Business
Project brief Template
One page: the goal, what is in, what is explicitly out, and who decides.
Four steps
How to print a project brief
- 1
Start from this form
Opens on the project brief: Project, Owner, Date, What we are doing, Why, and how we will know it worked and the rest.
- 2
Put your own heading on it
Replace "Project Brief" with a name, a business or a date range.
- 3
Set the row height
18 rows at 6 mm fits more in; 14 mm suits a form filled in by hand.
- 4
Print or save as PDF
What is out of scope is the line to get right.
Who prints this
The person starting a piece of work with somebody else, where the two of you have not yet noticed you disagree. Freelancers and clients, or two teams who will otherwise find out in week three.
The field that decides whether it works
What is out of scope. It is the only section that prevents an argument later, and it is the one every brief leaves blank because writing it down feels unfriendly at the start and saves the relationship at the end.
Why it is laid out this way
In scope and out of scope are given equal space on the page, which is the entire point of the sheet. Approvals sit in a table at the bottom with a name and a date, so the brief records who agreed as well as what was agreed.
What is on the sheet
5 sections, in this order: Project, Owner, Date; What we are doing; Why, and how we will know it worked; What is not included; Milestones. Set the row height anywhere between 6 and 14 mm across its 18 ruled rows, put your own heading at the top, and find the project brief alongside 3 other forms on the invoice and receipt forms page.
Answers