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Starting a project is easy. Set your objectives, create a plan, and execute.
But what about project closure?
Too often, projects are never formally put to bed. They’re just “sort-of” closed. Small issues are left unresolved, which can come up later as big problems.
Don’t worry. We’re not going to let that happen to you.
Keep reading to get our 7-step checklist for closing a project the right way (and impressing your boss while you’re at it).
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Project closure is the process of finalizing and finishing a project. It includes any task that will help wrap up lingering issues and archive project documents and files.
If you’ve never done a formal project closure, you may wonder why it’s so important. The project’s done, right? Can’t we just clear our desks and move on?
You’d think so, but there are good reasons to properly close a project:
Project closure usually happens at the end of a project, but it can also be done at the end of any phase of a project. For instance, if you're working on a website project, you'll likely have four phases:
Instead of waiting until the site goes live to do a formal closure, you may decide to wrap up each phase of the project before moving to the next. Think of it as a "mini" project closure, sometimes known as phase review or handoff.
But regardless of when you do it, you’ll use the same closure checklist to ensure everything is closed properly.
Three scenarios tend to happen when a project isn’t closed correctly. Maybe you’ve experienced one of them already.
Issues come up even after a project’s been closed. If an investigation is needed, good documentation is a lifesaver.
Instead of taking the blame for any issues or mistakes, you’ll have documentation of everything that happened. That includes management and client approvals throughout the project, why changes were made, who requested them, and other vital information.
Auditing the project is easy when it was formally closed. And it’s good insurance for everyone, especially for your client retention strategy as an agency. Keeping clients happy is a lot easier when you've documented every request.
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An important part of project closure is the client hand-off. That’s when you transfer responsibility for ongoing maintenance and operations to the client.
And yes, you’d think that communicates that the project is done. But if you haven’t formally closed the project, people may assume that you still have ownership. They may continue to call you when an issue comes up.
By doing a proper handoff and getting sign-off from your clients and stakeholders, everyone understands the project is closed, that the project management team is no longer accountable for results.
Let’s say you don’t do a formal hand-off. The client isn’t trained and equipped to take ownership of the project. You just give them the keys and wave farewell.
When this happens, the project doesn’t get the care it needs. It doesn’t get properly maintained. Customers don’t get the support they need.
It’s essentially orphaned.
And sadly, it will likely end up getting retired. Without clear ownership, a project can’t thrive. To avoid any of these scenarios, let’s look at a simple step-by-step process for closing your projects.
As a project manager, it’s your job to ensure that objectives have been met and the project is ready to be closed. Once you’re sure of that, you’ll need to complete this 7-step checklist:
Goal: Transfer ownership to the client.
The first step in closing the project is to give the client all project deliverables. As mentioned above, you shouldn’t just hand them the keys.
Train the new owners to operate and maintain the product or get the results they expect. Give them some project management best practices and suggest ways to integrate into their existing workflow.
After the hand-off, get confirmation from the client that you’ve delivered as promised.
Goal: Finalize and close project documents, accounts, and contracts.
Every project has countless documents associated with them. Some were drafted to kick off the project. Others were updated throughout the project.
Before you can close the project, you need to review these documents. Is the information up-to-date? Have you consistently logged issues and milestones? Have you explained variances between expected and actual results?
Here are a few of the project documents you’ll need to review:
Now is the time to close out your contracts and project accounts. Make sure all contractors have been paid for their work and that there are no outstanding invoices.
Goal: Get feedback from everyone who worked on the project.
It’s easy to get excited that the project is complete and resist a post-mortem meeting. But it’s important to carve out time to review the project and record lessons learned.
For team leads, it helps to have a project Planning Overview like the one available in Teamwork.com. This provides you with a detailed view of where and when your resources (people) are allocated, which is based on estimated time.
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You can also view the total number of hours that are allocated over a specific time frame. You can do this by person, project, or even company.
Next, you will want to dig into a few specific areas. First, anything that contributed to the success. Second, what worked and what didn’t. A few questions that can help:
This information helps you identify the areas in your workflow and procedures that could be improved. More importantly, it keeps you from making the same mistakes again.
Start with a survey. Then follow up with a meeting. This two-step approach may seem like overkill, but in the long run, it will save everyone time.
Just think back to other brainstorm meetings you’ve attended. Many people draw a blank because they feel pressured to come up with something smart.
It takes time to mentally review the project and recall issues that were resolved (or not). By sending out a survey a few days before your meeting, you’ll give your team a chance to come up with thoughtful answers.
When you then meet, you’ve already got the talking points. Use the meeting for discussion, not brainstorming.
Also, take flawless meeting notes. Make sure there's some collective hub where you can store project notes, like Teamwork.com's Spaces. Our hub acts as the de facto space for all things pertaining to a project or the process you've implemented.
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Don't lose important notes or documents with endless shared files flying all over the place.
Goal: Get feedback from the client.
As part of your lessons learned, it can be helpful to get client feedback to answer two questions:
A short survey, like this one from PM Foundations, will give you the information you need.
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When creating a survey, make sure you keep it short enough to finish in 5 minutes or less. And provide space for comments to each question to get more helpful feedback.
Goal: Summarize the project for senior management, so they can evaluate its impact and improve processes for future projects.
The last piece of documentation you need to prepare for any project is the project closure report. This report is an overview of the entire project, its objectives and whether you met them, the project timeline, risks, and outcomes.
What goes into a project closure report?
Goal: Get sign-off from all stakeholders and formally close the project.
Senior management and key stakeholders should review the project closure report to verify that all objectives have been met. In particular:
Once you have the proper approvals, you can formally close the project. Make sure your team has the appropriate permissions to close, finalize, or approve projects in your platform.
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Don’t forget to announce the project closure. Notify everyone who’s worked on the project: your team, stakeholders, partners, contractors, and suppliers. Let them know they’re released to work on other projects or reallocate their resources.
Note: Make sure you document all approvals. It won’t likely be necessary, but if an issue arises, you may need proof that everyone signed off before the project was closed. Think signatures on deliverables, delivery receipts, and transcripts from meetings.
Goal: Remove the project from your workflow and preserve its data in case you need it later.
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In your project management software, archive the project. Index and file all documents, contracts, and agreements. These should all be part of the project archive.
Having access to your archived projects is essential if you ever need to go back to them. With Teamwork.com, we make it easy to view all of your projects, whether they're open, closed, or archived.
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As you can see, a lot goes into project closure. It may even seem overwhelming or unnecessary. But good project management includes a formal closure of the project. Period.
It gives you a single, organized place to look when you have questions about the project. It also helps you optimize processes over time.
And it will help you clean your desk (both physically and mentally) so you can move on to your next project. Use our 7-step checklist the next time you close a project.
You’ll enjoy the closure it gives you. And as a bonus, you’ll impress the socks off your team.
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7-step project closure checklist
