Week 12 - Closing out report

Closing out the project

The main task at this stage is the handover of the deliverable, as scoped, to the client. At this stage you tick off the items and ensure that everything within the project has been finalised. The key areas of this stage are:

•     Client acceptance
•     Lessons learned
•     Celebrating success
•     Stakeholder debrief and evaluation
•     Closing out the project
•     Contract close-out

The ultimate aim of project management is to bring the project to a successful and complete conclusion. Hopefully, if you have done your job properly, this would have been closely monitored and evaluated against the predetermined criteria with little room left for ambiguity or missed expectations.

As well as delivering the project to your client, the project manager and team members should use this time to look back over the project for mistakes made and the lessons learned as a result. The final stage should involve:

•     Delivering the project’s objective, output or final result
•     Finalising all the administrative issues
•     Evaluating the project and the process

Do all project finish successfully? NO!!! Some projects

•     Fail to finish at all
•     Drift off in a non-scheduled (and non controlled) direction
•     Are superseded with newer ideas and supporters.

Class Activity

Can you think of an example of a project that has failed to finish? Which of the above reasons do you think apply to why the project failed to finish?


If a project is not going to be completed successfully, when do you terminate the project or decide that the project should not continue?

You can start by asking the following questions throughout the project:

•     Is the project still consistent with the organisational goals?
•     Is management enthusiastic about continuing the project?
•     Does the project enjoy cross-functional support?
•     Is there still a return on investment?
•     Are there better alternatives for the funds, time and personnel devoted to the project?
•     Is the project team still innovative?
•     Has the project lost any key personnel?
•     Can the deliverable be more efficiently purchased or subcontracted rather than being developed in-house?
•     Have any changes in the marketplace warranted the project’s outcome and/or termination?
•     Is the client satisfied? (Has client acceptance been obtained?)
•     Is the current project team properly qualified to complete the project?
•     Do other projects warrant higher priority?
•     Is the probability low that the outcome will be realised?
•     Are all the tasks finished?
•     Is the testing finished?
•     Are the training programs prepared and/or finished?
•     Is the supporting equipment installed and operating?
•     Are the documentation manuals finished?

Client Acceptance

The only stakeholder who can ultimately know whether the project is finished or not is the client. The process of acceptance should always be completed as formally as possible so that there is a comprehensive sign off on each and every aspect of the deliverable. This should include the following:

•     A written acceptance procedure;
•     A completion checklist;
•     Specification conformance;
•     Acceptance or performance testing; and
•     Final payment

Lessons Learned

Every project, whether successful or not, will generate a ‘lessons learned’. A lessons learned is just that – some practical wisdom that has been observed and hopefully acquired while working on the project.

Lessons learned can be both positive and negative from both mistakes and successes during the project.

Lessons learned must be documented and shared with the other stakeholders, perhaps in a project review document or final project report. The information can then be used when planning and managing future projects.

Celebrating Success

Every project has some success and success should be rewarded. Some of the ways that you can reward your project team are:

•     Introducing the team members to the client
•     Taking the team members out for a meal or coffee
•     Printing up some certificates
•     Formally appraising and recording the team members’ positive performance
•     Passing positive feedback on the team on to their line and/or functional managers
•     Getting all team members to give each other positive feedback on the tasks they performed
•     Giving the team members challenging duties and/or more complex project work
•     Channelling your personal feedback to the team members up the chain of command so a higher authority can be seem to be recognising their contribution
•     Recommending the team members for promotion as a result of their project achievement
•     Holding a PARTY for the team

Stakeholder debrief and evaluation

At the end of a project you need to bring the stakeholders together for a final debrief and evaluation of their contributions, feelings and outcomes.

The Client
You need to get feedback from the client:

•     Was the project delivered as specified?
•     Was the reporting documentation accurate?
•     Was the project delivered on time?
•     Were the communication channels kept open at all times?
•     Was the project delivered on budget?
•     Were all variations and scope changes addressed competently?
•     Was the project managed professionally?
•     Were the issues resolved in a win-win solution for all?
•     What improvements can you suggest with regard to how future projects are set up and managed?

The Stakeholders
Stakeholders are anyone with a vested interest in the project’s outcome. Each stakeholder should be questioned so that you gain an understanding of the project from their perspective:

•     Were you satisfied with your level of involvement in the project?
•     Were you always kept informed of the project’s achievements and failures?
•     What part did you play in the decision making processes
•     Could the consultation processes be improved?
•     What improvements can you suggest with regard to how future projects are set up and managed?

The Project Manager
The project manager has had a lot riding on their back throughout the project so you should take the opportunity to review their performance also.

•     Were you satisfied with you access to, and support from, the relevant stakeholders?
•     Do you believe you had sufficient time, budget and resources to complete the project?
•     Did you have the appropriate level of authority, power and responsibility?
•     Was the project team appropriately skilled?
•     Do you require any additional training?
•     How effective were your leadership skills?
•     How effective were you at motivating and rewarding the team?
•     What improvements can you suggest with regard to how future projects are set up and managed?

The Project Team
You should meet with the project team one last time and get feedback as they were the ones doing the main work.

•     Was your workload appropriate?
•     Were all the disputes resolved amicably?
•     Were all decisions reached through consensus?
•     Did your level of skills reflect the nature of the tasks you worked on?
•     How would you describe the project environment in which you worked?
•     How would you describe the project manager you worked for?
•     Did you always have sufficient information, time, resources and money to make the decisions you were required to make?
•     What improvements can you suggest with regard to how future projects are set up and managed?

The Close-out Report
The close-out report should be a summary of the highs and lows, success and failures, of the project through the concept , outline, progress and outcome stages. It should address the project performance, administrative performance, organisational structure, project teams, and project management techniques.

Contract Close-out
If you have entered into any formal contracts during the project development, such as maintenance contracts, client contracts, warranties etc., you will need to make sure that these are closed off and/or signed off.