Kickoffmøtet

Kickoffmøtet, or kickoff meeting, is the initial meeting that marks the official start of a project or a project phase. The primary purpose is to align stakeholders around the objectives, scope, constraints, and success criteria, and to establish the project’s governance, communications, and planning framework.

Participants typically include the project sponsor, project manager, core team members, customer representatives, and any key suppliers or end users. The meeting draws on input from the project charter, business case, and initial requirements.

A typical agenda covers: the project background and objectives, scope and boundaries, high-level schedule and milestones, roles and responsibilities, decision-making and approval processes, risks, communication, and next steps. The main outputs are a refined project charter, a high-level plan, a risk register, and documented decisions with owners.

In practice, kickoffmøtet may differ for traditional (waterfall) projects and agile environments. In agile settings it may emphasize the product vision and release plan, while still clarifying governance and how success will be measured. Best practices include timeboxing the meeting, ensuring key stakeholders attend, documenting decisions, assigning owners, and scheduling follow-up actions.

If not conducted, projects risk misaligned expectations, scope creep, and poor stakeholder engagement. In many cases, kickoffmøtet is followed by detailed planning or a formal project initiation phase.