Under what circumstances should project managers consider a project closure?
If an audit reveals the painful truth that it’s time to terminate a project, then it’s important to realize that this is not necessarily a bad thing: Show
Common Reasons for project Termination:
When considering terminating a project, it’s helpful to ask the following questions:
Human Resources Specialists, through monitoring the project with the Project Team, could assist with the decision to terminate a project. Not in a direct manner, however, they can facilitate the process with the team and/or the stakeholders. The HR Specialists would want to know the history of the project. They would help the group reach a decision, plan a different outcome and ensure a process where everyone agrees and commits to a certain outcome. They would act as guides in this situation, rather than a participant by facilitating a workshop and getting answers to the above questions. Determining whether to terminate a project can be a very difficult decision for people close to a project to make. Everyone’s perspective on a project has a huge effect on your judgment of its overall success. That is why a review conducted by an objective, external auditor can be so illuminating. Human Resources Specialists need to be sensitive to the feelings of the group/team. The characteristics of the HR Specialist would be to listen, use verbal and nonverbal communication, show empathy, focus on the issues not feelings, and provide a structure and process that leads to a shared conclusion about the project. The HR Specialists needs to control the flow of the meeting as it may be emotional, ask questions for clarity from all participating members, and may provide direct interventions. They need to remain neutral, use an encouraging tone, and de-escalate members who may be angry or just sad about the possibility of termination. If the project is terminated as agreed to by stakeholders, at this point, HR Specialists may offer individual facilitation to resolve one-to-one issues about the termination. Perhaps, the individual wishes to set personal goals for themselves post project, simply debrief about the project, the process and their personal experience. The HR Specialist wants to help create a culture of respect and teamwork going forward that aligns with strategic goals of the organization. One way to achieve this is to empower the employees to move forward with new goals. What are the conditions for project closure?Closing Processes Activities
Obtain acceptance of the project deliverables. Hand off operations and support responsibilities. Document the lessons learned over the course of the project. Formalize closure.
What are the main reasons for a project closure?Common Reasons for project Termination: Low profitability and or lowered market potential. Competing projects become a higher priority. Severe delays to schedule.
When should the project closure work be conducted?1. When the project has delivered all the objectives and/or RESULT. This is probably the most popular and most desirous time when a project should be closed. At the beginning of the project, a set of objectives, deliverables, and results were set.
Why is project closure necessary in project management?Closing a project is as important as other processes in Project Management. Until and unless your project has been closed with the planned procedures, it officially provides no value to the organization. You might have delivered the deliverables, but this does not mean your project is complete.
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