoff, different meeting types, and offer an example agenda to help you nail your next meeting.

What is a kickoff meeting?

Project kickoff meetings are opportunities for project managers, teams, and stakeholders to discuss the start of a new project and build on an existing project charter or plan. Typically, a kickoff meeting lays out the milestones and roles and responsibilities for an upcoming project.

The number of people in attendance and the structure of these meetings can vary. Some work like informal get-togethers between members of the same team. Other times, teams might invite stakeholders to the meeting to provide a more thorough overview of the project and next steps. Kickoffs can also involve a presentation, demo, or virtual call for remote teams.

What’s the purpose of a kickoff meeting?

A project kickoff aligns meeting attendees on a project’s scope, goals, and milestones. It also sets the tone for a project, giving you a chance to explain your plan in detail and build a sense of excitement around.

Since it’s the last step before executing on the project, it’s an opportunity for clients or your team to ask remaining questions or clarify expectations. This also prevents miscommunication that could lead to issues like scope creep down the line. Additionally, project kickoff meetings give you a chance to:

• Let project managers explain why they should make a product and how they will do it
• Make sure stakeholders and team members are on the same page
• Explain project expectations and timelines
• Identify potential risks and safeguards against them
• Build rapport between the teams involved

Get started with our project kickoff template

Ready to kick off your next project? Try our template for free.

Types of kickoff meetings

Your development framework and the number of attendees should inform the type of kickoffs you run. Here are three of the most common types of kickoff meetings.

Internal project kickoff meeting

An internal kickoff involves the managers and teams running a project. In some cases, internal stakeholders or leaders show up to give high-level direction.

Without clients, these meetings focus on under-the-hood responsibilities and internal processes. They can also feel more informal than external meetings.

Here are a few internal meeting tips:

• Focus on transparency: Without clients present, you can create an open, honest atmosphere. Taking the pressure off lets team members voice their concerns or questions.
• Consider obstacles: You aren’t just here to build hype around a project. Discuss potential roadblocks and their impact to brainstorm solutions.
• Foster relationships: If there are new team members or people who haven't worked together, leave some time at the top of the meeting to get to know one another with meeting icebreakers.

Here are a few helpful tools to get you started:

• Facilitator template
• Project plan
• SMART goals

External project kickoff meeting

External kickoffs bring client-facing teams and stakeholders on the client’s side together. Unlike internal kickoffs, external meetings are more polished and organized. They may also involve a project kickoff meeting presentation showcasing similar projects or how your team works. Project managers use these meetings to explain their goals and ensure both teams’ expectations are aligned.

External kickoff meetings tend to cover a project roadmap with milestones and deliverables. Ensuring the client and stakeholders have complete clarity is key. Managers also get to work with the client to decide what their collaboration workflow will look like.

Keep these external meeting tips in mind:

• Pick a central platform for communication: Decide how you and the client will reach each other with questions or updates in advance.
• Introduce your teams: External kickoffs are an opportunity to introduce your team to a client’s point of contact.
• Decide on a review process: When outlining milestones, discuss how the client will review your work and when. Clear deadlines keep teams organized.
• Do your research: Since this first meeting is a chance to build rapport with the client and ensure your team has everything they need to move forward, coming up with questions is important.

Here are a few tools to help with external meetings::

• Project status report
• Project proposal
• Product development roadmap

Agile project kickoff meeting

Agile’s focus on continuous development in short sprints affects the kickoff meeting format. Because agile teams run planning meetings before every sprint cycle, kickoffs occur annually or after major product changes, allowing teams to measure their progress and make long-term plans.

While staying on the same page is valuable in all situations, agile teams need this organization. Agile developers rarely know their role in a sprint before it starts, so giving everyone a broad overview helps developers quickly adjust to new responsibilities. It also allows managers to learn their teams’ strengths, weaknesses, and areas of interest for future assignme

For agile kickoff meetings, remember to:

• Account for sprint planning: Project kickoffs won’t replace sprint planning meetings. Instead, they give a baseline before an initial sprint or project changes. Because sprints focus on the details, keep your kickoffs more general.
• Formalize scrum roles: In the scrum framework, teams self-organize and work toward a common, short-term goal. A scrum master oversees each team. Pairing the right teams with the right scrum master can improve developers’ performance.

To get started with agile kickoffs, try the agile roadmap template .

Project kickoff meeting checklist

Below, we’ve outlined 10 steps for organizing a kickoff meeting that’ll point the way forward and leave your colleagues eager to dig in.

Step 1: Prepare everything ahead of time

Before you schedule your project meeting, you’ll want to iron out the following details:

• Logistics: the meeting’s time, date, location, and duration
• Purpose: the central goals of the meeting and who will participate (learn how to track goals here )
• Structure: the scope of the meeting and what it will tackle
• Action points: the steps and deliverables you’ll pursue after the meeting

While sketching out your meeting’s structure, bear in mind that your attendees will probably arrive with some questions about the project. Try mapping out a section of your plan where you anticipate and answer these queries. This way, you won’t waste any time coming up with thoughtful responses.

Step 2: Clarify your project’s purpose

It can be tough to stay motivated when we don’t understand what we’re building in the first place. Rather than assigning deliverables right out of the gate, begin the kickoff by clarifying the greater purpose of your project. Let’s look at an example to see this point in action.

Say you’re designing a financial education website. Your goal is to bridge the financial literacy gap so that everyday consumers can make smarter financial choices. To translate it to a project kickoff, we might say that the project aims to design a beautiful blog that attracts more organic Web traffic.

To help connect your goals, ask questions like:

• How will each team working on a project contribute to your goals?
• Why did you prioritize this project’s objective over others like it?
• Does this project align your business goals with your customers’ needs?

Step 3: Prepare an agenda

Next, it’s time to create an agenda for your project kickoff meeting. Having an agenda is essential because it dictates the direction of your meeting and keeps the team on track.

While every project differs, a standard project kickoff meeting agenda often looks something like this:

• Welcome and introductions
• Project overview: goals, scope, and timeline
• Key deliverables
• Expectations and milestones
• Q&A/discussion

Once you’ve planned out your project kickoff meeting agenda, you can share it with your attendees along with your meeting invitation so they know exactly what to expect beforehand. With a tool like FigJam , you can easily loop in team members (plus, they’ll have their own space to write down their questions).

Step 4: Nominate an official note-taker

While many of your attendees may eagerly jot down notes, you don’t want them to feel like they have to. Some people may find note-taking distracting when they’re also trying to listen attentively. An easy way to solve this problem is to designate an official note-taker who knows how to take meeting notes . This person’s job will be to transcribe the details of the meeting and share them with the team later on.

When selecting a note-taker, try to find someone within your team who is already familiar with the meeting’s content. This way, they can take detailed notes without missing out on essential information themselves.

Once the meeting wraps up, simply share access to the FigJam file. If anyone has a question about a particular note, they can add a comment or tag another collaborator to kick-start a discussion.

Step 5: Encourage team bonding

Project kickoffs often bring together people who haven’t worked together before. To help project team members get acquainted, ask each attendee to share a little bit about themselves, such as their:

• Work background
• Position within the project
• Fun fact or favorite hobby

You may even want to lead a quick icebreaker to inspire some initial conversation among attendees. This way, future collaboration won’t feel so stiff or awkward. What’s more, everyone can leave the meeting with a newfound sense of comradery before the serious work begins.

Looking for icebreakers that leave “basic” behind? When you crack open Figma’s icebreaker template , you’ll find activities like:

• Playlist swaps
• Team portrait draw-offs
• Doodling contests
• A color Jacuzzi

Step 6: Align on scope

While your business may have expansive goals, your project should have a clearly defined scope.

It’s important to clarify what falls within the scope of your project and what doesn’t early on. Otherwise, some team members may waste time, energy, and resources on tasks irrelevant to the project, derailing its timeline and budget.

For example, maybe the scope of your project is to design a landing page for a client’s website based on content they’ve already written. In this case, the following tasks would fall outside of its scope:

• Researching in-depth SEO recommendations
• Creating a pay-per-click (PPC) landing page for a future ad campaign
• Updating every related web property to mention the project

Step 7: Clarify expectations

After providing an overview of the project’s purpose and scope, it’s important to explain what you need from each team member moving forward. Establishing expectations early can reduce the chance that anyone falls behind on their milestones.

Here are a few questions to help you distill your expectations and communicate them to your team:

• Who is responsible for each deliverable?
• Who should be consulted about deliverable details?
• How often do you expect project status reports ?
• When is each deliverable due?
• Who should team members go to if they have questions or concerns?
• Who is your primary point of contact for the project?
• What is their preferred method of communication?

You should also establish a cadence for check-in meetings (daily, weekly, monthly, etc.) for the duration of your project. After all, your project kickoff meeting will probably be the first of many. The RACI framework might be a helpful jumping off point.. This template allows you to track who:

• Is responsible for each deliverable
• Will be held accountable for its quality
• Should be consulted if there are any questions
• Needs to be kept in the loop throughout the process

Step 8: Generate excitement about the project

Successful project kickoff meetings don’t have to be boring. Actually, you’ll probably defy the whole team’s expectations if everyone leaves the meeting feeling pumped. Injecting some fun into your project meeting will keep everyone energized, engaged, and motivated to do their best work moving forward.

You can do that by:

• Identifying exciting growth opportunities through a SWOT analysis
• Highlighting glowing reviews and previews from industry experts
• Offering incentives like gift cards or other prizes for teams that hit project deadlines
• Using metrics to highlight your teams’ improvement across projects
• Hosting daily standup meetings sustain your teams’ excitement over a project

Step 9: Allow ample time for Q&A

By the end of a project kickoff meeting, your attendees will probably have some questions. This is a good thing: It means they’re engaged in what you have to say and they value the outcome.

To that end, be sure to carve out at least 5-10 minutes to discuss any questions that came up. This is important for a few reasons:

• If you plan to answer questions later, you could lose out on some remarkable ideas while they’re fresh. Fielding valuable ideas early on builds momentum that’s valuable throughout a project.
• Stakeholders often ask about potential risks during a Q&A. Keeping this in mind pushes managers to consider risk prevention from the earliest stages of a project lifecycle.
• Answering questions as the kickoff avoids the risk of spending unnecessary time answering the same question over and over again with different team members.

Step 10: Discuss next steps

Maybe you want the research team to begin a competitor analysis right off the bat so you can review their report by the end of the week. Or maybe you want the graphic design team to prioritize logo generation before the rest of their deliverables.

Whatever it is, giving each of your teams a clear project objective will help them feel motivated after kickoff and accomplished as your project unfolds.

Sample project kickoff meeting agenda

Project name: Blog page redesign

Project manager: Sarah Lancaster

Lead developer: Justin Park

Head designer: Erin Smith

Kickoff date: September 13, 2023

Meeting agenda:

• Introductions: Sarah (five minutes)
• Icebreakers: Erin (five minutes)
• Short-term objectives
• Long-term goals
• KPIs measuring success
• Deliverables
• Review mockup
• Design team roles
• Development team roles
• Next steps and Q&A: Sarah (fifteen minutes)

Turn kickoff meetings into project successes

Project kickoff meetings align expectations and milestones early on in the project lifecycle. Whether you’re following a strategic or tactical plan , project kickoffs ensure you set your team up for success. Now that you know how to plan a successful project kickoff meeting, it’s time to put that knowledge into practice.

FigJam’s online whiteboard brings your teams together for project planning initiatives, from the launch meeting to sticking the landing.

Check out this template to get started.

Home » Blog » The Ultimate Guide to Project Kickoffs

The Ultimate Guide to Project Kickoffs

No meeting is more important when launching a project than the project kick-off meeting. That’s why you should get it right.

In this article we’ll go through all the steps. What a project kick-off is about and how to actually run a good kickoff meeting.

What is a project kickoff meeting?

• Why having a kickoff?
• Who attends a kickoff?
• How does a kickoff typically go?
• The typical agenda
• Preparing your slides
• Project kickoff template
• Tips from senior project managers

The project kickoff meeting is a meeting where the project team is introduced to a project right before it goes into execution. The host is usually the project manager. During the kick off, he will give an overview of the project goal, schedule, project organization, expectations towards team members and other critical information.

There’s usually a labor-intensive phase leading up to the kickoff. The customer, contractor and stakeholders have to find a common project goal. A project charter will be created which outlines the purpose and scope of the project. Then the project has to be properly planned, staffed and the budget has to be approved etc.

(For a complete list of steps to set up a project,  check out the  project kickoff checklist )

Only after all this work has been completed will the project kick off be scheduled.

You can think of a kickoff like of a pre-flight briefing that pilots will do with the crew before they embark on a flight.

Why having a project kickoff?

A project can only be successful if all participants have a common understanding of the project’s purpose, timeline, organization and their responsibilities. The kickoff is the event where all this information is shared with all project team members. It also gives people the opportunity to have their questions answered.

That’s why a kickoff meeting is super important.

Pooja, a program manager from Delhi summarized the value of kickoffs very well:

The kickoff meeting process and agenda ensure everyone is engaged, understands the project goals, scope, and risks, and actively takes responsibility for their roles. There is agreement upon a well defined scope and it helps everyone involved in the project alignement to a goal.

So, a kickoff is much more than just showing a few slides. It’s about creating motivation within the team and getting everyone to take over responsibility.

Skipping the kickoff because you think it’s not necessary will get you into trouble further on. You will find yourself in discussions with people who don’t want to do what you expect them to do.

You will face resistance from team members because they feel having been run over. And within weeks your wonderful project plan will fall apart. Just like a castle built on sand.

Who attends the project kickoff?

The following people should attend the kickoff:

• project manager
• project team
• key stakeholders
• management from both customer (sponsor) and contractor. By contractor I’m referring to the party that is hired to do the actual project work.

No need to explain why the project manager should attend. He’s the one who leads through the meeting. Then there’s the project team, which are staff members who are doing the actual project work. Key stakeholders could be representatives from areas or departments that are either strongly impacted by the project or whose expertise has major influence on the project’s success

(If you are not sure how to find out who your stakeholders are, I strongly encourage you to read my article on stakeholder analysis ).

Examples of important stakeholders could be Legal if your project touches legal issues. It could also be Purchasing in case you’re buying expensive goods as part of the project. It could also be HR if the project has major influence on employees, e.g. if time tracking is introduced.

Next, let’s explore how a kickoff is conducted in the real world.

How does a kickoff meeting typically go?

The cycle of a project kickoff including preparation and the meeting itself can span across several weeks or even months. It all depends on the size of the project.

Here’s the process for preparing and running a kick off:

• Scheduling the meeting – usually several weeks or even months in advance
• Preparing the meeting – creating the slides
• Conducting the meeting  – you are the showmaster
• After the meeting – sharing the presentation with your audience

Schedule the meeting

Large meetings with many participants are always hard to schedule. There are always scheduling conflicts because people have so much on their calendar. That’s why I always schedule the kickoff meeting way ahread of time, like months in advance. This way I can block a slot in everybody’s calendar and I can reserve a suitably sized conference room.

Sent out the meeting invite several weeks or even months before the kickoff date.

All you need to do is send out an Outlook invite with some text like:

‘Hi all, this is the invitation to our project kickoff meeting. Please block this time on your calendar. Attendance is mandatory. The agenda will follow. Regards, John (project manager)’ .

How long should the kick off be? Normally a kick off takes between 1.5 and 2 hours. This number may vary depending on the size of the project and the need for discussions at the end.

What if some folks decline your meeting invitation? Well, you have to accept that some people just don’t have time. They may either be traveling or on vacation. If people have a strong reason why they can’t join, I will schedule a separate mini-kickoff with them to go through the agenda. I want to make sure they still get the same information as the rest of the team.

Video: How to use the Outlook Scheduling Assistant

The Scheduling Assistant   helps you find a time slot that works for most people.

Prepare the meeting

Before you can prepare the kickoff, you need to have your project properly planned and documented. Specifically, you need to have an agreed project goal, a presentable project timeline and a chart showing the project organization.

If you don’t have those documents ready, finish this step first. For many of these documents you’ll find templates on the Internet. Also read my article on defining a project goal . For the timeline, download this project plan template . Once you got the basic documents complete, it’s time to create the agenda:

The kickoff agenda

Every kickoff has more or less the same agenda. Here’s a good template:

• Introduction – introduce yourself and the team (15 mins)
• Project goal and background  – why was the project started? (20 mins)
• Project scope – what are you going to deliver? (20 mins)
• Project organization – who is going to be involved? (10 mins)
• Timeline – explain your approach on the timeline (20 mins)
• Roles and responsibilities – what are the roles and duties of the team members? (20 mins)
• Teamwork and organizational topics – how is the team going to work together? (10 mins)
• Next steps – what are the next activities on the timeline? (10 mins)
• Q & A – answer questions of the attendees (15 mins)

Preparing the PowerPoint presentation

Next, you have to prepare the PowerPoint slides using the agenda as a basis. I can’t tell you exactly how may slides you should include for each agenda point. Be careful with not overloading people with too much information. Better keep your slides concise and simple without going too much into the details.

People mainly want to know how the project impacts their work, what they have to do, when they are going to be involved, whether they can take their summer vacation etc. On the other hand you want to convey as clearly as possible what you expect from the team. So, create your content around those topics and you will do pretty well.

Here are some tips on what to cover in each section:

1) Project goal and background

Explain why the project was initiated and what it’s supposed to deliver. You may have to dive a bit into history and give context so that people fully understand the project goal. Here are some topics worth talking about, depending on your project:

Organization and business model:  Not everybody will be familiar with the organization and its business model. So it’s interesting for people to hear where the company is coming from, where it has offices, what its customers are and how it is making money.

Project history: Explain what attempts were made in the past to tackle the issue your project is concerned with. Learning from past failures is always helpful. And it’s probably a good idea to clarify what you’re doing differently to avoid project failure  🙂

Urgency: A common objection to projects is: Why do we have to do this now? Why can’t this project wait til next year? Share the reasons why postponing is not an option and why it has to be done now when everybody is so busy.

Project goal:  Of course you need to talk about the actual goal. What does the company expect from this project? And what other objectives does the sponsor hope to achieve as a side effect: financial objectives, sales goals, cost savings and more.

2) Project scope

Next you should talk about the project’s scope.

Project scope is the sum of things a project is going to take care of. This includes project-related tasks (e.g. write a piece of software), specific deliverables (e.g. a training plan) and defined outcomes (e.g. all staff is trained).

For the purpose of a kickoff meeting, you only need to give a high-level overview of the scope. This can be one or two slides with five bullet points each. How do you know what to write about? Think of the major parts your project is delivering. In a construction project this would be setting up a building, doing the plumbing and electrical wiring and so on. This would be the scope. Similarly you list the key scope in the kickoff slides.

At the same time you should list those things that are not in scope. Maybe you set up the building but the client wants to do the flooring and tiling by himself. Or you leave out the lighting setup. So, that would be ‘ out of scope ‘, as we say in project management. The reason why you should mention what is not in scope is you don’t want people to have wrong expectations. This will only backfire later on when somebody asks you ‘ Why isn’t the lighting installed?’ and you say ‘Oh, didn’t we agree this was not in scope?’ .

3) Project organization

In this section you give people an overview of the project team. Who is involved? What departments are on board? Who’s overseeing the project from a management level? These are the kinds of question people have. In the end, people want to know who they have to contact regarding a specific issue. The organizational overview provides the answer.

This can be one slide that shows the project org chart:

Like this template? Click here to see all templates

Generally org charts are a bit more complex than this one, but you get the idea.

4) Timeline

This is the slide that people care about most. Why? First, it gives an idea about how intense the work is going to be. The more work is squeezed into the timeline, the higher the workload. Second, people are keen to see the timeline because they get an idea of how the project impacts their professional and personal schedule.

Some people have planned a long summer vacation. And now your project jeopardizes their plans. Or maybe they have planned business trips and therefore won’t be available to full extent.

Go through the timeline from now til the end and explain the major activities and how they tie together. Also mention any special circumstances that were taken into consideration for the planning. These could be parallel projects, resource gaps, weather conditions or other external factors.

5) Roles and responsibilities

This is THE MOST IMPORTANT set of slides in your whole presentation. Let me explain why.

Here you tell people what you expect from them. What kind of work they have to do, but also how they’re supposed to work together as a team. If this point does not come across and does not fully settle in the minds of your team members, then you will face issues with delegation. People won’t be clear about where their responsibility begins and where it ends. They won’t know what team they have to work with etc. And in the end you’ll be the one sorting out the issues.

That’s why you should take as much time as needed to go through roles and responsibilities. I have a separate article about project roles and responsibilities  in case you don’t know what I’m talking about.

6) Teamwork and organizational topics

On this slide you talk about the modalities of collaboration of the project team. This includes the meeting structure, that is  how often the team is going to meet both onsite or remotely. In the same context, people may want to know whether they have to come to the office every day or if they can work from home.

Other stuff worth mentioning is where people can find and store  project documentation (e.g. in a shared drive), files they have to maintain such as an availability overview and so on. Also, if the project involves traveling, you may want to talk about upcoming business trips and travel regulations or visa requirements.

7) Next steps

The final slide in your project kickoff presentation should highlight the next steps: What are we working starting tomorrow or next week. This is good because that way you can keep the momentum that comes with launching a new project. At the start everybody is still motivated and you want to use this energy to get the first work done. Just have one slide with maybe 4 or 5 bullet points indicating what the team is working on next.

The actual meeting

It’s the big day! You may be a bit nervous before the kickoff but that’s totally normal. Make sure you check if the conference room is ready so you can start the meeting right away. Check if the A/V equipment and beamer are working fine. If you have people joining by phone, dial in a few minutes before to see if the connection is working.

Once you start the meeting, don’t jump right into the hard facts. Instead, give people a warm welcome and tell a funny story or a joke. You want people to relax and open up so that the kickoff becomes a positive and exciting experience for them.

Then, for the next 1 to 1.5 hours all you do is go through the slides. Present your information in an engaging way and always keep eye contact with your audience. You want to see if people are still with you or if you’ve lost them. Make pauses and ask ‘Are there any questions so far?’  You are presenting super important information, so you want to make sure everybody understands what you have to say.

The thing is, people are reluctant to ask questions or state their concerns in a group setting. They are afraid of looking stupid and skip their questions even though something might be unclear. Keep that in mind. What I do is say things like ‘It’s very important that you understand this, so just ask if anything is unclear. I’m happy to answer all your questions.’

Towards the end of the meeting, you start the Q & A session. This is where the team can ask whatever questions they have. It can take anywhere from 10 minutes to one hour. And it’s important to give people this opportunity, because it creates trust and you get the buy-in that’s vital for a successful project.

When there are no more questions you close the meeting. Thank everyone for attending and express your gratitude of working with such a great, high-performing team.

That’s it. Congratulations on your first kickoff!

After the kickoff

There are also a couple of things you need to take care of after the meeting. If you’ve had somebody write the minutes (which is good but not really needed for a kickoff), you need to check those before sending them out. The other, more important step is to share the meeting presentation with all attendees — and also with the people who could not attend.

I also make a comment in my email that anyone who’s got questions should contact me. As I wrote before, people generally feel uncomfortable asking questions in a group. So you can clarify their concerns or questions in a separate 1:1 meeting afterwards.

How to Make Your Kickoff a Success? Watch My Five Top Tips

Project Kickoff Template

You don’t need to create your slides from scratch. I have a simple template for you which you can download here in PPT format. It already has the agenda structure I’ve used in this article! Check out my project kickoff template .

Learn from the best! These senior project managers share their best tips on running project kickoffs

Megan o’malley, senior project manager (pmp) from ohio.

If you surprise people [with your project], they get defensive and feel blind-sided, which is not good.

Being as confident as possible will help keep you on task to lead the team.

Guy Coulson, senior project manager from South Africa

If you let people decide what or how they want something, it often brings better results than dictating how it must happen.

Roy Macaraig – Project Manager Digital Transformation

Do you have any further questions.

Do you have a question?

Have a question about this article? Need some assistance with this topic (or anything else)?  Send it in and I’ll get back to you soon. 

Hi! I’m Adrian, founder of Tactical Project Manager and a Project Manager with over ten years of experience. Managed large-scale IT implementations and business projects. I started Tactical Project Manager to offer you a straightforward and pragmatic approach to project management, enabling you to lead any project with confidence.

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How To Run Project Kickoff Meetings + Killer Agenda Template

I’m Ben Aston, a digital project manager and founder of thedpm.com. I've been in the industry for more than 20 years working in the UK at London’s top digital agencies including Dare, Wunderman, Lowe and DDB. I’ve delivered everything from film to CMS', games to advertising and eCRM to eCommerce sites. I’ve been fortunate enough to work across a wide range of great clients; automotive brands including Land Rover, Volkswagen and Honda; Utility brands including BT, British Gas and Exxon, FMCG brands such as Unilever, and consumer electronics brands including Sony. I'm a Certified Scrum Master, PRINCE2 Practitioner and productivity nut!

Everything you need to know to run your project kickoff meeting well and get the info you need to start the project on the right foot.

Run a client project kickoff meeting well and the rest of your project is much more likely to succeed. Run it badly, and you can find a project or relationship going backward before you’ve even started.

I'll cover how to run a project kickoff meeting properly so that you and your team can get the answers you need to complete a successful project. I’ll explain the purpose of the meeting, why you need to have a 'pre-kickoff' meeting, and what to cover, and I'll also provide an agenda template.

What Is A Project Kickoff Meeting?

A project kickoff meeting is the first meeting between a project team and the client or project sponsor when kicking off a new project .

It’ll take place after contracts have been signed and there’s agreement on the statement of work (SoW) , project charter, costs, and project timeline, although sometimes with new clients this paperwork may not be finalized. By this point, you’ll likely have started the project planning phase of the project life cycle .

The client project kickoff meeting is an opportunity to hear from the client and their project team, as well as other key stakeholders, about the project and get a broader understanding of the project background and business drivers that led to the project being initiated, review the project brief, and discuss how to make it a success.

No time to read? Watch this video instead:

What Is The Purpose Of The Project Kickoff Meeting?

There are a few purposes to the project kickoff meeting . The main one is getting the project up and running and ensuring clarity on what needs to be done to get things moving. You also need to:

• Introduce the client and project team members and their roles and responsibilities
• Make sure everyone understands the project background
• Make sure everyone agrees on what a successful project looks like
• Make sure everyone agrees on what teamwork looks like

Essentially you want to get all key stakeholders and attendees, including your own team, on the same page.

Types of Project Kickoff Meeting

There's a few different types of project kickoff meetings to be aware of. This article focuses on client kickoff meetings, as we've written about the other types elsewhere.

The Pre-Kickoff Meeting

If at all possible, find an excuse to meet up with the client before the kickoff meeting to catch up with them and have a pre-kickoff meeting .

This is a simple way to help improve the chances of the project kickoff meeting going well, and make sure that the ‘real’ kickoff meeting with their stakeholders and team is as fruitful and efficient as possible.

In an ideal scenario, you’d do this meeting in person over coffee or lunch but in a pinch, the catch-up can be done by Skype or phone too.

The purpose of connecting and meeting with the client before the ‘real’ kickoff meeting is to level-set expectations outside of the context of the potentially much more political ‘real’ kickoff meeting.  It’s also an opportunity to:

• Establish some rapport with your client
• Communicate essential project and team information
• Get as much relevant information as possible prior to the kickoff meeting to refine the agenda

The discussion should be focused on how you’re going to work together and as much as possible, set and align expectations.

It’s an important meeting to have so that you can cover off project management aspects of the project without a huge audience of stakeholders who might complicate the discussion!

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Internal Kickoff Meeting

It's a good idea to hold an internal project kickoff meeting with just your internal project team prior to the meeting with the client. It's a chance to get aligned with the project team on the project brief and deliverables, as well as to surface any important questions that they might have, which can be asked during the client kickoff meeting.

What To Cover During A Project Kickoff Meeting

Once you’ve defined your objectives for the kickoff meeting, work on developing an agenda which allows you to meet those objectives.

After your agenda is ready, don’t just sit on it and feel smug. Send it in advance to your client and get feedback, ask them what else they want to discuss, and begin a dialogue on the meeting content before the meeting happens.

When creating a kickoff meeting agenda, here's what you'll want to cover :

• Why : Why are we doing this project in the first place? What business need does it satisfy? What are the business and user goals?
• What : What’s the solution or deliverable? What are we going to do or make? What project process and workflow are we going to use? What are the requirements?
• How : How are we going to work together to make the project happen? What’s the communication plan and what collaboration tools will use to work together? How will risks, dependencies, issues, and change management be managed?
• When : When are we going to do it? What is the timeline?
• Where/Who : Where is the starting point for kicking things off? Who’s going to do what?

Project Kickoff Meeting Agenda Template

You can download a template agenda and sample agenda for a kickoff meeting here. It’s a bit more structured that simply echoing the questions listed above. Read more about the specifics of the project kickoff meeting agenda template here .

How To Run A Project Kickoff Meeting

There are specific steps you should be taking as you do your project kickoff —before, during, and after.

Before The Project Kickoff Meeting

Prior to the project kickoff meeting with the client, you'll need to:

• Check to make sure that the project charter has been approved and signed (find some example project charters here for reference).
• Review the brief and find out what's missing. Do you have a timeline? A set list of project deliverables? Have you chosen an approach?
• Determine who needs to attend the kickoff meeting (think about whether you'll be taking meeting minutes yourself or assigning this duty to someone else)
• Set a date, time, and location
• Distribute the brief and any materials relevant to the project background to the team
• Send an email and calendar invite with the meeting agenda attached

During The Project Kickoff Meeting

Here are the steps you'll need to take during the project kickoff meeting (you'll notice that our project kickoff agenda template aligns loosely with this, so you shouldn't have to think about this separately):

• Start with some icebreaker questions to get attendees engaged
• Align on the primary project goal
• Set any secondary project objectives or KPIs
• Decide on specific tasks, phases, and parts of the project
• Consider all success factors & risks

After The Project Kickoff Meeting

Immediately following the project kickoff meeting, follow these steps:

• Review your meeting notes
• Start writing your project plan
• Save all relevant info in a spot that's accessible for everyone on the project team
• Develop resourcing plans and stakeholder management plans
• Send a follow-up email to the client reiterating the next steps and action items

Project Kickoff Meetings FAQs

Here, I'll answer a few frequently asked questions about kickoff meetings.

What are the objectives of a project kickoff meeting?

By the end of the project kickoff meeting with your client, you want to have:

• Established the project's goals and purpose
• Set the tone for communication & teamwork between the client and your project team
• Agreed upon the project brief
• Assigned team roles & responsibilities to the client and their team, as well to your team (specific project team roles should have been established during the internal project kickoff)
• Established a timeline, deliverables, and status update format & frequency

Is the project kickoff meeting a milestone?

No, the project kickoff meeting is not a milestone. Milestones are set during the project planning phase, and they are used to mark a specific point in the project timeline by which to measure project progress.

The kickoff meeting happens before any work has been completed, so it can't be a milestone!

How long should the project kickoff meeting be?

Try to keep your kickoff meeting to a maximum of an hour and a half (you'll notice that our project kickoff agenda outlines a meeting of this length). Any longer and you'll just end up going in circles. Be sure to leave plenty of time for client questions.

What should not be included in the project kickoff meeting?

The kickoff meeting shouldn’t be a discussion about project scope. Rather, it’s an opportunity to level set with the project stakeholders and discuss expectations around project milestones , rounds of review cycles, and how the approach can be streamlined.

Try and steer it away from being purely about project management—with lots of people in the room, you want to avoid any conversations where you could be pressured into extending the scope of the project .

What should I include in a project kickoff presentation?

It's a good idea to create a slide deck for use during your project kickoff. Make sure it aligns with your agenda. Generally, you'll want to include the following in your project kickoff meeting presentation :

• Introductions: Names & faces of the project team. Fun facts can be a great icebreaker!
• Background information on the project
• Project briefing
• What project success looks like
• Project management items: Project plan, timelines, methodology , deliverables, risks, change management plan, and any other relevant project documents.

How do I lead a project kickoff meeting?

With confidence! But seriously, acting as a project leader that can rally the team together around the vision before the project really gets going is crucial.

Read more about being a project leader during kickoff here .

What’s Next?

Once the project kickoff meeting is out of the way, you and your team can get started on the project, assuming you also have all the info and assets you need. In some cases, you may need to finalize the project plan and any other project planning activities before moving on to project execution.

Learn more about how to make your project meetings more effective here and keep in mind that project management software can be a big help in getting your projects on track and keeping them there.

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How to plan & lead a project kickoff meeting

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With any project, it’s important to get started on the right track. The best way to do that is with a well planned project kickoff meeting. 

The kickoff meeting sets the tone for the project, establishes expectations, and helps ensure that everyone is on the same page. In this blog post, we'll discuss what a project kickoff meeting is, why it's important, common types of kickoff meetings, how to prepare for a kickoff meeting, and how to run your most successful kickoff meeting yet.

What is a project kickoff meeting?

A project kickoff meeting is the first meeting held at the beginning of a project. It's an opportunity for the project team to come together, establish goals and objectives, and set roles and expectations. The kickoff meeting is usually led by the project manager and attended by all team members, stakeholders, and any relevant outside parties.

What is the purpose of a project kickoff meeting?

The short answer is that a project kickoff meeting serves a variety of purposes, including:

• Establish goals and objectives
• Clarify roles and responsibilities
• Establish expectations and timelines
• Identify risks and challenges
• Align stakeholders
• Build rapport among the team

It’s a great way to build a baseline of understanding, alignment, and communication that will continue to pay off as you work together over the course of the project. 

Common types of project kickoff meetings

While every project has its own idiosyncrasies and quirks, generally speaking, there are two common types of project kickoff meetings:

Internal project kickoff meeting

An internal project kickoff meeting is held among the project team and relevant stakeholders, such as department heads or executives. This type of kickoff meeting is focused on building alignment among the team and establishing a clear plan for how the project will be executed.

External or client-facing kickoff meeting

An external or client-facing kickoff meeting is held with the client or outside parties who will be impacted by the project. This type of kickoff meeting is focused on building rapport with the client, establishing goals and objectives, and setting expectations.

Related: How to run a successful client meeting kickoff call

How to prepare for a project kickoff meeting

To prepare for a successful project kickoff meeting, follow these steps:

1. Make sure you're focused on the right problem

While it may sometimes be taken for granted, the most critical step in any project is identifying and aligning on the actual problem you're trying to solve . When managing multiple priorities, it can be easy to become fixated on aspects of a larger problem, or tangential issues that may relate to the problem, but which are not central to the solution. 

Before scheduling the kickoff meeting, make sure that everyone is aligned on the problem that the project is intended to solve. If there is any confusion or disagreement, take the time to resolve it before the kickoff meeting.

2. Identify your stakeholders and map how they'll be involved

In order to make sure you have a diverse array of perspectives, take pains to identify all stakeholders who will be involved in the project and determine how they'll be involved. 

You can do this by creating a stakeholder map that includes each stakeholder's level of involvement, communication preferences, and potential concerns. 

Pro-tip: Learn how to create a comprehensive stakeholder map with this Mural guide  

3. Create a meeting agenda

Create a detailed agenda that includes the purpose of the meeting, a list of attendees, the meeting objectives, and a timeline for the meeting. This allows everyone to complete any necessary pre-work that will inform the meeting discussion and maximize the effectiveness of your time together. 

4. Plan out what you'll cover during the kickoff meeting

In addition to the meeting agenda that you create for attendees, think through what topics you want to cover during the kickoff meeting, such as project goals, timelines, risks, and challenges. It’s also important for real-time meetings to time-box discussions, so that you can cover all the key points without rushing or rescheduling. 

Pro-tip: Tools like Mural’s timer feature help focus discussions and keep everyone up to speed on the agenda

5. Prepare with the right tools

Make sure that you have the right tools in place to facilitate the kickoff meeting, such as a slide deck, whiteboard, or collaboration software. Depending on your work environment, you may want to use one approach, or a combination of several tools to handle your collaborative work together — whether you’re working in person, in a hybrid team, or in a fully remote organization, you’ll need to carefully consider the best options to foster engagement and transparency .   

In order to facilitate better collaboration, using a shared digital space like an online whiteboard can be the best way to involve every stakeholder, giving everyone a voice and equal opportunity to provide feedback, which is invaluable as you think about crafting solutions to complex problems. 

How to run a successful project kickoff meeting

To run a successful project kickoff meeting, follow these steps:

Provide an overview of the project

Using your meeting agenda and the information from your prep work, start the meeting by providing an overview of the project, including the purpose of the project, the problem it's intended to solve, and the desired outcome.

Introduce stakeholders and how they're involved

Once you’ve set the stage, the next step is to review the stakeholder map and explain how each stakeholder will be involved in the project. This is an opportunity to identify any issues or overlaps that could hamper your progress, so it’s important to make sure every stakeholder feels empowered to contribute. 

Outline primary goals & KPIs

Establish primary project goals (these can be expressed as Objectives and Key Results , or as outcome statements) and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that will be used to measure progress. 

Explore project goals (primary and secondary)

Engage the team and stakeholders in a collaborative discussion around project goals, both primary and secondary. Encourage team members to ask questions, share their ideas and concerns, and provide feedback.

Pro-tip: You can explore project goals in real-time or asynchronously using a framework like the Mural Project North Star template , which helps bring stakeholders together to determine goals and success metrics.

Define Success

Define what success looks like for the project and ensure that everyone is aligned on what it means. This can take the form of a mutual success plan if you’re working with clients or external stakeholders — with a success plan in place, you’ll have a living document that reflects the agreements and desired outcomes, increasing transparency and accountability. 

Related: The Mural Project Kickoff template helps walk you through each of the steps, and offers the ability to link to any supporting documents as needed. 

The bottom line: Keep your project collaborative and engaging

To sum it all up, a project kickoff meeting is a critical step in any project's success, allowing the team to establish goals and objectives, clarify roles and responsibilities, and build rapport among the team and stakeholders. 

With Mural, it’s easy to get everyone engaged and ready to collaborate. Get started today with a Free Forever account , and invite unlimited members, so that you can ensure that every voice is empowered from the very beginning of your next project. Now that you've kicked off your project, use the Mural project planning template to keep your team aligned and in-sync.

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Free Project Kickoff Templates and Checklists

By Kate Eby | August 23, 2021

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We’ve collected the top project kickoff templates to help ensure a successful project launch. Download free kickoff checklists, meeting templates, and other planning and presentation tools in a variety of formats.

Included on this page, you’ll find a pre-project kickoff checklist , a kickoff meeting agenda template , a kickoff presentation template and an email announcement . You’ll also get access to our in-depth guide to project kickoffs .

Pre-Project Kickoff Checklist Template

Use this pre-project kickoff checklist to prep a project and support a successful kickoff meeting. The template includes example steps for project managers to follow, from reviewing the project charter and confirming project funding to preparing a communications plan and addressing meeting logistics. This simple checklist template helps you with organization and accountability, and it provides an easy way to track important details. Edit the sample text to create a customized kickoff checklist for your project.

Download Pre-Project Kickoff Checklist Template

Microsoft Word | Google Docs

Project Kickoff Meeting Checklist

This project kickoff meeting template provides a list of tasks that you need to complete during the meeting. Use the template as an example outline to create your own kickoff checklist. Include key topics, questions, and tasks, such as assigning meeting roles and defining ground rules. Some project managers also include checklist items related to building team morale as a reminder to encourage enthusiasm for the upcoming project.

Download Project Kickoff Meeting Checklist

Kickoff Meeting Minutes Template

Download Kickoff Meeting Minutes Template

Microsoft Word | Smartsheet

Record meeting minutes and document attendance with this project kickoff template. The template includes sections for a list of agenda items (and the time allotment for each), action items with due dates, and follow-up plans for additional meetings. Example agenda items include an introduction, meeting rules, project objectives, roles and responsibilities, and potential issues. List the team member responsible for meeting minutes at the top of the template along with the location, date, and time.

Project Kickoff Meeting Agenda Template

Use this project kickoff agenda template to create a detailed meeting plan. The agenda is separated into sections with rows for subtopics, and each agenda item shows the estimated time required to keep meetings on track. In addition, you can document meeting attendees along with their project roles and contact information. The agenda includes sections for questions and next steps, with lines to add action items, assigned owners, and follow-up dates. Modify the template to create a customized kickoff agenda for your project.

Download Project Kickoff Meeting Agenda Template

Microsoft Word | Google Docs | Smartsheet

Project Kickoff Presentation Template

Download Project Kickoff Presentation Template

Microsoft PowerPoint | Google Slides

Put together an effective presentation with this project kickoff deck template. The template includes slides for a project overview, approach and methodology, a RACI matrix for roles and responsibilities, communication requirements, risk management, and next steps. A roadmap timeline slide illustrates the project schedule with color-coded project phases and key milestones. The template provides a mix of visual and text elements to keep audience members engaged.

Project Kickoff Whiteboard Template

This template is formatted like a whiteboard that you can use during a project kickoff meeting. Add topics and questions to each section on the board, such as project background, objectives, scope, roles and responsibilities, timeline, communications, and action items. Edit and add notes to each area as the meeting progresses. In addition to facilitating kickoff meetings, use this template for brainstorming sessions, project planning, or organizing tasks.

Download Project Kickoff Whiteboard Template

Kickoff Announcement Email Template

Download Kickoff Announcement Email Template — Microsoft Word

Use this internal project kickoff meeting template as a basic guide for creating your own email invitation. Keep the message brief, and cover the primary meeting objectives, as well as the date, time, and location. Attach the meeting agenda so that all attendees can review the meeting plan and formulate questions in advance. This initial email serves as a formal project announcement and an opportunity to generate enthusiasm among team members. If you are planning a kickoff meeting with external clients, modify the message to include any items that the client needs to prepare or questions that they need to address before the meeting.

Kickoff Project Timeline Template

Create a high-level project timeline with milestones to use as part of a kickoff presentation or meeting. Highlight project phases and key milestones to help the project team understand the delivery time frame. The template offers a monthly timeline with a clean design, which makes it easy for you to view the project schedule without getting bogged down by details. This simple template assists with project planning, tracking, and communicating with stakeholders.

Download Kickoff Project Timeline Template

Microsoft Excel | Smartsheet

What Is a Project Kickoff?

A project kickoff occurs at the end of project planning, but before work begins. It is often the first opportunity for stakeholders and team members to establish shared expectations, ask questions, and discuss solutions related to project outcomes and milestones. 

You may hold a kickoff meeting for internal stakeholders and team members only, or you may include clients or consultants. In either case, the kickoff meeting provides a forum for the team to define project purpose and scope, confirm roles and responsibilities, finalize the project timeline, and establish communication methods. It is also an opportunity to set the tone for the project and start building team confidence and cohesion. 

Get expert tips and learn more about project kickoff meetings — including what are Agile kickoffs, which steps to include, and how to plan and carry out a successful kickoff — in our essential project kickoff guide.

What Is a Project Kickoff Template?

A project kickoff template helps ensure that you cover all the information people need to work effectively and understand what constitutes project success. A kickoff template can be a preparation checklist, a meeting agenda outline, a presentation template, or an email announcement. 

Kickoff templates are designed to save project managers time and avoid overlooked details.

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Home Blog Business Quick Guide to Project Kick Off Meetings

Quick Guide to Project Kick Off Meetings

Every project beginning is exciting; all the members will have different expectations and feelings about the required results. Therefore, rapport is crucial to establish commitment and generate a sense of accountability for everyone when beginning a project. The first meetings must be a presentation that can set up the milestones, generate agreements over the scope, and define the tasks. 

The Project Kick Off Meeting provides the opportunities mentioned above, so this article will explore the steps to perform a smooth project start and a seamless kick off meeting.

What is a Project Kick Off Meeting?

Let’s begin imagining this simple scenario: people from very different backgrounds (let’s think IT and Marketing) will be starting a project together. Joining these two groups will also be members of the management team, financial experts, and even a project manager who will be in charge of making it all come together. The vision of all these very diverse teams must become aligned for the sake of the project. 

Depending on each project needs’, there has to be a clear definition of roles, and everyone will want to know what is expected from them. Having that sense of direction will establish a project flow that will come in handy when there is a need for flexibility. 

The project kickoff meeting is the first meeting that will happen between the project team and stakeholders. Regardless of whether they are all internal or external, it’s essential to make sure that the right people are in the conversation, and by right, we mean the ones who will push the project to success. You can find affordable kickoff meeting agenda templates for presentations in our website.

Now that we have cleared that out let’s jump into what makes a project kick off meeting great. 

How do you do a Project Kick Off meeting? 

The contents of the project kick off meeting can be relatively varied. However, a recommended structure exists to keep everyone on track. This meeting is fundamental not just in the human aspect but mainly as a planning tool where everyone knows who is involved, establishes an initial relationship, and defines a group pledge. 

Before the project kick off meeting 

Planning the project kick off meeting can be of great help for a smooth start. In your first steps to preparing your kickoff deck presentation, it’s important to consider where you need to allocate your resources. 

Define the impact of the project along with and metrics that state how the project will succeed. Remember to use SMART Goals : specific, measurable, actionable, realistic, and timely. This way, you will ensure that your project does not stray away from the vision and that all the project members are on the same page about timeframes, reach, and capacities. 

Identify the key players to attend the project kick off meeting

Once you have these logistics in place, have a one-on-one chat with the Project sponsor to align expectations. Also, it’s a good time to ask them to prepare some words about why this project is relevant to the organization. 

Ensure you additionally identify the Project Leader, facilitator, core team, and relevant stakeholders during this time. At this point, for your internal tracking and your eventual presentation during the meeting, you can use the RASCI model that will allow you to identify who is  R esponsible,  A ccountable,  S upportive,  C onsulted, and  I nformed roles. You can iterate over this model during the meeting if you need changes or have the different players define their roles. 

Project Kick Off Meeting Agenda 

By this point, you have met and identified top stakeholders, and it’s time to take care of some meeting basics. Begin by setting up 1-2 dates and hourly options that can be more convenient for everyone in the team. If you’re working remotely, take into account time zones, and if you’re local, check if there is a meeting room or space available at the given times. As soon as you can, ideally at least a week before, send out all meeting invites and ad reminders for everyone. 

Now it’s time to define the project kick off meeting agenda; remember this is not information debrief only, but a get-together where you will level with all parts to make sure agreements are established. 

Now let the project kick off meeting begin!

All the required team members show up on time; we notice some of the marketing team members share comments of excitement about the project and ask some first exploratory questions to the IT team. It’s time to start. 

Start by welcoming everyone, and then move forward to the project kick-off principles: collaboration is required to generate more reliable results, find as much data possible to have a shared understanding, open up to possibility, and share a positive mindset. 

Good practices in the Project Kick Off Meeting Start 

If you want to go the extra mile, this is a great opportunity to showcase the Project Charter , including the goals, team, timeline, and scope to understand visually. During the meeting, you can even send out the Project Charter as a pdf for everyone to keep and even print at will. 

Also, you can structure the first minutes of the kickoff presentation as a simplified elevator pitch to establish the problem and solution upfront. 

Remember that in SlideModel.com we have a wide array of templates you can use for your project planning business presentations, you can check out the Project Management Pack PowerPoint Templates which is one of our most comprehensive templates.

Structuring your Project Kick Off Meeting

As we’ve seen until this point, the project kick off meeting is important meeting and eventful. Therefore we want to recap what your meeting agenda should include. 

1. Introduction 

In every concurred meeting with people from different teams, it’s a good idea to consider not everyone knows each other. Begin with a brief round of introductions. As a protip, provide them with a little script that includes name, team, and role to keep it short and candid, i.e., ¨My name is Donald, and I’m the Development Lead¨

2. Project Background 

It’s good for all parties to know where the project is coming from and share essential lessons from similar projects like it or similar stakeholders. 

3. Reason or purpose of the project: Why are we doing it? 

This is a perfect moment to introduce the Project Sponsor as they will want to share the project’s vision and why its execution is vital to the organization. Their intervention can either happen as the first item on the meeting. It can happen after the introduction or even after the project charter, but the sponsor’s short speech is a must. 

4. Project Scope: Where we begin and end? 

The project’s beginning and end are conceptually closer than we might think. As Stephen Covey said ¨start with the end in mind¨, is a great tip for this moment because while discussing and defining the project scope, everyone can get aligned and know what is expected from the final product ahead.  

5. Action plan and milestones: What’s the playbook? 

The project charter might come in handy here, as it will help build a general comprehension of what the project must look like. It’s essential to have an action plan with actionable steps to allow everyone to know what tasks must be done. Eventually, this can become the project backlog and can serve as a playbook to revise in retrospectives. 

6. Role definition: Who does what? 

Even though everyone will come to the meeting with certain expectations, it’s recommended that you and the project sponsor are clear on who will perform which task. This way, accountability can be established since the first encounter, and responsibility can be provided to each in their area. 

7. Collaboration: How are you going to work together 

Regardless of whether the tool is physical or virtual, it’s a great idea to show the team where all the information will be set. There are several tools out there that are great for project management. However, a tool like Trello, for example, will allow you to create Kanban boards that will allow a clear ¨to do¨, ¨in process¨and ¨done¨ methodology that includes high visibility. Afterward, you can convert those Trello Boards into presentations that can be used in daily meetings or other relevant project meetings. 

8. Success: How does it look like 

Along the way, many opportunities will show up. However, it’s great to know the true north of the project. Ensuring everyone knows what success looks like in this project will ensure that all the people in the project have the same goal and won’t be stuck in analysis paralysis. Ensure that there is absolute clarity about this last step and what are the final results expected. 

Key concepts about the project and establishing rapport 

In your role as a presenter, you have delivered vital information about the project, introduced the project sponsor, and everyone now knows the project’s vision. It’s time to get people interacting to know each other, break the ice and get ready to work in synchronicity.

At this point of the meeting, you want all attendees to take ownership of the project and establish their working agreements. To do this, a simple but yet effective ice breaker can be a great way to go. Share the Vision, Mission and Mission tests that the Project Leader has created and start with the activity. 

Separate your attendees into 3 groups: Vision, Team Mission, and Team Mission tests. They don’t have to be together with people of their specific area (i.e., Marketing, IT, etc.); this can be random to mix people so they can meet each other. Give each mini-team 20 minutes to refine the initial statements and define any specific they have to improve the project. 

How to finish the Project Kick Off Meeting Closing and Next Steps 

The first steps have been completed. To close the meeting, provide some minutes to your Project Sponsor for the last hype to your team. The upcoming weeks or months will be full of tasks to complete, and in the end, that same team you gathered today will have completed a successful new solution. 

After the meeting is over, make sure you set up the next steps, including the kick-off meeting, setting up planners and software, and preparing materials for all the involved. Remember to set up Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) so that all the objectives will be measured timely for the best results. 

Final Words 

Congratulations, you have conducted your first Project Kick Off Meeting! However, it’s not time to lay back and relax but actually to keep the momentum going. Your team had the information to begin, but now there needs to be a solid follow-up to ensure the tasks will be done as per the previous agreement. 

Hopefully, the first meeting will have set up the event tone, and all the parts are equally invested in the new project to come. 

1. Project Management Super Pack Templates for PowerPoint and Google Slides

With this super pack Project Management Template you can find the essential tools you might need to do kickoff presentations for your project, including agendas, roles setting, timelines, project charter, heatmaps, teams, and more. 

Use This Template

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Project Kickoff

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A project kickoff meeting is the first meeting between a project team and the client or sponsor of a project when kicking off a new project. It will take place after contracts have been signed and there is agreement on the statement of work, costs, and timeline, although sometimes with new clients this paperwork may not be finalized. Watch Adriana’s YouTube video which outlines everything that goes into a fully fledged project kickoff meeting agenda .

The purpose of a project kickoff meeting is to introduce the team, understand the project background, understand what success looks like, understand what needs to be done, and agree on how to work together effectively. It is a chance to level set and get the team and client on the same page.

For the agency team who are tasked with delivery of the project, the project kickoff meeting is an opportunity to get key information they need to succeed and demonstrate their enthusiasm and understanding of the project, it is a chance to instill confidence in the client that they have made a good decision in their choice of agency and project team.

There is no doubt a project kickoff meeting can set the course and tone for the rest of a project. The project kickoff meeting can contribute enormously to the success of the project itself. And done badly, the project kickoff meeting can destroy any chance of success before the project has even started.

The kickoff meeting is an enthusiasm-generator for the customer and displays a full summary of the project so far. By displaying a thorough knowledge of the goal and steps on how to reach it, the customer gains confidence in the team’s ability to deliver the work. Kickoff means that the work starts.

This Project Kickoff Meeting template consists of four modern and stylish slides. The first slide gives you the opportunity to prepare questions for the main four categories – Defined Need, Readiness for Change, Time, Resources, Personnel, Sustainment of Change. This slide will be useful for project managers in their daily work.

The next slide is presented in the form of a graph, which contains the main four phases of the project development – Conceive, Develop, Execute, Finish. For each phase of project development, you can describe in detail a list of actions.

The next slide will help you present the steps for each period of the project over a twelve-week period. This slide will be useful for development managers. For example, you can describe in detail your company development strategy or new product promotion. This template will be useful for CMOs when preparing an advertising campaign plan.

Moreover, this template can be used by construction companies when preparing a plan for the commissioning of a new building. You can change the size and position of objects as needed. The slides of this template will be useful for planners. Also, this template can be used by business coaches and university teachers when preparing their courses.

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Project kickoff meeting agenda powerpoint presentation slides

Conduct a successful product launch meeting with the help of our content ready Project Kick-off Meeting Agenda PowerPoint Presentation Slides. The meeting for starting new project PowerPoint complete deck comprises of 23 slides including project description and scope, core team, project management team, responsibility assignment matrix, RACI- rapid, project management cycle, work breakdown structure, project cost estimate, project management Gantt chart, communication plan, work priority allocation, tracking plan etc. Additionally, all elements of given templates are fully customizable. This allows users to create a presentation very quickly. Furthermore, you can use the project agenda presentation deck to explain your understanding, methodology and to show the structure of your organization, milestones list, etc. Explain the project, its background, business needs and why it is important for stakeholders and company using this initial project agenda presentation deck. Download project management kick-off meeting PPT visuals to showcase project communication and reporting system. Generate intense faith with our Project Kickoff Meeting Agenda Powerpoint Presentation Slides. Heighten the belief in your commitment to deliver.

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PowerPoint presentation slides

Presenting this set of slides with name - Project Kickoff Meeting Agenda Powerpoint Presentation Slides. All slides are completely editable and professionally designed by our team of expert PowerPoint designers. The presentation content covers all areas of Project Kickoff Meeting Agenda Powerpoint Presentation Slides and is extensively researched. This ready-to-use deck comprises visually stunning PowerPoint templates, icons, visual designs, data-driven charts and graphs and business diagrams. The deck consists of a total of twenty three slides. You can customize this presentation as per your branding needs. You can change the font size, font type, colors as per your requirement. Download the presentation, enter your content in the placeholders and present with confidence.

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Content of this Powerpoint Presentation

Slide 1 : This slide introduces Project Kick-off Meeting Agenda. State Your Company Name and begin. Slide 2 : This slide shows Table of Content of the presentation. Slide 3 : This slide presents Meeting Agenda as- Discuss Project Background, Identify Stakeholders, Review Project Objectives. Slide 4 : This slide represents Project Description including- Project Objective, Target Audience, Project Scope. Slide 5 : This slide displays Project Scope describing- Project Acceptance Criteria, Project Scope Description, Project Exclusions, Project Assumptions, Project Deliverables. Slide 6 : This is Core Team slide with names and designation. Slide 7 : This slide showcases Project Management Team covering all those people who would be responsible for project implementation. Slide 8 : This slide shows Responsibility Assignment Matrix - RACI describing the four types of association for a role to a task. Slide 9 : This is another slide continuing Responsibility Assignment Matrix – RACI. Slide 10 : This slide presents Responsibility Assignment Matrix - RAPID describing the five types of association for a role to a task. Slide 11 : This slide displays Project Management Cycle describing- Conceive, Develop, Execute, Finish. Slide 12 : This slide represents Work Breakdown Structure defining the Action Plan of Roles and Responsibilities as per the Tasks or Phases. Slide 13 : This slide showcases Project Cost Estimate to measure the productivity and the cost of projects, through out the project lifecycle. Slide 14 : This slide shows Project Management Gantt Chart covering the entire work plan of the project split across different months. Slide 15 : This slide presents Project Communication Plan in tabular form. You can change the data as per needs. Slide 16 : This slide displays Work Priority Allocation in tabular form for assigning project tasks with the scale of prioritization. Slide 17 : This is another slide for Work Priority Allocation with a milestone chart to manage the timescale of project activities. Slide 18 : This slide represents Project Tracking Plan with four common KPI objectives to keep a track of overdue tasks. Slide 19 : This is About us slide to show company specifications etc. Slide 20 : This is a Comparison slide to state comparison between commodities, entities etc. Slide 21 : This is a Bulb and Idea slide to state a new idea or highlight information, specifications etc. Slide 22 : This slide is titled as Post It. Post your important notes here. Slide 23 : This is a Thank you slide with address, contact numbers and email address.

Project kickoff meeting agenda powerpoint presentation slides with all 23 slides:

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Kinross to provide an update on the Great Bear project

TORONTO, Sept. 04, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kinross Gold Corporation (TSX:K; NYSE:KGC) (“Kinross”) will release its Preliminary Economic Assessment for Great Bear followed by a virtual presentation and question and answer session on Tuesday, September 10, 2024 at 9 a.m. EDT.

The presentation will be accessible via audio webcast on  www.kinross.com , where it will be archived.

Great Bear Technical Presentation details

To access the call, please dial:

Webcast Link: https://meetings.lumiconnect.com/400-478-546-594

Canada & US toll-free: 1-866-613-0812 Outside of Canada & US: 647-694-2812

Replay (available 30 days after the call):

Canada & US toll-free: 1 (877) 454-9859 Outside of Canada & US: (647) 483-1416 Passcode : 4887947

You may also access the conference call on a listen-only basis via webcast at our website www.kinross.com . The audio webcast will be archived on www.kinross.com .

About Kinross Gold Corporation

Kinross is a Canadian-based global senior gold mining company with operations and projects in the United States, Brazil, Mauritania, Chile and Canada. Our focus is on delivering value based on the core principles of responsible mining, operational excellence, disciplined growth, and balance sheet strength. Kinross maintains listings on the Toronto Stock Exchange (symbol: K) and the New York Stock Exchange (symbol: KGC).

Media Contact Victoria Barrington Senior Director, Corporate Communications phone: 647-788-4153 [email protected]

Investor Relations Contact David Shaver Senior Vice-President phone: 416-365-2761 [email protected]

Video Script

8 pasos para lograr un kickoff meeting exitosa y lanzar tus proyectos eficazmente

Por Daniela Lorenzo Correa

El 30 de agosto de 2024

La reunión de kickoff (o reunión de lanzamiento ) es, sin duda, la reunión más importante en la gestión de proyectos .

Esto se debe a que las principales partes interesadas se reúnen por primera vez con el objetivo de alinearse en los objetivos del proyecto, identificar los recursos necesarios para alcanzarlos y resolver cualquier punto crítico. El resultado clave: garantizar que todas las etapas siguientes se desarrollen de manera fluida y eficiente.

Sin embargo, para que una reunión de lanzamiento sea verdaderamente eficaz, debe seguir una serie de pasos . Son 8 en total, y los abordaremos en este artículo.

Pero antes de profundizar en el tema, ¿qué es exactamente una reunión de kickoff y por qué es tan importante?

Kickoff meeting: definición

La reunión de kickoff , también conocida como reunión de lanzamiento o reunión de inicio , se lleva a cabo durante la fase de definición de un proyecto , justo antes de pasar a la acción. Reúne a las partes interesadas esenciales, en particular al equipo del proyecto (liderado por el jefe de proyecto ) y al promotor .

Es importante destacar que los proyectos de gran envergadura a veces requieren varias reuniones de lanzamiento, una al inicio de cada fase importante.

☝️ ¿Es necesario planificar una reunión de kickoff para un proyecto ágil ? ¿O solo para proyectos gestionados con métodos tradicionales ? En realidad, esta reunión es imprescindible, independientemente de la metodología de gestión de proyectos que se elija.

¿Cuáles son sus objetivos?

• Determinar los desafíos del proyecto y aclarar sus objetivos ;
• Evitar áreas de incertidumbre que puedan comprometer su buen desarrollo;
• Discutir los puntos esenciales y resolver dudas ;
• Establecer las reglas y buenas prácticas que guiarán el proyecto;
• sus necesidades ,
• sus responsabilidades ,
• su nivel de implicación ;
• Anticipar los riesgos y resolver los puntos críticos;
• Definir un plan de acción concreto y el calendario del proyecto .

☝️ El objetivo de una reunión de kickoff va más allá de la simple planificación estratégica y operativa. También es una oportunidad para establecer buenas relaciones entre las diferentes partes interesadas, lo que garantiza mejores colaboraciones en el futuro. En resumen, la reunión de lanzamiento crea una dinámica positiva al unir a todos los socios en torno a un objetivo común.

Las 8 etapas a seguir para un kickoff meeting exitoso

Etapa 0: prepara la reunión de lanzamiento del proyecto.

Una reunión exitosa es una reunión bien preparada .

Por lo tanto, debes trabajar previamente en tu kickoff meeting para organizarlo de la mejor manera, tanto en contenido como en forma.

En cuanto al contenido

Lo ideal es contar con un plan de proyecto que exponga los aspectos principales:

• las fases principales ,
• los hitos ,
• las tareas importantes ,
• los recursos a movilizar, etc.

La presentación de tu kickoff meeting se basará así en un conjunto sólido de información para ir directo al grano y evitar desviaciones.

En cuanto a la forma

Algunos consejos para organizar mejor tu reunión de lanzamiento:

• Prepara uno o varios apoyos visuales en los que todos los participantes puedan apoyarse (un PowerPoint para proyectar, un dossier para cada colaborador, etc.).
• Invita a las personas correctas y asegúrate de no olvidar a nadie. Al revisar previamente el plan de proyecto, podrás identificar fácilmente quiénes son las partes interesadas indispensables para el buen desarrollo de la reunión.
• Piensa también en el lugar : más allá de las formalidades, el kickoff es una oportunidad para reunir al equipo, fomentar el compromiso y crear una dinámica de grupo positiva . ¿Por qué no considerar un lugar fuera de la empresa, por ejemplo?

Etapa 1: presenta a todos los participantes

¿Tu kickoff meeting ha comenzado?

Como en cualquier reunión, es importante hacer una breve ronda de presentaciones al inicio: ¿quién soy? ¿Cuál es mi rol en la empresa y/o en este proyecto?

☝️ Recuerda que algunas partes interesadas se están conociendo por primera vez, así que no descuides esta formalidad.

Etapa 2: recuerda el orden del día

Especifica al inicio de la reunión de lanzamiento:

• los objetivos del encuentro,
• las etapas que se abordarán,
• los resultados esperados.

Ejemplo de orden del día para un kickoff meeting:

Etapa 3: presenta el proyecto

• ¿Por qué y en qué contexto se lanzó el proyecto?
• ¿Cuál es su historial ?
• ¿Por qué se eligió a este equipo de proyecto para llevarlo a cabo?
• ¿Cuáles son los entregables esperados por el cliente?
• ¿Cuáles son los objetivos del proyecto?

Estas son preguntas que el kickoff meeting debe responder , ya que algunas partes interesadas no han estado involucradas en las discusiones iniciales.

El objetivo final de esta etapa es asegurarte de que todos los participantes tengan el mismo nivel de información y que no queden dudas.

Etapa 4: detalla el desarrollo del proyecto

Ya se han recordado los objetivos del proyecto en las etapas anteriores. Ahora es el momento de ver en detalle cómo alcanzarlos.

Durante el kickoff meeting, es importante especificar:

• las fases principales del proyecto,
• los entregables intermedios esperados,
• los plazos para estos entregables intermedios y, por supuesto, para el entregable final .

De esta manera, tranquilizas al cliente y confirmas que estás alineado con sus expectativas, especialmente en términos de resultados y plazos.

☝️ La reunión de lanzamiento también es una oportunidad para revisar la metodología de gestión de proyectos elegida y las razones detrás de esta decisión. ¿ Scrum ? ¿ Waterfall ? ¿Otra? El objetivo es que todos compartan una visión común para fortalecer el espíritu de cohesión durante la ejecución del proyecto.

Etapa 5: determina los roles de cada uno

Aunque se haya realizado una breve ronda de presentaciones al inicio, la especificación de los detalles del proyecto lleva a una definición clara de los roles de cada parte interesada .

• ¿Quién hace qué y por qué?
• ¿Cuáles son las competencias de cada uno?
• ¿A qué puntos de contacto dirigirse en prioridad?
• ¿Cómo se distribuyen las responsabilidades?
• ¿Quiénes son los responsables jerárquicos y los validadores?

Etapa 6: expone los riesgos potenciales

Para evitar que el proyecto se ralentice o enfrente problemas en el camino, es recomendable, desde el kickoff meeting, identificar las dificultades que podrían surgir. ¿El objetivo? Anticiparse para mitigar sus efectos si es necesario.

Etapa 7: establece una logística de comunicación

Para que tu proyecto sea exitoso, debe basarse en una colaboración sólida y una comunicación regular y fluida.

Por lo tanto, define procesos claros para tus intercambios futuros:

• ¿De qué manera las diferentes partes interesadas compartirán la información?
• ¿Con qué frecuencia?

Etapa 8: programa las próximas reuniones

Finalmente, al finalizar la reunión, te recomendamos que tomes el tiempo para programar los próximos encuentros y especificar los objetivos que deberán abordarse en ellos.

💡 Consejo: el kickoff meeting, al igual que cualquier reunión de trabajo, requiere la elaboración de un acta , que debe enviarse a todos los participantes.

Ahora conoces todas las condiciones necesarias para el éxito de tu kickoff meeting.

Pero más allá de las especificidades propias de la gestión de proyectos, la reunión de lanzamiento debe cumplir con las reglas que aseguran el éxito de cualquier reunión de trabajo en general: la preparación , la escucha , la interacción , el respeto del tiempo y una buena documentación son elementos clave que garantizarán la eficacia de tu sesión.

Daniela Lorenzo Correa , Editorial Manager

Daniela Lorenzo Correa es una dinámica administradora de empresas con un Máster en Marketing Digital y Estrategia Omnicanal de Montpellier Business School. Actualmente, trabaja como Editorial and Social Media Manager en Appvizer, donde continúa desarrollando su experiencia en la gestión de contenidos y estrategias en redes sociales. Su experiencia abarca Google Ads, Photoshop, Canva, Illustrator, SAP, redes sociales y herramientas de inteligencia artificial. Daniela ha liderado campañas de marketing, colaborado con influencers y contribuido significativamente a los esfuerzos de marketing en el mercado estadounidense. Además, tiene experiencia en la gestión de la identidad corporativa, la organización de eventos y la mejora de la eficiencia operativa. Nativa en español, con un nivel avanzado de inglés y francés intermedio, Daniela está lista para aportar sus conocimientos estratégicos e innovadoras estrategias de marketing para el éxito empresarial.