Confirming Project Closure

Overview

There needs to be a formal hand-over of responsibility and ownership of the project's products to the ultimate users.

For most final products there must be a reliable operational and support environment in place.

Every effort should be made to pass on any lessons that have been learned from the project.

Context

The process is triggered. by the Project Manager carrying out the activities and producing the management products of Closing a Project. It is the last work done by the Project Board prior to its disbandment.

Process Description

The project needs to be closed down in an orderly manner.

The objectives of this process are to:

	Ensure that the project has a clearly defined end and an organised hand-over of responsibility to the group(s) who will use, support and sustain the products
	Release the resources provided to the project
	Gain formal acceptance from the Customer that the acceptance criteria set down at the outset have been met adequately
	Direct any chances which have not been implemented to an appropriate authority for attention
	Establish a future method for verifying that the. project has produced the. desired benefits
	Recommend closure of the project to corporate or programme management.

To achieve these objectives, various steps need to be undertaken:

	Ensure that all the completed products have been approved by the Customer or are covered by approved waivers (if there have been any waivers, these may also be covered in Follow-on Action recommendations)
	Ensure that, where appropriate, the resulting changes in the business are supported and sustainable
	Ensure Follow-on Action Recommendations have been distributed correctly.
	Approve the Lessons Learned Report for distribution.
	Prepare closure notification.
	Publish and distribute the plans for any Post Implementation Review.

Responsibilities

This is the responsibility of the Project Board, supported by those with project assurance responsibilities.

If a Post Implementation Review is set up, it is the responsibility of the Project Board to ensure that the person responsible for its conduct is properly briefed and that accountability is passed to that person.

Information Needs

Management information	Usage	Explanation
Project Foundation Document	Input	Used as the baseline against which to assess how far the project deviated from its initial basis. Also contributes some of the information against which to judge the success of the project
Operational and maintenance acceptance	Input	Confirmation that the final product can be used and supported
Project Closure recommendation	Input	Assurance from the Project Manager that everything has been done
End Project Report	Input	More information on which to judge the success of the project
Customer acceptance	Input	Confirmation that the Customer accepts the products
Follow-on Action recommendations	Approval	Recommendations for all pended issues and other future actions
Post Implementation Review Plan	Approval	Suggested plan for assessing the achievement of project benefits. Ratified by the Project Board to be passed on to the people responsible for carrying it out
Lessons Learned Report	Approval	Project lessons that have been learned which might be useful to pass on to other projects
Project Closure Notification	Output	Notification that facilities and support can be withdrawn

Key Criteria

	Have the results and products been accepted, and are they no longer dependent on work that is part of this project?
	Is the business ready to support, sustain and further develop the environment and products delivered? Are the customers content with the results and products?