The life cycle of a project is made up of 4 phases: initiation, planning, execution and closure. In each of them, managers find specific workflows to follow to continue the work effectively.
The project closure phase can be overlapped with the execution phase, as long as the main activities are completed. The main objective is to identify lack of documentation, setbacks in other stages, opportunities for improvement, manage risks and evaluate performance indicators to know whether the overall execution was carried out carefully.
At project closure, activities such as collecting deliverables, evaluating final costs, planning delivery documentation, and communicating with customers and workers play an important role in a successful closure. In construction or civil design, a well-planned closure has a special weight in the project's overall score.
There are 7 steps that encompass closing a successful project. These tasks will help you make the transition as smooth as possible for happy customers and happy employees.
1. Hold a pre-closing meeting with all participants
The first step is to hold different post-mortem meetings involving stakeholders, retailers, company workers, field workers and contractors. As each of them has different roles in the project, meetings should be held depending on how you prioritize delivering information.
In a project wrap-up session for workers, regardless of whether they are from the company or contractors, the goals, results and activities are highlighted. They need to identify missing activities, expenses and closing deadlines.
Early communication with retailers is important to build a budget with real margin for the project and ensure you have all receipts for materials, merchandise or service orders. Once the project is in the files, retailers often take a long time to deliver new documentation.
Whenever all information about the project is clear, you can hold meetings with clients to give them a complete picture of missing activities, closing dates and performance indicators.
2. Organizational Closure
At this stage, managers must send a notice to interested parties to return all loaned or rented equipment and complete the necessary documentation. The purpose of organizational closure is to terminate contracts with third parties and use company-owned resources.
In construction, it is important to check that all licenses and standards are valid until the official closing date before proceeding with the final phase. If renovation permits are available, they should be added to the closing budget as last-minute expenses.
Additionally, thank you memos are prepared for all teams so that the human resources office recognizes their efforts.
3. Gather documentation
During the project planning phase, a list of deliverables is delivered to workflow owners, team leads, and project managers. This list needs to be reviewed to verify that all documentation was generated on time.
Create a workflow with the steps to obtain the documentation you lost and what would be the deadline to request it to close on the planned day. Pay attention to confidential documentation and paperwork that requires third-party signatures.
Activities carried out within the project closure need to be reported and noted. The assignment process carried out in the first stages of closure is monitored through daily reports. This documentation also needs to have its own list to record extra costs and process issues.
4. Customer termination
Once you have all the deliverables, budget projections and the official budget in hand, it's time to schedule a closed-door meeting with clients. Here, they must agree and sign the list of documentation provided.
But beyond bureaucracy, it is necessary to ensure that the client is satisfied with the final result of the project. It's important to have an honest conversation if possible.
If the client cannot meet in person, quick surveys are a good option to gain insights into their opinion on the execution of the project, the planning process and in general whether the activities were carried out correctly.
5. Lack of documentation, budget assessment and risk management
In perfect condition and after the client closes, there should be no missing paperwork or last minute expenses. However, depending on the type of project, additional costs may still apply – often if documentation or activities in collaboration with third parties are missing.
Risk assessment only occurs when all documentation is in good condition, approved and signed by the client and managers. In the risk assessment, the heads of each department and experienced workers discuss whether there are topics related to project closure.
For example, there are activities that take up a large portion of the closing budget and cash flow for other tasks is affected. Additionally, environmental or political threats may appear after the project is completed and the product is used by the customer.
6. Write the final report
After assessing the risks and with all the documentation, you obtained a detailed overview of the entire project performance divided into different phases. In the final report, the results of each of the project stages constitute the central axis, together with a brief description of some of the main activities, processes necessary to complete them and results generated.
Likewise, problems faced during project execution and planning are highlighted to obtain an outline of solutions. In any case, the final report aims to provide a complete description of the project – so it is advisable to keep it concise and results-oriented.
7. Bring your team together for lesson learned
Even if the main performance was lower than expected, it is a good idea to end the project on good terms.
Starting from what the achievements were, going through the difficulties faced by the teams in getting the project underway, and the activities that failed to be executed, the closing of the team should highlight the achievements and equally evaluate the negative ones.
Showing employees and contractors their role in the project and as an essential part of building the company strengthens the relationship with managers, encouraging them to continue learning and improving.
Concluding
Closing a project is a critical phase that demands a careful and systematic approach. From holding pre-closing meetings to align expectations to meticulously collecting documentation and final performance assessment, each step plays a crucial role in ensuring success and client satisfaction. Furthermore, closure provides a valuable opportunity for reflection and learning, allowing teams to recognize achievements, face challenges and strengthen their skills for future projects.
