Project Completion
The Project Manager has to make sure that certain activities are attended to before the
project can be closed. Some of these are simple, mechanistic and, potentially,
automatic but they will require attention at a time when the environment is often filled
with considerable human angst.
The actions that will require attention coming up to termination are:
1. That there are incentives for the project to be finished rather than prolonged.
2. That all mandated actions, including those of suppliers are completed and
signed off by the customers of those actions.
3. Ensure that the Documentation (Deliverables and Internal) is complete (design
notes, calculations, log books, validation history, etc.) and properly
authenticated.
4. File applicable patents, archive non-disclosure agreements and contracts
formally.
5. Index and store, or archive, historical records/drawings/ reports.
6. Ensure that all stakeholders are satisfied áV ideally in a formally minuted signoff
meeting.
7. Clear the final billings from suppliers and submit any client invoices.
8. Close down the project systems - especially the accounting system.
9. Redistribute the assets (Equipment, Material and Personnel). Assign support
responsibilities, cash reserves and inventories.
10. Conduct an evaluation/audit of activities to provide a lessons- learned database.
In most organisations there are more demands on people than there is available time
and so with a project operating within a larger organisation it is normal for personnel
to be phased into and out of the project within the time-span of the project. In many
cases, in both Functional and Matrix organisations, personnel will have a primary
project role which commands most of their attention with secondary roles which may
be related to other projects either in early or late stages.
Even in a Project structured environment it is normal for an individual to be spending
some of their time on...