PRELIMINARY PROJECT SCOPE STATEMENT TEMPLATE

This Preliminary Project Scope Statement Template is free for you to copy and use on
your project and within your organization. We hope that you find this template useful and
welcome your comments. Public distribution of this document is only permitted from the
Project Management Docs official website at:
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PROJECT REQUIREMENTS AND

PRELIMINARY PROJECT SCOPE STATEMENT

<PROJECT NAME>

TEAM NUMBER:

TEAM MEMBERS:

DATE:
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PRELIMINARY PROJECT SCOPE STATEMENT......................................................................................2
PROJECT OBJECTIVES......................................................................................................................2
PRODUCT ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA...................................................................................................3
PROJECT BOUNDARIES.....................................................................................................................3
PROJECT REQUIREMENTS AND DELIVERABLES................................................................................3
PROJECT ASSUMPTIONS....................................................................................................................3
INITIAL PROJECT ORGANIZATION....................................................................................................3
INITIAL RISKS...................................................................................................................................3
SCHEDULE MILESTONES...................................................................................................................3
INITIAL WBS (HIGH LEVEL).............................................................................................................3
COST ESTIMATE...............................................................................................................................3
REQUIREMENTS TRACEABILITY MATRIX...........................................................................................4

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PRELIMINARY PROJECT SCOPE STATEMENT

Write an brief introduction here that succinctly defines the scope of the project (Hint: complete
most/all of the requirements definition work first…)

This Preliminary Project Scope Statement defines the scope of the <Project Name> project. –

PROJECT OBJECTIVES
State the objective(s) of the project and resulting products.
(Project objective(s) should refer to the business benefits the organization expects to achieve as
a result of spending time and effort to complete the project).

The objectives should be concisely written so they can be evaluated after the completion of the
project to determine whether they were achieved (or not). Objectives should be Specific,
Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time-bound.

Example objective statement: "upgrade the helpdesk telephone system by December 31 to

achieve average client wait times of no more than two minutes".
 The objective is concrete and specific
 The objective is measurable in terms of the average client wait times
 We must assume that the objective is achievable and realistic.
 The objective is time-bound (completed by December 31).

Objectives point to the deliverables of the project – i.e. what is to be produced as part of the
project. In the example above, the upgrade of the telephone system. If you cannot determine
what deliverables are being created to achieve the objective, then the objective may be written at
too high a level. On the other hand, if an objective describes the characteristics of the
deliverables, they are written at too low a level. (If they describe the features and functions, they
are requirements, not objectives).

In your description, include excluded objectives and benefits which some stakeholders might
expect or assume, but will not be realized as a result of the project. Be sure to list excluded
objectives that might be expected. Example: A project sponsor might expect that by deploying a
new IT system that the productivity of people using that system will increase, when in actuality
their productivity will not increase.

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PRODUCT ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA

What criteria must be met for the project to be considered complete and accepted by
management? This section is important as it sets the expectations of what will and will not
constitute acceptance of the project. Acceptance criteria may be both qualitative and
quantitative.

To ensure the quality of the products developed under the <Project Name> the following
product acceptance criteria have been established <bulleted list of acceptance criteria>:
 .


PROJECT BOUNDARIES
What is included in the project?
What is not be included in the project?
(Without specific boundaries, scope creep may result as some stakeholders may assume certain
items will be included in the project that are not).

PROJECT REQUIREMENTS AND DELIVERABLES

What are the overall REQUIREMENTS? – i.e what needs must be met
What are the specific DELIVERABLES? – i.e. what must be produced to meet the needs?

PROJECT ASSUMPTIONS
What assumptions are you using?

INITIAL PROJECT ORGANIZATION

What does the project team look like?

INITIAL RISKS
What risks do you see with the project?

SCHEDULE MILESTONES
What are the major project milestones?

INITIAL WBS (HIGH LEVEL)

Outline the major project tasks

COST ESTIMATE
Outline the estimated cost to complete the project

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Be sure to provide a breakdown of the major cost components in the project

REQUIREMENTS TRACEABILITY MATRIX

Provided a matrix that outlines requirements from identification through to implementation

PROJECT MANAGEMENT APPROACH

As the <Project Name> Project Manager, <Name> will have overall authority and
responsibility for the acceptance of the deliverables defined in this project. The project team will
consist of personnel from <Project Team>.

This requirements and preliminary scope statement authorizes <describe the project here.>.

A project plan will be developed and submitted to the Project Sponsor for approval.
Commencement of project activities will begin upon approval of the project plan and the
resources to execute it by the Project Sponsor

The purpose of the <Project Name> project is to <limit the description to a short paragraph>.

The Project Manager, <Name>, is hereby authorized to interface with management as required,
negotiate for resources, delegate responsibilities within the framework of the project, and to
communicate with all contractors and management, as required, to ensure successful and timely
completion of the project. The Project Manager is responsible for developing the project plan,
monitoring the schedule, cost, and scope of the project during implementation, and maintaining
control over the project by measuring performance and taking corrective action.

The objective is to complete the project within the time, cost and quality constraints to be set
forth in the project plan.

The budget for the <Project Name> project is $XXXXX. It is to be funded through <funding
source(s)>.

Approved by the Project Sponsor:

___________________________________________ Date:____________________
<Project Sponsor>
<Project Sponsor Title>