Project Toolkitby Maxime Lab
Governance · tool 8 of 14

Governance · tool 8 of 14

Decision Log

Decision Log: keeps a record of what was decided, by whom and why, so it isn’t argued again.

Best for: Every project · Time: 2 min per decision
Domain: Governance · Focus area: Executing

How it works

Projects lose weeks reopening settled questions. A decision log is a simple list with the date, the decision, the options considered, the owner and the reason.

  • Record the reason, not only the choice.
  • Name one decider for each entry.
  • Link it from the project home page.

How to apply it

  1. Create a table with date, decision, options, owner, reason.
  2. Add entries at the end of every meeting.
  3. Share new entries in the weekly update.
In practice

“Chose vendor B over A: €8k dearer but already certified. Decided by sponsor, 14 March.”

Pro tip

When someone reopens a decision, ask what has changed since then. If nothing has, move on.

Use it

Quick check

What is most useful to record besides the decision?

Sources

  • PMBOK® Guide, 8th edition, and The Standard for Project Management (PMI, 2025)

Last reviewed 2026-11-02 against the PMBOK® Guide, 8th edition · Practitioner review pending · How this guide is made