3 Project Kick-Off Meeting Agenda Templates

Project kickoff meeting agenda template

This is part of our series on meeting agenda templates. You can edit these project kick-off meeting agendas in Google Docs or Word or print them out. 

Meeting Agenda Templates > Project Management Agendas > Project Kick-off Meeting Agendas

I ran a small marketing agency for six years. We were so small (~8 people) that I was the head of operations and head of client accounts. The dual position taught me a lot about how to run a good kick-off meeting – both internal and external (clients).

In this article, you’ll find the real project kick-off meeting agendas we used (after rounds of revisions). Click on a link below to jump to one of these three project kick-off meeting agenda templates:


 

Internal Project Kick-off Meeting Agenda

internal project kick-off meeting agenda

Access the free agenda in Docs | Download all 50 for $47

Purpose: To get the key people on the same page at the start of a new internal project.

Kick-off Meeting Agenda Template:

  • Attendees: Everyone who will be working on the project (or managers all of all teams working on the project)
  • Frequency: Adhoc
  • Duration: 1 hour

Agenda:

  1. Project Overview (10 minutes)
    • Presentation of the project’s origins, goals, and purpose
  2. Roles & Responsibilities (10 minutes)
    • Introduction of all team members
    • Clarification of responsibilities for each team member
  3. Project Plan & Timeline (15 minutes)
    • Review of the project timeline and phases
    • Discussion of key tasks, milestones, and deliverables
    • The first set of deadlines
  4. Systems (5 minutes)
    • Overview of the project management tool to be used, Slack channel, other software tools that will be used
  5. Questions (15 minutes)
    • Open Q&A
    • Discussion of potential roadblocks and ideas
  6. Next Steps (5 minutes)
    • Immediate tasks and responsibilities that need to get done
    • Booking of the next meeting


 

New Client Kick-off Meeting Agenda

Project kickoff meeting agenda template

Access the free agenda in Docs | Download all 50 for $47

Purpose: To officially start a new project with an external client.

Template:

  • Attendees: Company point person (or people), client point person (or people)
  • Frequency: Adhoc
  • Duration: 1 hour

Agenda:

  • Team & Introductions (10 min)
    • Quick round-table introductions to acknowledge each team member
    • Discussion of roles specific to this project and areas of responsibility
  • Project Overview (15 min)
    • Presentation on the project’s goals, scope, and significance
    • Explanation of how the project aligns with broader organizational objectives
  • Systems (15 min)
    • Overview of the tools and systems that will be used in the project
    • Discussion on access, training needs, and integration with existing systems
  • Meetings (5 min)
    • Establishment of meeting schedule for the project duration
    • Agreement on recurring meeting times, formats, and essential participants
  • Timeline (10 min)
    • Detailed review of the project timeline with key milestones and deadlines
    • Identification of critical dates and scheduling constraints
  • Next Steps (5 min)
    • Assignment of initial tasks and responsibilities to team members
    • Confirmation of the date and time for the next project meeting


 

Agile Project Kick-off Meeting Agenda Template

agile project kick-off meeting agenda

Access the free agenda in Docs | Download all 50 for $47

Purpose: To start a new project at a company that uses the Agile Project Management methodology. 

Template:

  • Attendees: Everyone who will be working on the project (or managers all of all teams working on the project)
  • Frequency: Adhoc
  • Duration: 1 hour

Agenda:

  • Project Overview (10 minutes)
    • Presentation of the project’s origins, goals, and purpose
  • Roles & Responsibilities (10 minutes)
    • Introduction of all team members
    • Clarification of responsibilities for each team member
  • Scope & Roadmap (10 minutes)
    • Refresher/overview on the specific agile methodology being used (e.g., Scrum, Kanban)
    • Overview of the project scope
    • Presentation of the initial product roadmap
  • Release & Sprint Planning (15 minutes)
    • Discussion on release planning strategies and schedules
    • Agreement on sprint length, recurring sprint meetings (daily standups, sprint reviews, retrospectives)
  • Questions (10 minutes)
    • Open floor for team members to ask questions or clarify doubts regarding the project or agile processes
  • Next Steps (5 minutes)
    • Immediate tasks and responsibilities that need to get done
    • Booking of the next meeting

 

Tips for a Successful Kick-off Meeting

If you want to have a successful project kick-off meeting, most of the work will come before the meeting. If everything about the project is dialed in beforehand (and communicated beforehand), the meeting can be a quick review with lots of good questions/discussions. If you aren’t prepared, the meeting will turn into an on-the-fly, all-hands project planning session. You don’t want that.

Here are my tips for running a successful kick-off meeting:

 

Before the Meeting

  1. Complete the agenda, goals, scope, etc.
  2. Set up all software systems (and invite people)
  3. Assign out all first tasks (if they don’t require discussion first)
  4. Book recurring meetings
  5. Invite everyone who will be working on the project
  6. Send an agenda before the call

 

During the Meeting

  1. Make sure roles are clear
  2. Make sure one task or responsibility area is assigned to one person only
  3. Screenshare to show where the project will be managed
  4. Have specific tasks that people need to do next

 

After the Meeting

  1. Assign out any additional tasks that were decided during the meeting
  2. Send a summary of the meeting
  3. Remind people when the next meeting will occur

 

Similar Meeting Agendas

Click the links below to access another meeting agenda template.

View the complete meeting agenda template library

 

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