Templates
A template starts a project with a complete example plan for a particular kind of work, so you adapt something that already works rather than starting from nothing. You choose one when you create a project (see Getting started).
What a template gives you
Each template sets up a whole plan, written for a realistic example project:
- an introduction and scope
- phases with their durations, and milestones and gates with their criteria and approval authorities
- the organisation: the parties involved and their roles, plus governance bodies in the engineering templates
- work packages and activities, each with its phase, roles, RACI responsibilities and estimated hours
- products, with the activities that produce them and the products they depend on
- processes and tools
The template is applied in the background when the project is created. A notice at the top of the project shows while it's being set up, which usually takes a few seconds.
The templates
| Template | For |
|---|---|
| Simple Project | Small internal projects such as an office relocation, a process improvement or an event. Four phases (Initiation, Planning, Execution, Closure) with two gates. |
| Product (Aerospace) | An avionics unit or aircraft subsystem developed to ARP4754A, DO-178C and DO-254, from concept to EASA or FAA type certification and entry into service. |
| Product (Automotive) | An ECU or automotive subsystem developed to ISO 26262 and ASPICE, from concept through A, B and C samples to start of production, with functional safety and PPAP deliverables. |
| Rail (Australian) | State rail infrastructure such as station upgrades, level crossing removals and track duplication, aligned with ONRSR and AS/NZS standards. |
| Rail (UK, Network Rail) | UK rail infrastructure through GRIP stages 1 to 8, with stage gates, Network Rail safety assurance and CDM compliance. |
| Grid-Scale Battery Energy Storage System | A transmission-connected battery storage facility, from development and grid connection through design, construction and hold-point commissioning to market registration. |
| Major Construction (Nuclear UK) | A UK nuclear new build, from Generic Design Assessment and site licensing through the nuclear safety case, construction and commissioning to full power operation. |
| Software (Agile, Desktop App) | A cross-platform desktop application delivered in sprints, from discovery to general release, including installers and auto-update. |
| Software (Waterfall, Web App) | A bespoke web application under a fixed-price contract, from discovery to deployment, with formal sign-off gates and change control. |
If nothing fits, the Simple Project template or a Blank project is a good place to start.
Adapting a template
A template describes an example project, with example organisations and people. Work through it tab by tab and make it yours:
- Overview: rewrite the introduction and scope for your project.
- Organisation: rename the parties to your own organisations and teams, add the people in each role, and delete the ones you don't need.
- Lifecycle: adjust the phases, their durations and the milestones. Templates set phase durations in weeks, so if your project uses Specific dates, give each phase its planned start and end.
- Activities and Products: rename, delete and add to them until they describe your work. Check the roles and hours on each activity.
- Health Check: run it to find anything your changes have left disconnected, such as a product nothing produces any more (see Health Check).
Templates estimate hours with a single figure for each role. If you want optimistic, most likely and pessimistic estimates, switch the project's Estimation mode to three-point in Settings (see Estimating).
A template is only used when the project is created. You can't apply one to an existing project, and changes you make never affect the template.