Project kickoff meeting agenda template
The kickoff call sets the tone for the whole engagement - or wastes everyone's first hour. This agenda keeps it tight: confirm the goal, the scope, who does what, and the very next step. Send it before the call. It's the meeting that should follow your onboarding checklist. Copy it below, or run onboarding and kickoff from a branded onboarding flow.
0/4 filled - the rest of the [prompts] you finish in your copy.
PROJECT KICKOFF - AGENDA [Client name] x [Agency name] Project: [project name] Date: [date] Duration: [45-60 min] Attendees: [names + roles] GOAL OF THIS CALL Leave aligned on the goal, the plan, who does what, and the next step. 1. WELCOME & INTROS (5 min) - Who's who on both sides; confirm the day-to-day contact. 2. THE GOAL (5 min) - Confirm the outcome this project must deliver, in one sentence. - Confirm how it will be measured. 3. SCOPE - IN & OUT (10 min) - Recap what's in scope (from the SOW) and what's explicitly out. - Agree how change requests are handled (a change order). 4. PLAN & MILESTONES (10 min) - Walk the timeline and key dates. - Confirm the first deliverable and its date. 5. ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES (5 min) - Who approves work on the client side (one approver). - Owners on the agency side. 6. WAYS OF WORKING (10 min) - Communication channel + cadence (e.g. weekly Thursday check-in). - Feedback turnaround (e.g. 3 business days). - Where files, status and invoices live. 7. RISKS & DEPENDENCIES (5 min) - What could slow us down; what we need from the client, and by when. 8. NEXT STEPS (5 min) - One clear next action, an owner, and a date. - Confirm the next check-in.
pick a version, copy it, or download as .docx or .pdf — then make it yours.
How to fill it in
Send it before the call
An agenda the client sees in advance turns a meandering intro call into a decisions call.
Confirm the goal in one sentence
If the room can't agree the goal in one sentence on day one, the project is already at risk.
Name the approver out loud
The kickoff is the moment to confirm who signs off - before three people start giving conflicting feedback.
Set the change-order expectation
Agree how scope changes are handled now, warmly, so the first 'can you just...' isn't a confrontation.
End on one next step
Close with a single owned action and a date - momentum out of the call is the whole point.
A filled-in kickoff agenda
A realistic, filled-in version - so you can see what good looks like before you start.
PROJECT KICKOFF - AGENDA Acme Roasters x Northwind Studio Project: Brand refresh Date: 18 Mar 2026 Duration: 50 min Attendees: Dana (CMO), Sam (marketing), Maya, Theo GOAL OF THIS CALL Leave aligned on the goal, the plan, who does what, and the next step. 1. WELCOME & INTROS (5 min) - Day-to-day contact: Sam and Maya. 2. THE GOAL (5 min) - Refresh the brand and ship a kit the team can use by week 6. - Measured by: brand guide delivered + applied to the homepage. 3. SCOPE - IN & OUT (10 min) - In: logo system, colour + type, one-page guide. Out: packaging, website. - Changes go through a signed change order. 4. PLAN & MILESTONES (10 min) - Concepts wk 2-3, refine wk 4-5, guide wk 6. First deliverable: concepts, 28 Mar. 5. ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES (5 min) - Approver: Dana. Agency owners: Maya (account), Theo (design). 6. WAYS OF WORKING (10 min) - Weekly Thursday check-in over Slack Connect; feedback within 3 business days. - Files, status and invoices live in the client portal. 7. RISKS & DEPENDENCIES (5 min) - Need existing brand assets by 20 Mar to hold the timeline. 8. NEXT STEPS (5 min) - Dana sends assets by 20 Mar; Maya books the concepts review for 28 Mar.
Common mistakes
- Walking in without an agenda, so the call wanders and ends with no decisions.
- Skipping the one-sentence goal - everyone leaves with a slightly different project.
- Never confirming the approver, so feedback later arrives from three directions.
- Glossing over how changes are handled, then having the scope fight in week three.
- Ending with 'we'll be in touch' instead of one owned next step and a date.
Run kickoff from one branded place
A great kickoff scatters into notes, emails and a shared doc nobody reopens. Forge gives each client a branded space where the plan, milestones, files and status from the kickoff stay live - so week one's momentum doesn't leak away.
Frequently asked questions
What should a project kickoff agenda include?
The goal, an in/out-of-scope recap, the plan and milestones, roles and the approver, ways of working, risks, and one clear next step.
How long should a kickoff meeting be?
45-60 minutes is plenty if you send the agenda in advance. The aim is decisions and alignment, not a status update.
Who runs the kickoff call?
The agency's account or project lead runs it; the client's approver should attend so decisions made in the room actually stick.