Consulting engagement: project kickoff brief

Capture problem statement, success criteria, stakeholders, constraints, and working norms at the start of a consulting or advisory engagement.

What this template is for

Strong kickoffs reduce scope drift. This brief collects the decision context your team needs: what is broken, what “fixed” looks like, who can approve changes, and what constraints (time, budget, politics) are real.

When to use it

SOW signed, work about to start.
Phase two of a multi-phase program.
Executive transitions when stakeholders shift mid-engagement.

Tips

Pair with a stakeholder map work session for large orgs; this request still anchors async input.
Export completed items to your state of engagement memo or internal CRM.

Checklist preview

What this template asks for

These items are cloned into your workspace when you use the template. Edit anything before you send.

7 items

Problem statement (current state)
Required Long answer

What is not working today, with examples.

Avoid solutions. Focus on symptoms, impact, and frequency.
Desired outcomes (future state)
Required Long answer

What must be true when we are done?

Prefer measurable signals: cycle time, margin, NPS, incident rate, etc.
Executive sponsor and day-to-day lead
Required Long answer

Names, roles, and escalation path.
Constraints
Long answer

Budget band, fixed deadlines, technology you cannot change, regulatory boundaries.

“Unknown” is an acceptable answer if we will discover together.
Working norms
Long answer

Preferred meeting cadence, tools (Slack, Teams), and confidentiality expectations.
Key documents or data we should review first
File upload

Attach org charts, process maps, prior assessments, or metrics exports.
I confirm internal stakeholders are aware this engagement is starting
Required Checkbox

Reduces silent blockers later.

Add this to your workspace, then send when you are ready

We save it as a template so you can adjust items, choose a client, and send like any other request.