Thread:Sections that make up a charter (1)

I propose the following sections that make up a charter:

1.	Objective (What is the purpose for creating the team?)

2.	Workgroup facilitator (Will the team be manager led or self-managed? If self-managed, who will act as facilitator?)  The facilitating role could be a shared responsibility, either consecutive or concurrent.

3.	Skills required to achieve the objective – Notice that skills are listed as those that are needed, and not simply the skills of its members, which in most cases are already included in the userpage.

4.	How will members be defined? Since members are open to join, will there be certain categories of membership?

5.	Resources required to achieve the objective (i.e., grants, external expert assistance, etc.)

6.	Boundaries – How much time will the workgroup be given to achieve responsibilities? How often are members expected to contribute?

7.	Workgroup process – How will the members get the job done? When and how will the team meet? What are the expectations regarding participation towards the objective?

8.	Securing equal commitment – Do members share a willingness to achieve the objective? What circumstances might limit the members’ ability to perform up to the expectations of others?

9.	Resolving conflict – WE values. A frank discussion about potential discord. The two most common examples are those members who don´t “pull their weight” or do their fair share of the work, and those who tend to dominate the group.

10.	A project plan – to do list; who will do what and when; a schedule of activities with person responsible and due-date.

11.	Evaluating and learning from the process – How will members know what mid-course corrections need to be made to the process or plan? How will members measure progress? What can members learn from the experience about how not only to make workgroups better, but future workgroups as well.

This is a modified version found in Thompson et al. (2000, pp. 70-72), "Tools for teams: Buildling effective teams in the workplace", and I think it serves well with what WE is trying to accomplish with the establishment of charters. Instead of viewing a charter as a static document, it becomes more useful if it’s treated as a “living” document that matures over time. However, the more of these items that can be determined from the beginning the better, in my opinion.--Benjamin Stewart 05:13, 5 July 2009 (UTC)