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Understanding and Leveraging the Agile Team Charter

Three people stand behind a glass wall covered with colorful sticky notes, smiling and discussing ideas as they collaborate on their Agile Team Charter in a creative workspace.

Understanding and Leveraging the Agile Team Charter

By: Hajime Estanislao, PMP, CSM; Editor: Geram Lompon; Reviewed by: Alvin Villanueva, PMP

You’re leading an Agile project—or at least trying to—but something isn’t clicking. Team roles feel unclear, communication gaps slow progress, and decision-making lacks structure. Even skilled teams struggle without a shared understanding of how they work together. Without clear guidance, collaboration weakens, and efficiency declines.

That is where the Agile Team Charter comes in. It is not just another document but a roadmap for team success.

A well-crafted team charter periodically aligns team purpose and clarifies roles and expectations so your team can confidently move forward. Imagine a team where everyone is clear on responsibilities, seamless collaboration, and productivity soars. Sounds ideal, right?

This article will walk you through creating, implementing, and refining an Agile Team Charter to improve team cohesion, efficiency, and project outcomes. Download a free customizable Agile Team Charter template from ROSEMET LLC to get started!

A woman stands and speaks to eight colleagues seated around a conference table in a modern office with large windows and natural light, as they collaborate on their Agile Team Charter. Laptops and documents are spread across the table.

What is an Agile Team Charter?

An Agile Team Charter is a collaborative agreement that outlines the team’s mission, values, objectives, responsibilities, and ways of working together.

Unlike traditional project charters dictated by management, the team builds an Agile Team Charter for the team, making everyone invested in its success.

Think of it as a team playbook that helps:

  • New team members get up to speed quickly
  • Clarify responsibilities and decision-making authority
  • Reduce misunderstandings and inefficiencies
  • Strengthen teamwork and accountability

By keeping the team charter visible and revisiting it periodically, teams ensure it remains relevant and evolves with project needs. This makes it an essential tool for Scrum Masters, Agile Coaches, marketing teams, and project managers navigating Agile and hybrid environments.

A man in a suit points to a corkboard with colorful sticky notes labeled "To Do," "In Progress," "Testing," and "Done" as he discusses the Agile Team Charter while two people seated at a table listen attentively.

Why You Need an Agile Team Charter

Skipping an Agile Team Charter is like setting off on a road trip without a map—you might eventually get there but expect plenty of wrong turns along the way.

Without an effective team charter beforehand, teams waste time figuring out roles, responsibilities, and processes on the fly. The team charter shines in avoiding this confusion.

Four people gather around a desk with laptops and papers, actively discussing an Agile Team Charter. Two are seated while two stand behind them. The background features brick walls, tall curtains, and a clock.

How an Agile Team Charter Helps Your Team Succeed:

  • Brings everyone onto the same page – Makes all team members align on goals, mission, and workflows.
  • Clarifies responsibilities – Eliminates confusion by defining who owns what.
  • Encourages effective collaboration – Establish a structured way to handle communication, decision-making, and conflict resolution.
  • Speeds up onboarding – Helps new team members integrate smoothly into the team.
  • Strengthens accountability – The team takes ownership of commitments and holds each other responsible.
  • Boosts Agile adoption – Helps teams effectively navigate frameworks like Scrum, Kanban, SAFe, or hybrid models.
  • Enables continuous improvement – Serves as a living document that adapts to the team’s needs.

Understanding the practices of the Agile Team Charter means setting your team up for greater alignment, efficiency, and success.

Five professionals stand by a glass wall covered with colorful sticky notes. A woman in front points at a note, while the group smiles and watches, engaged in an Agile Team Charter discussion or brainstorming session.

Step-by-Step Guide to Creating and Using an Agile Team Charter

Unlike rigid project charters, an Agile team charter is dynamic, evolving as the team grows and adapts to challenges.

By co-creating the charter, teams build a sense of ownership and accountability, fostering transparency and trust.

Step 1: Align the Team on the Charter’s Purpose

Before drafting, bring the entire team together to establish why the charter matters. Agile thrives on collaboration, and the charter must be built together, not handed down.

  • Host a team kickoff meeting with all team members, the Product Owner, and the Scrum Master.
  • Discuss the team’s mission, project goals, and expected outcomes.
  • Capture input from every team member to build shared ownership.
  • Document the team’s mission and goals in clear, simple terms.

Five people gather around a laptop, smiling and collaborating in an office setting as they discuss their Agile Team Charter. A corkboard with colorful sticky notes is visible in the background.

Step 2: Define Team Roles and Responsibilities

Agile teams are self-organizing, but that doesn’t mean roles should be vague.

Clarity ensures smooth collaboration for many teams.

  • Define key roles (Product Owner, Scrum Master, Developers, Stakeholders, etc.).
  • Spell out responsibilities and decision-making authority for each role.
  • Promote collaborative ownership rather than rigid job descriptions.
  • Encourage cross-training so team members can support one another.

A group of six people sit around a conference table with laptops and coffee cups as one person presents an Agile Team Charter using a whiteboard in a modern office setting.

Step 3: Set Team Norms and Working Agreements

Establish how the team will collaborate, make decisions, and handle challenges to keep the team’s work flowing smoothly.

  • Define ground rules for communication, meetings, and decision-making.
  • Set expectations for daily stand-ups, sprint planning, retrospectives, and backlog refinement.
  • Outline how the team will resolve conflicts and provide feedback.
  • Keep these agreements visible in a shared workspace (Confluence, Miro, Jira, etc.).

A man in business attire points at a whiteboard covered with diagrams and sticky notes while presenting an Agile Team Charter to three seated colleagues in a modern office meeting room.

Step 4: Define Success Metrics and Continuous Improvement

An effective Agile team doesn’t just work—they continuously improve. Setting metrics to measure success ensures progress is measured and optimized.

  • Identify key Agile metrics like velocity, sprint burndown, and customer satisfaction.
  • Use Kanban boards, Agile dashboards, or retrospectives to track progress.
  • Encourage feedback loops to identify what’s working and what needs adjustment.
  • Keep the charter flexible—revise it after major milestones to reflect team growth.

Three business professionals stand in front of a glass wall covered with colorful sticky notes, collaborating on their Agile Team Charter. An office setting with colleagues working in the background is visible.

Step 5: Keep the Charter Visible and Update It Regularly

The charter only works if people use it! Make sure it’s easy to find and updated regularly.

  • Store it in a shared location (Jira, Confluence, Notion, or a physical board).
  • Schedule quarterly or milestone-based reviews to maintain alignment with team goals.
  • Encourage team members to contribute suggestions for updates.
  • Integrate it into team onboarding and retrospectives.

Four people are gathered in an office, collaborating around a computer and discussing their Agile Team Charter. One person gestures toward the screen while the others listen attentively, surrounded by papers, notebooks, and laptops on the desk.

Taking It to the Next Level

Want to make your charter even more powerful? Here’s how:

  • Introduce team health checks—regularly evaluate how well the team follows the charter.
  • Align with company-wide Agile coaching—tie the charter to broader Agile transformation initiatives.
  • Customize for scaled Agile—modify it to fit frameworks like SAFe, LeSS, or Disciplined Agile.
  • A dynamic, focused, and outcome-driven charter doesn’t just set expectations—it drives long-term team success.

A person typing on a laptop with an Agile Team Charter concept and a cloud download icon drawn in chalk on a blackboard, next to a smartphone, eyeglasses, and a cup of coffee.

Download Your Agile Team Charter Template

A well-crafted Agile Team Charter creates clarity, strengthens teamwork, and sets the foundation for success. By defining roles, working agreements, and success metrics, teams and employees can work more effectively and confidently.

Ready to bring structure and alignment of core values to your Agile team? Download Rosemet LLC’s customizable Agile Team Charter template and take your team’s collaboration to the next level!

References

Beck, K., Beedle, M., Bennekum, A. V., Cockburn, A., Cunningham, W., Fowler, M., … Thomas, D. (2001). Manifesto for Agile Software Development . Retrieved from https://agilemanifesto.org

Project Management Institute. (2021). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) – 7th Edition. Project Management Institute.

Scaled Agile, Inc. (2021). SAFe 5.0: The Scaled Agile Framework for Lean Enterprises. Retrieved from https://www.scaledagileframework.com

Schwaber, K., & Sutherland, J. (2020). The Scrum Guide: The Definitive Guide to Scrum: The Rules of the Game. Retrieved from https://www.scrumguides.org

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