Module 6: Project Closure

6.1 Project handovers to operations and support

Project handover to operations and support is the crucial process of

transferring a completed or ongoing project's responsibilities,
knowledge, and assets from the project team to the operational team that
will be responsible for its ongoing maintenance and support. This
handover ensures a smooth transition, enabling the operations team to
effectively manage, operate, and maintain the project deliverables after
the project team's involvement concludes.

The APM Body of Knowledge (APM, 2012) defines handover as “the

point in the life-cycle where deliverables are handed over to the sponsor
and users”. Anthony (2017) suggests that there are many scheduled
‘mini handovers’ as the project progresses such that at the end of
handover, all project assets, -information and -data have been transferred
to the owner. An effective handover will enable the owner to operate,
maintain and support the plant through its lifetime in a safe and
responsible manner. Here ‘effective’ means successful in producing a
desired or intended result.
Owner representatives should get involved on the project team
timeously. The different role players of the project should all understand
their responsibilities to achieve handover and be aligned on what
deliverables will be transferred.
Effective project handover is a win-win outcome. The project team is
recognised by the owner for creating a facility that meets owner
requirements by accepting handover, while the owner is assured that the
facility can be operated, maintained and improved in a sustainable way.

6.2 Factors for the successful handover of projects

A recent study from the APM Research Fund identified four broad
categories with three recommendations that emerge as factors that have
been in place on multiple projects that have handed over successfully
from transition to business-as usual.

As such these should be considered lessons learned and fall into the
category of ‘if you only do three things’ in each section:

Commercial/contractual

1. Requirements should be written into tender documentation/contracts

in as much detail and as specifically as possible including engagement
requirements, data environment and any standardisation of equipment or
product that the client requires.

2. Whole life cost must be considered if at all possible. Does spending

more now have an impact on the overall operating cost of the project
throughout its life?
3. Incentivise success. If a scheme is well delivered, this should reward
all parties.

Process

4. Handover is a process not a date. Planning for it should be from the

start of the project and it should be viewed as an incremental transfer of
knowledge and operation from project team to business-as-usual.

5. The benefits and deliverables must be measurable and communicable

from the start. Ask why are we doing this project and how will we know
when it is done?

6. Involve end users from the outset. Through stakeholder analysis,

understand who will benefit from the project, who will be required to
facilitate the delivery of the benefits and how the project outputs will
impact their role.

Data and knowledge transfer

7. Documentation must be written for the end users. It may require

different sets of documentation for different users but for documentation
to support knowledge transfer it needs to be meaningful, applicable and
relevant to the end users.
8. Collate lessons learned as the project progresses. It provides more
meaningful data for future projects, it can be tied to stage gateways or
key deliverables.

9. Agree the information requirements at the outset. This ensures all

parties have a clear deliverable, know what is expected of them and
work towards achieving the goal from the start of project.

People

10. Often overlooked but put simply get good people on your project and
keep them for as long as you are able.

11. Definition of stakeholders should be carried out throughout and in

detail. Who will be impacted by the project and who is needed to make it
a success?

12. The client role is pivotal including client engagement.

6.3 Types of Project Closures

6.3.1 Premature Closure

Premature project closure refers to the termination of a project before it

achieves all its intended deliverables or before it has been given the
opportunity to do so. This can occur due to various reasons, including
 strategic importance necessitating earlier completion or unexpected
changes in circumstances. It's important to understand the context of this
closure, as it may not always be a negative outcome, especially when
driven by strategic needs or unforeseen opportunities.

6.3.2 Reasons for Premature Closure:

 Strategic Importance:

Projects may be closed prematurely due to the need to deliver a product

or service ahead of schedule, such as a product launch, to capitalize on
a market opportunity.

 Unexpected Circumstances:

Events like a change in market conditions, a shift in company priorities,

or the emergence of a better solution can lead to the termination of a
project.

 Resource Constraints:

In some cases, projects may be closed due to a lack of resources, either

financial, personnel, or technological, making it impossible to continue.

 Project Failure:
If a project is clearly failing to meet its objectives, it may be more
efficient to close it down rather than continue to invest resources.

6.3.3 Implications of Premature Closure:

 Missed Deliverables:

The most obvious implication is that the project will not deliver all the
expected outputs or outcomes.

 Loss of Investment:

Resources invested in the project up to that point may be lost or not

fully utilized.

 Impact on Stakeholders:

Premature closure can negatively affect stakeholders who were

expecting the deliverables or were involved in the project.

 Learning Opportunities:
While negative, premature closure can also provide valuable lessons
learned about project management, risk assessment, and decision-
making.

b. Normal Closure

Normal means everything went to plan. You’ve completed the project on

time and on budget with only a few hiccups along the way. It’s the
ultimate project management win and (thankfully) the most common
type of project closure.
Normal project closure example: You worked on a developmental
project, and the end goal was to help a client launch a new app. You and
the project team successfully launched your client’s new app.

c. Perpetual

Ah, the perpetual project—a project management scenario of

nightmares. A perpetual project is one that just never ends. There’s no
precise finish date or idea of successful closure. With no end in sight,
stakeholders request constant add-ons, testing, fixes, and extensions
outside the project scope.

These nightmare scenarios happen when clear outcomes and closure

objectives aren’t formally agreed to or set. Dr. Al Zeitoun said, “You
have to have a joint view of what project success looks like.” The Senior
Director of Strategy at Siemens recommends defining the project goals
and creating a shared vision of success “early.”

Pro tip: Avoid perpetual project add-ons by embedding closure

objectives within the project initiation and planning stages of the project
life cycle. You’ll also want to define the project scope. Then, if
something’s outside of the agreed scope, you can suggest a new project.

d. Change in priorities
As with perpetual closure, a change in priorities sometimes can’t be
helped. It’s not a result of anything anyone has done, and it’s not
personal—the project’s not a high priority anymore. Not all’s lost,
though. The project could resume later, or the stakeholder may ask you
to manage a new project.

Change in priorities project closure example: The broader financial

landscape is turbulent, or your stakeholder’s industry is volatile. Perilous
economic times often force businesses to shift resources to cost-saving
efforts.

e. Failed

Failed project closure means the project didn’t achieve its aim. In this
case, a client will typically close out the project immediately. But here’s
the thing, sometimes, project failure is outside your control (or your
team’s control). Most projects come with many moving parts, people,
goals, and sometimes limited resources.

To protect your well-being, try to stay positive but pragmatic. This is a

learning experience, so dust yourself off and apply your new knowledge
to the next project. To protect your team’s well-being, clearly
communicate the reasons for project closure without playing the blame
game.
Pro tip: Effective workload planning can help protect your team’s well-
being throughout a project and ensure success.

6.4 The importance of project closure

We can’t understate the importance of project closure in project

management. Get this stage right, and you’ll protect your project from
perpetual or failed closure.

Let’s examine three more added benefits of project closure.

1. Wrapping up the project

Perhaps the most crucial upside of the project management closing

phase is tying up loose ends. For a start, it’s the ideal opportunity to let
stakeholders know the work is over.

Plus, you can ask all parties to formally agree that you met objectives
and ensure everyone’s happy with the outcomes. You can also hand over
deliverables and wrap up with a project management closure report.

Pro tip: Don’t forget the finer details—test the project closure
deliverables, review your project strategy, and communicate results to
your client and team.
2. Understanding the next steps

The closure stage of a project helps you set a precise end date, avoiding
disaster scenarios like a perpetual project. It also empowers you to
review what’s happened and what needs to happen to agree on your next
steps. The next steps could be reviewing any tasks you or your team
need to finish to close the project successfully. You’ll then need
to allocate resources and track task completion.

Another next step could be handing the project over to another

department (internal or external) for the next stage. A handover might
happen when the final deliverables need specific support and resources
outside the existing scope.

3. Sharing team learning

A project evaluation meeting isn’t mandatory, but we highly recommend

running one with your team. The purpose of a project evaluation is to
share project closure best practices. It’s an opportunity to review
deliverables against project goals, learn from mistakes, and repeat any
successes on future projects.

Sharing learning as a collective means you can avoid repeating mistakes

and instead focus on repeating project wins. It’s also a valuable
opportunity to review the project budget against what you actually spent.
(You might be able to replicate some cost-saving activities.)

We recommend using a resource management tool to report on resource

utilization. That way, you can recap where your team spent their time
throughout the project. You can then identify bottlenecks caused by
resource allocation. That could include a team member being
overworked while someone with a similar specialism was
underutilized.

Pro tip: Share your evaluation meeting findings with stakeholders. It’s a
fantastic way to add value and follow up with clients once the project’s
finished. It could even put you and your team top of mind for the next
big project.

6.4.1 Project closure phases: technical, learning, and people

The three key project closure phases are technical, learning,

and people.

1. The technical phase helps you tie up loose ends and complete
administrative tasks. It provides a definite sense of completion to
your project.
2. In the learning phase, you and your team examine what worked
well and what didn’t. (Whether your project ran without a hitch or
 you jumped more hurdles than Lolo Jones, there’s always learning
to share.)
3. The people phase is a chance to celebrate your team’s
achievements and provide emotional closure. Tell your team about
their impact on the project, reiterate their work was meaningful,
and thank them for their efforts. Doing so cultivates a positive,
supportive environment that improves team performance.

Here are a few project closure phase activities in the context of the
technical, learning, and people phases.

Project closing
Phase Purpose
phase activities

You now have materials available for

Create a digital
future reference. Other team members
Technical archive of
and departments will be able to learn
project resources
from your processes.

You can refer to these critical lessons

Note down any
Learning in the future or make them available to
lessons learned
colleagues.

People Celebrate as a You all worked hard, don’t forget to

team celebrate. It’s a fantastic way to boost
 Project closing
Phase Purpose
phase activities

team morale and reaffirm a positive

company culture.

6.4.2 What is the primary focus area during the project closure
phase?

Your primary focus during the project closure phase should be

confirming project closure with stakeholders. If you don’t all come to a
consensus here, clients might ask for amendments long after the project
should’ve finished. You’ll also need to send stakeholders any
deliverables and a final report.

You should also focus on tying loose ends and finalizing admin tasks.
Assign final tasks, get contracts signed, collate documents, and ensure
people can access deliverables. Releasing resources, ending vendor
contracts, and paying outstanding invoices are also essential.

Once the project is officially closed, archiving documentation for future

use is an essential and sometimes forgotten step. Lastly, remember to
cultivate emotional closure and celebrate with your team.
 6.5 Project Evaluation (Post Mortem)

Project evaluation is the process of assessing the performance,

outcomes, and impacts of a project against the predefined criteria,
indicators, and expectations. It involves collecting and analyzing data,
feedback, and evidence to measure the project's success, efficiency,
effectiveness, relevance, and sustainability. Project evaluation also
provides insights and recommendations for improvement, learning, and
decision-making for future projects or programs.

Project evaluation at closure focuses on assessing the overall success

and lessons learned from a project, while project closure is more
concerned with the administrative and operational finalization of the
project. Evaluation provides strategic insights, while closure handles the
practical aspects of wrapping up.

 Focus: Assessing the project's effectiveness, efficiency, and impact, and

identifying lessons learned for future projects.

 Activities: Analyzing project outcomes, identifying constraints and

solutions, and developing recommendations.

 Participants: May involve external evaluators, auditors, or consultants.

6.5.1 Post Mortem Review Meeting

Contact your team members to schedule a performance review meeting
for the project, giving everyone an opportunity to provide critical
feedback. Consider arranging this meeting after completing any
challenging aspects of the project closure phase so individuals can better
focus their efforts. It may be helpful to quantify this performance review
by measuring how a project's estimated budget compared with final
costs.

Here are some additional topics to discuss at a post-mortem meeting:

Time management: Consult with your team members about how long
each project component took. You can also share time management
strategies and ask team members whether you delegated tasks
effectively.

Communication: Ask your team about their communication habits and

styles, including whether everyone felt able to voice their ideas to the
entire group. If any issues occurred, spend some time brainstorming
solutions for a future process.

Client or company satisfaction: if you received feedback from key

stakeholders, you can review it during a post-mortem meeting session.
Discuss the reasons a team may have received certain feedback, as
everyone can better reflect on their conduct during the process.
Identify Lessons learned: "Lessons learned" typically refers to
designated end-of-project reflections on each step of the process to
identify areas of improvement. It typically involves analyzing different
process records and your notes from a post-mortem meeting to
determine specific action steps. You can create a separate document for
each stakeholder in a project, including the managers, team members
and company executives. Afterward, be sure to store these documents in
a project's archived files for future reference.

6.6 Project closure documents and deliverables

Internally, you’ll want to create process documents and an improvement

roadmap to aid future projects. On the stakeholder front, key project
closure documents include your project plan, scope, and schedule.
You’ll also need to forward all project closure deliverables as agreed in
your project plan.

Project closure report

One of the most critical project closure deliverables is your final report.
A final report updates your stakeholders on project success and signals
the end of the work. Your final report might include:

 An overview of the project, including key achievements or learnings

 Any resource utilization insights of note

 Whether you met the main project goals

 Project results compared with project forecasting reports

 A list of final tasks to complete alongside the current project

 Handover instructions if a task’s outside the agreed scope

 A questionnaire or survey requesting client feedback

Project closure emails (internal and external)

To close out a project effectively, you’ll need to send multiple project

closure communication emails—both internally and externally.

 Internal: You’ll need to email your internal team to inform them of

any final meetings listed in your wrap-up plan. Plus, you’ll need to
email them again to let them know the date of the project evaluation
meeting.

 External: You must email vendors and subcontractors to close any

contracts. Email your stakeholders to transfer deliverables and
organize a final project meeting. You should send a follow-up email
after the final meeting with the project closure report. (Take this
opportunity to get a closure agreement in writing.)
Getting (project) closure right

Closure is important in any context, let alone project management. If

your project team and all key stakeholders have a mutual understanding,
sense of accomplishment, and peace of mind once you’ve closed out the
project, you can consider it a success.

The closure phase sure isn’t easy, but if you follow the steps provided,
you can make sure that everyone involved can move on to the next
project without any lingering thoughts or feelings. After all, that’s what
closure is all about.

6.7 Project Closure Meeting (H/W)