33+ Sample Project Roadmaps

Project Roadmaps: What Are They?

A project roadmap depicts a strategic, high-level overview of every key component involved in a project. This form of business roadmap marks your official reference to look at the bigger picture of any future project such as each project milestone, objective, timeframe, deliverable, or risk. And project roadmaps are the best communication system when it comes to sharing with the whole team how projects should turn out as planned.

According to a project management survey, 70% of projects tend to fail.

Why Is a Project Roadmap Important?

Project roadmaps are the key to visualizing project tasks and objectives within a feasible timeframe. But why else is it important or needed in any project in the first place? In this section, you will learn the many essential reasons for having a project roadmap.

Connection to Project Goals

There are times when a project management workflow plan works exactly as planned, but it may not always align with your organization’s goals and objectives. Hence, project roadmaps exist to help you ensure that your project objectives are met during the project’s outcome. As the project information is presented visually, stakeholders and team members get a proper understanding of why there is a need to deliver that project successfully.

Step-by-Step Mapping Tool

You will appreciate project roadmaps for showing you every single step needed to carry out the project successfully. Thus, this is a mapping tool that highlights your project’s task list. It answers what must be done from start to finish until the benefits from the project are acquired in the long run. So the next time any project team member loses track of what to do next, simply let the member refer to the roadmap for reference.

Reliable Timeline View

Project roadmaps don’t simply deal with what to do as it also tackles when to do such project tasks. Refer to the roadmap to view the timeframe of the project. This is helpful, particularly when setting a timeline for deadlines. Because without a deadline, who knows how long the project could be completed? Ensure to provide an agile project schedule on the roadmap to boost the project team’s productivity.

Dependable Progress Tracker

Want a thorough understanding of your project’s progress? The project roadmap can be a useful tool in creating your project tracking sheet. This explains why you can monitor the project’s milestones and progress because you can report for observations on a timely basis. Without a tracker, there would be no assurance as to how near or far your project is to completion.

High Success Rate for Projects

A project roadmap is linked to your project plan. So you are guaranteed that your entire strategic plan will reach a successful turn in the future. As all project members follow the requirements and instructions in the roadmap, projects do not have to fail. Take this opportunity to improve the success rate of every project instead.

What Makes a Standard Project Roadmap?

Project roadmaps don’t have to be the same for every organization. In fact, projects are different from one application to another as a project could be related to healthcare, construction, school, or any other aspect. However, there is a similar format for standard project roadmaps. And they often contain the following elements:

Project Overview: High-level project overviews are a must. That means you describe in detail each project’s objectives, the steps in accomplishing such goals, and the desired results. It can deal with more key details such as the project budget, schedule, status, and resources. But, keep the overview in a few sentences only as long as it is straightforward.Schedule Overview: There is a separate overview specifically for the general timeframe of the project. Make sure that the project task schedule, deadlines, and significant dates are summarized in this segment. You can always refer to a printable calendar in denoting the time and date by also considering that the schedule set is attainable or practical.Key Milestones: Part of formulating the project roadmap is to highlight particular dates, especially those times where important milestones must be reached. An example is to set the milestone in completing the pre-production process of your project. There will be different milestones and targets to reach per project and setting realistic expectations is a must.Dependencies: In writing every deliverable in the project roadmap, be sure to state the connection of each task to the project. The same goes for how the deliverables will lead to a successful project. Other dependencies worth noting in the document will be included in this section.Resource Allocation: Jot down the cost estimations to fulfill the project. Besides mentioning the data from the budget sheet, you should also incorporate how resources are allocated. It deals more than just writing the tools and equipment list of your project because how it will play out in the project will be mentioned too.Key Contacts: Determine every person who will work on the project in case you need to contact them from time to time. That means you will list the name, address, and contact list details. For example, someone might be absent for a specific task. Hence, using the contact number in the key contacts section will be used to ask about what happened.Notes: Leave extra space on your project roadmap for possible notes. In the process of following the project roadmap’s instructions, there might be some observations and points worth mentioning. And any additional data can be added to this segment.

How to Make a Stellar Project Roadmap

Project roadmaps are a dynamic tool for your next potential project, especially when you now know its definition, importance, and elements. So are you prepared to create an excellent project roadmap of your own? Without further ado, here are the steps in building a proper project roadmap:

  • Step 1: Download a Sample Project Roadmap Template

    You need not go through the hassle of creating roadmaps from scratch. Simply choose and download from any of the 33+ sample project roadmaps listed above in this post. Each project roadmap example is editable and printable so you can design how the project roadmap presentation goes anytime. And you may even check out more roadmap examples such as a product roadmap, marketing roadmap, and many more. Customize a template now!

  • Step 2: Define the Project and Its Key Elements

    It is standard that developing the project roadmap should happen first before even formulating the project plan. But as much as possible, you should be able to define the general data of your project first, including its key components. This includes the project scope statement, level of expectations, and other objectives. When you have a clear vision of the project, writing the rest of the project roadmap gets easier.

  • Step 3: Assign Project Roles and Responsibilities

    Indeed, recognizing the tasks needed to achieve in a project is essential to a project roadmap. But you have to make sure you have enough staff to work on those duties. In fact, part of making the roadmap is to assign the project responsibilities and roles ahead. Start by identifying the project manager, team members, and external and internal stakeholders. Be sure to set up a meeting with the rest of the team ahead to introduce the task assignments promptly.

  • Step 4: Complete the Project Roadmap Components and Classify

    As discussed earlier on what makes a basic project roadmap, there are six standard elements from the project overview to the notes. Be sure to put them on your roadmap and classify each. Don’t just collate all the information without visual organizers or your document will end up being hard to read. You can make use of tables, organizational charts, graphs, and other examples to compartmentalize your data. Also, you can add more elements besides the six basic components as long as they are necessary for your project.

  • Step 5: Set a Communication Plan

    It is expected that you will evaluate and correct the content of your project roadmap. And once you are confident with the results, your next concern is how to present the information to the entire project team. A proper communication plan shall definitely do the trick. Maybe your team members do not understand the symbols used or that the instructions were too technical. Also, take this opportunity to discuss with the team in determining the project risks and analyzing the quality of the project. The more informed the members are, the better the outcome.

  • Step 6: Update the Project Roadmap Regularly

    You can refer to the project roadmap from time to time. But its data can be changed anytime too. Last-minute decisions might come up. Or perhaps, you need to highlight some details in the roadmap for your project’s progress report. So don’t ignore the content of the project roadmap after making it because it can be edited in the aftermath. And you need to outline what project changes were made in a dashboard or software to inform other members that there were alterations.

FAQs

What is the difference between a project roadmap and a project plan?

The project-roadmap-vs-project-plan debate has been talked about for years. Although they are linked to one another, there is also a polarity between the two. Project roadmaps are more on the visual overview of a project whereas a project plan is more detailed by mentioning the project requirements, activities, and other project data reports. So if you want to see the big picture of your project, use a project roadmap. And if you want in-depth information on a project, the project plan has your back.

What types of projects benefit from project roadmaps?

All sorts of projects can make use of a project roadmap. But generally, project roadmaps are appropriately used for marketing plans, IT strategies, business development projects, sales projects, technology projects, and project portfolio management.

What is a project charter?

A project charter is a useful tool to ensure the team members of the project and its stakeholders are in the loop. That means the project charter guides everyone to work on common goals. It is simply a short document, typically a one-page sheet, that talks about the entirety of a project.

Project managers often feel pressure since a single project can deal with numerous deadlines, tasks, resources, budget, and decisions. Nonetheless, they will continue to do their best to lead the whole team and reach project completion as soon as possible. And a well-made project roadmap can promise you just that. Optimize a sample project roadmap template and reach your project goals now!