How to create the perfect project plan in 6 steps

1. What a project plan includes
2. Step by step to the perfect project plan
3. Options for a project schedule and free template

"I love it when a plan works," Hannibal from the 80s series A-Team once said. However, the phrase was always based on planning, which is no different in project management. The better the planning, the more likely it is that the corks will pop at the end when the project has been completed to everyone's satisfaction. However, a project plan is not only important for the course of a project, but also serves as the basis for a good kick-off meeting and outlines the entire project. Numerous questions need to be answered, information collected and tasks defined.

So we sat down and wrote down what makes a good project plan and how you create a project plan. We have also created a project plan template for Word, which you can download below, and show you one or two project plan examples. All in all, we have come up with 6 steps that are sufficient to prepare you optimally for projects of any size. And as the tip of the iceberg, we provide you with suitable software recommendations from our comparison platform OMR Reviews.

What a project plan includes

The question of who is responsible for creating the project plan doesn't really arise. It should always be the project manager. In the end, he/she has to justify him/herself to the client and the executive floor. On the other hand, it is up to him/her to direct all those involved during the project in order to achieve the goals set out in the project plan. However, always keep in mind that the goals must be ambitious, but remain realistic and especially not go beyond the (financial) framework. Basically, a project plan is nothing more than a blueprint that contains the following parts as specifically as possible:

• Goals
• Outline the project
• Define tasks
• Create and visualize schedule
• Define roles
• Define resources
• Determine communication and controlling
• Have a plan B
• Schedule and prepare a kick-off meeting

A magic formula in project management says how detailed a project plan should be: the more precise the plan, the more promising the implementation. Admittedly, we have just invented the magic formula, but there is pure truth to it. Project planning is also very much about acceptance, obtaining information at important points and paving the way for efficient implementation.

Step by step to the perfect project plan

Step 1 - Information is everything

Whether it's your first or your umpteenth project, the most important step in creating a good project plan is to gather information. The more you can gather, the more concrete the planning will be. Talk to the stakeholders.

• What are their expectations?
• What goals do they want to achieve?
• To what extent do they want to be kept up to date?
• What budget and resources are available?
• How does the project fit in with the corporate philosophy?
• How will they measure success?

But don't forget one thing: if you are the project manager, you understand the subject matter of the project. If you think that expectations or goals are unrealistic, you need to address this. Otherwise, they will be so high on the part of the stakeholders that you cannot possibly be successful. Contribute your ideas too. The important thing about such a conversation is the exchange and the informative content for you. You can also look at lessons learned - either from your own past projects or those of other project managers. So step one is the foundation of your project plan.

Step 2 - Get to the heart of your goals

Now you need to get to the heart of your goals as precisely as possible. Define them and explain when they are considered achieved. What do you want to achieve with the project? This involves defining the milestones that need to be reached in between as well as the absolute end goal. Not every project has one of these, especially if you are working in agile project management. The individual definitions of milestones and/or sprints and when they are considered successfully completed are sufficient.

Do not underestimate the value of this step. If you do not declare the goals precisely or state "The project should be completed sometime between 2022 and 2024", your project is almost doomed to failure. On the one hand, you can expect unfulfilled expectations and, on the other, a lack of efficiency. The goals and milestones also serve as points of reference for the team and steakholders. If you define when, what and why should be done, everyone knows what is going on.

Step 3 - Define tasks

It is then helpful to define all the to-dos. In other words, what do you and the team have to do to achieve the goals. You can group related to-dos into work packages to keep an overview. If you already have specific people in mind who are to take on the respective tasks, assign them. Otherwise, you can add skills and positions so that you can list the necessary resources and roles in step 5. Deadlines are also an important tool for completing the objectives on time. However, always work in a little buffer, as no plan can be implemented 1:1 without unexpected events happening.

It is best to use project management tools to visualize the tasks. You can centralize all processes for the entire team, set up the schedule for the next step and assign the to-dos quickly and easily. The whole thing is also known as a functional specification. It contains every result and every service that is necessary to complete the project. Depending on the project, users on our software comparison platform OMR Reviews recommend the following three SaaS:

• monday.com
• Asana
• Trello

If these don't appeal to you yet, there are over 30 more project management tools waiting for you on OMR Reviews.

Step 4 - Visualize the schedule

Create a project schedule that clearly shows you and everyone else in the team what the journey looks like, when the individual stages are completed and when the goal is considered achieved. It is best to visualize this so that you can present it well at the kick-off meeting and so that everyone involved in the project has an overview at all times.

How can the project schedule be presented? The best way to do this is to create it in a project management tool. Most tools have an integrated feature for this - usually based on the Gantt chart - such as awork or MeisterTask. In this way, you can graphically depict all tasks, making related to-dos clear, deadlines visible and milestones highlighted.

Time planning as a Gantt chart in project management.

However, the best tip we can give you regarding a schedule is the following: prepare a plan B! By this we mean exactly two things. One is a time buffer that you should always keep in mind, as someone can always drop out or something else can come up. The other is to mentally run through scenarios that could arise and, in the worst-case scenario, turn your project plan and timeline upside down. The aforementioned lessons learned and your own experience will help you here. But stay relaxed: You can't possibly prepare for everything!

If your planning is well thought out, you don't have to expect chaos if something doesn't go as planned. Instead, you can devote yourself fully to the problem that has arisen without having to worry about the rest of the house of cards collapsing. Meanwhile, the project plan continues to be implemented.

Step 5 - Define resources and roles

"Who am I - and if so, how many" could also be the motto for step 5. In this case, "I" is the project plan and "how many" defines the resources and personnel required to implement it. You have to make this decision, but you have already found out what is available by talking to the stakeholders and have determined approximately what you need. During the development of the schedule, you have also specified how big the team needs to be in order to implement all tasks within your time frame. The resources therefore include the following

• Personnel
• Monetary budget
• Time

and beyond that

• Premises
• Tools and materials

Resources also require a buffer. Employees may leave the company or fall ill during the project. There is often more work than expected. In these cases, there should be enough resources in the form of personnel and money to cover such scenarios. No matter how good the project plan may be, hardly any project manages a precision landing in terms of resources and schedule!

Step 6 - Communication channels and controlling

Communication is not only important in relationships to ensure that things work together in the long term, but is also vital for the success of a project. Numerous studies in and outside of project management have now proven that poorly thought-out communication is a time waster par excellence. Fortunately, the digital world has various software solutions in store that allow you and your team to work effectively on the project and exchange information quickly. The only important thing is that you specify all communication channels in the project plan. We recommend the following:

• Emails for quarterly reports to steakholders and superiors
• Slack for internal communication (allow time to set it up for the project)
• Google Meet for video conferences (with screen transmission if necessary) so that you don't always have to rely on on-site meetings
• Project management tools in which all progress, logs and changes are recorded for everyone to see

Communication via the Slack tool.

You will often find communication features in the project management tools themselves. We list a few below.

Finally, don't forget to include a controlling instance to keep an eye on things. This is responsible for ensuring that the project plan is implemented and deadlines are met. This can be you as the project manager or you can assign a project manager for this. In the latter case, you should always be aware of everything.

Final step - prepare the kick-offs

Kick-off meetings help to get everyone involved on the same page in an informative and preparatory manner. These are at least as important as a proper project plan

Options for a project schedule and free template

These are: Writing it by hand, creating a Word or Excel document or using a project management tool. The first is probably too old school for today's (digital) times, the other two options are quite common. It is usually advisable to use a mix of both. If you like using Microsoft products, we have created a project plan template for Word.

Would you like a project plan template for Excel, for example? You can find it in the software itself if you search for "Gantt chart" or "project plan" under the templates. In both Word and Excel, you can then turn it into a PDF that you can print out or distribute digitally to the steakholders and other responsible parties.

You can then supplement this with a project management tool. In this tool, you can implement the majority of the six steps to make the plans accessible to the entire team. You can find over 30 reviews on OMR Reviews, where verified users share their experiences. You can find a small selection here:

• Asana was developed by Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz, among others, and is one of the most prominent project management tools on the market.
• Factro is a cloud software for task and project management. One focus of the tool, which was developed in Germany, is the creation of work breakdown structures and Gantt charts.
• MeisterTask is based on the Kanban method and is a master at adapting tasks to your team's workflow.
• Notion basically combines the features of Word, Excel and OneNote. It helps you to create and organize the project plan and manage the to-dos.

Notion in project planning.

6 minutes reading this article and now your head is spinning? Yes, it's all part of a project plan, but basically it can be created quickly once you've gathered the most important information. Together with our Word template and the right software, you can quickly set the course for a successful project.