8. Completion Phase

The final step in drawing the Marvel project to a close, Phase 8: Completion Phase includes all actions necessary to end all project work and review project management. The Post-Mortem Meeting and corresponding report should provide an effective means to reflect on lessons learned and battles won.

Before closing out the Marvel project, complete the Phase 8 checklist.

Close Out Actions.

Before closing out the project, there are some housecleaning activities that need to be accomplished. In order to properly end the program and terminate the activities supporting the product, you should complete the following five actions:

Produce a Software Project History report containing objective and subjective information about the project.

Distribute the project History to all project members.

Place project history conclusions into the Project Binder for review when working on the next project.

Conduct a Post-Mortem Meeting and report the results and findings.

Complete all close-out paperwork.

When you write the Software Project History document, a good place to start is by compiling all of the project status meeting notes and minutes into a chronological record of events. Remember to document concerns, decisions, and contentious items that occurred in the meeting. It is always good to reflect back on areas that caused strong feelings and try to evaluate why those feelings were expressed. You should gather all of the reports, written opinions, etc. and try to create a thorough history that reflects what you and the Core Team know to be the events that have occurred.

Post-Mortem Meeting Report

A post-mortem meeting must be held at the end of the project. Explore all phases of SEP and ask what went well and try to learn what could have gone better. What should be changed or improved for the next project? The answers to these questions may save your organization a lot of money by learning to prevent things from negatively affecting project outcomes. This is also a time for the PMO to reflect on the overall administration of the program and determine if changes are needed in administration or policy at the SPMO level.

Close out Paperwork (COP)

This consists of all pertinent paperwork that is needed to verify that closure activities have been performed. These items can include receipts for returned equipment or disposal receipts, all project status reports, close out review minutes, finalized or closed contracts, etc. Essentially everything associated with the project should be assembled here and prepared for archive processing.

Close out Letter (COL)

This is a letter formally announcing the closure of a project. It is done so that all groups and people know that the project is completed and the product has been phased out. This is also a good way to thank all involved and communicate final project statistics.

Archive the project.

This can be done in many ways, but the most common today is to simply place everything onto a CD-ROM and store the CD in the SPMO. The CD lasts as long as any media known today and is easily copied if someone requests information on the project. One caveat, however, is to ensure that no corporate security risk is posed by creating a CD that may contain corporate sensitive data. If the CD does contain that type of data, it is a responsibility of the SPMO to protect it. Access to the CD and distribution of it to anyone in the company must be controlled as any other corporate sensitive material, even if the project is closed. A lot of valuable corporate espionage information can be gleaned from the data comprising an entire project. Be safe and sensible about the risk and try to protect your organization as much as possible.

Close out Ritual (COR)

This involves a party or some other type of ritual. During this activity, there will be ample opportunity for all persons involved in the project to be recognized and rewarded. It is good practice to seek out those " shadow people" who worked on the project and recognize them. They are the folks that work behind the scenes to make the project work. Without them, there would be no chance for success, but they do not individually stand out among the Core Team or other business leaders. They are always there, always doing their part, however large or small. These folks are the backbone of the company in most cases, and your success, whether you know it or not, nearly always depends in large part on their performance. Don’t always reward the "stars" and forget the rest. They may not work so hard for you in the future if you ignore them. A little bit of recognition can go a long way in boosting esteem and morale. It also is a reflection of your leadership to show that credit can be shared. You know the old adage, "If the project fails, you take the heat. If it succeeds, share the glory with those around you." Leadership 101.