Closing a project is like stretching after a workout. People know they should do it, but they’re so glad to be done, they skip it. But stretching helps you avoid injury and increase flexibility, and in a sense, this is exactly what project closure does. It helps you avoid mistakes in the future and take lessons learned to new projects. You are more agile and prepared.

Project closure follows the completion of all project deliverables and their acceptance by stakeholders and sponsors. What you’re looking for is the business to say, “We’ve accepted this; we believe this project has met all the conditions outlined in the business case and is returning us X$ amount on our investment, or meeting this strategic goal.”

Are We Done Yet?

The closure process includes handling details, such as making sure that contracts with vendors, suppliers, and consultants are properly terminated, taking back possession of key documents so no one outside the organization has proprietary materials, and returning all equipment. It also takes on higher-level aspects:

• Has completion criteria been met?
• Is the project operational?
• Are people trained?
• Is there knowledge transfer?

End-results are critical, but we also want to look at whether the process was complete as well. Are they any outstanding items, activities, risks, or issues to handle?

What’s Next?

Before the project is complete we need to have a completed transition plan with operations. We make sure that the appropriate people have the right documents and processes. Often a project team includes an operations person, everyone assumes that he/she will run the initiative or know everything about it. That’s not always the case. It may be that this person is an executive and won’t get on the ground level. In any case, you have to make sure that there is a transition plan in place and that everyone understands roles and responsibilities and has the tools and training they need to make it work.

As employees go back to their operating units, it’s a great idea to do performance appraisals. How did they contribute? What did they do as part of this project team? In many cases, they’re out of sight of their own supervisor or manager for months. That input is important to share.

How Did We Do?

Project closure is an opportunity to review the project and determine how well we’ve performed against objectives and how well we complied with project management processes. Did we get results as defined in the business case? Did we do what we said we were going to do? Did we achieve objectives as outlined in project charter? Did we have significant organizational change management issues? What were they? How did we handle and close them? Were deliverables within the quality criteria we established? Did we deliver on time, on budget? If not, why not?

What Did We Learn?

The big thing that you take away from project completion is the lessons learned. The goal is to communicate these with the project team and emphasize that they can be recycled as invaluable tools for the next project. It’s a continuous cycle of learning. That learning should also extend to the project manager. Did I do well? What could I do better? Could I have handled issues differently? A mini-audit can help you evaluate your performance and become a stronger, more effective project manager.

Project closure typically is not a priority for companies that want to put a project to bed and move on to the next opportunity. It’s important, though, because this knowledge, especially of what could be improved, is where the value is. If everything goes wonderfully, great. But capturing how you handled problems, how you identified them, how you reacted to them, and how you overcame them, is what really allows the organization to grow.

Remember to celebrate your project success with your team!