Project Kickoff and Alignment Workshop
Project managers, delivery teams, cross-functional project teams, PMOs
Establish a shared operating context, reinforce project fundamentals, surface assumptions and risks, generate alignment actions, and prioritize delivery concerns.
Workshop Goal
Establish a shared operating context, reinforce project fundamentals, surface assumptions and risks, generate alignment actions, and prioritize delivery concerns.
- Establish a shared operating context for the project
- Reinforce project-management fundamentals in an energizing format
- Surface project assumptions, risks, and dependencies
- Generate alignment actions
- Prioritize the most important delivery concerns
MyWorkshopTools handles the technology, timing, and participant experience. You focus on the conversation.
Workshop Timeline
A step-by-step structure for the full 60-minute session.
- Icebreaker Experience 8 minEstablish a shared operating context and build team cohesion.Cross-functional teams often don't know each other well. Start with something that builds connection before diving into project work.
- Team Trivia 10 minReinforce project-management fundamentals in a short, energizing format.Keep Trivia short and energizing. It's a warm-up, not a test. Celebrate correct answers.
- Team Polls 10 minSurface current-state assumptions about the project.Polls surface assumptions. Pause on any result where the team is split — that's a misalignment that needs to be resolved.
- Idea Storm 15 minIdentify risks, dependencies, success factors, and alignment actions.Ask the team to surface risks, dependencies, and success factors — not just tasks. These are the things that will determine whether the project succeeds.
- Priority Poker 12 minPrioritize the most important delivery concerns and alignment actions.After reveal: "These are the things the team said matter most. These go on the project risk register."
Facilitator Guide
Key Notes
- Trivia should be short and energizing — a warm-up, not a test.
- Polls surface assumptions. Splits in poll results are misalignments that need resolution.
- Idea Storm should identify risks, dependencies, and success factors — not just tasks.
- Priority Poker output should feed directly into the project risk register.
- Close by naming who owns each top priority.
Discussion Tips
- What assumption are we making about this project that we haven't validated?
- What's the one thing that could derail this project that we're not talking about?
- What does success look like for this team at the end of the project?
Closing Prompts
- "What's one commitment you're making to this project team?"
- "What's the one risk you want to make sure we don't lose sight of?"
Delivered Through Workshop Plans
When launched, this Playbook becomes a Workshop Plan that guides facilitators through each activity, tracks workshop progress, and supports structured delivery from beginning to end.
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