Application Project Team Charter Outline
Before completing this charter, read Roger Kaufman’s article and my file regarding means and ends.
The purpose of developing a team charter is to jump-start your work together as a learning team, help you avoid or quickly avoid common problems, and facilitate continual improvement of your team’s performance. By addressing the following issues at the beginning of the course, you will be able to enhance your team performance, member satisfaction, and course results.
Another purpose of the team charter is to give me notice of how you plan to work together and a “measuring stick” whereby to measure to what extent you have achieved your goals. Your team goals should be stated as measurable ends, not as means whereby you intend to achieve those ends. Develop your team charter through mutual sharing and consensus. Include the following components in your written team charter.
I. Mission statement
a. Team purpose (This is your mission statement)
i. Why do you exist as a team?
ii. What do you want to accomplish and why?
iii. What metrics will you use to determine whether you have accomplished your mission (if I can’t measure it, you haven’t accomplished it).
b. Team goals (These are means to your mission)
i. What team goals do you have to accomplish to attain your mission?
ii. How will you measure team progress toward accomplishing those goals?
iii. Describe individual and mutual accountability for goal achievement.
c. Member goals (These help align individuals to the overall team goals)
i. Clarify in measurable terms what each member expects to achieve by being a part of this team.
ii. What do you have in common?
iii. How do individual goals differ? (Clarify grade expectations, learning goals, and social expectations, etc.)
II. Boundaries
a. What policies, procedures and values do you subscribe to that cannot be violated?
b. What are the limitations on the teams’ performance (e.g., time and resources)?
III. Operating guidelines: Team structure and processes
a. How will you perform the work that has to be done on the various assignments?
b. How will you communicate with each other?
c. How will you facilitate member growth and development?
IV. Performance norms and consequences (Performance Agreement)
a. How will you measure overall team and member performance?
b. How will you reward overall team and member performance?
c. How will you deal with dysfunctional behaviors, e.g., dominating, withdrawing, wasting time, free riding, etc.?
d. How will you evaluate member contribution to the team process?
e. What expectations do you have for team meetings, will you have team meetings?
f. What consequences for missing or being late to a meeting and valid excuses for missing or being late?
g. What is expected quality of assigned work?
V. Charter endorsement
a. All team members sign the team charter agreement.
Sample Solution