Project integration management brings all the elements of a project together to create a coherent whole, and is a crucial area of project management expertise. It contains six steps, with the closing of the project or phase process being the final one.
Project integration management procedures are as follows, as stated in Project Management Professional PM training and by the PMI:
- Initiating. Create the project charter
- Planning. Prepare a project management strategy
- Executing. Project work direction and management
- Monitoring and Controlling. Track and manage all project work and implement integrated change management
- Closing. Project or phase closure
Keep in mind that templates are often used in project management to regulate and document the many stages and processes of a project. To get a sense of how to use them, you can search for free examples of these project management templates on the internet.
As you can see, each of these six procedures are a part of a separate set of project management processes. Both online Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM) training, as well as Project Management Professional (PMP) training includes comprehensive information regarding project management procedures to support and benefit effective management of projects. Let’s now discuss the integration management’s closing phase process, which is its last step.
What Is The Close Project Phase?
The final step in the knowledge area of integration management is the close project phase. It is a part of the project closure process group. The close project process seeks to officially close down a project inside an organization.
Project closure focuses on completing all domains of project management expertise, since many procedures and actions are carried out in other knowledge domains. Successfully completing these procedures and activities will also be ensured by close project processes. The primary goals of the closing project process includes gathering all project materials, obtaining final approval, archiving materials, and formally concluding the project. An incredibly important part of a project, as slipping into a state of limbo is not something a project manager should allow for their project.
To summarize, the close project or phase step, also known as closing, focuses on closing out all the knowledge areas. A project must be closed even if it stops or if it is terminated for one reason or another. It also aims to get the final approval of the overall project from the customer.
What Are The Triggers For This Phase?
Project closure can get started if one of these reasons occur:
- Completion of a project phase: There needs to be a closing phase process in place for each phase’s closure if the project includes many phases.
- Completion of the overall project: The closing project procedure should get started when the project has been successfully finished.
- Termination of the project: A closing project procedure should be put in place even when a project is abruptly terminated.
Let’s go over the reasons why this procedure has to be used, regardless of whether the project is completed, halted or canceled.
What Happens If A Project Gets Terminated?
If it’s determined that some of the objectives of a project no longer hold any relevance or won’t be achieved, the project may be discontinued. But even when a project is terminated, the closing must be handled properly.
It is necessary to gather and store the most recent project documentation, as well as the project’s last status, performance, and other details, in the library for organizational process resources.
This is important because records of the project may be examined later on in order to learn from the discontinuation when a comparable project is launched. There is plenty that can be learned from a failed project.
How To Successfully Perform A Closing Process
Getting the customer’s final approval for the entire project is the last crucial point to mention here. Only when the client accepts the project’s finished result can your project be considered complete. Therefore, it is necessary to obtain the customer’s formal consent during this procedure. This might be a signature, written consent, an email expressing acceptance, etcetera. After receiving permission, project documentation is gathered and archived safely, and the project is now completed.
The final stage of a project’s life cycle, project closing, is just as crucial as the preceding procedures. If the project is properly ended, the information learned from it can be used for the organization’s upcoming projects. Always think ahead and make sure to revisit what you learned from the finished project.
To learn more about the closing phase of a project, it’s suggested to enroll in an online PMP course which goes into much more depth on how to manage, control, plan and implement the closing process.