Understanding the Project Closeout

In this podcast, Ricardo talks about the process of project closure. He explains the various reasons why it is important to make the closing correctly and lists the documents required for this phase of the project.

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Episode transcript

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Hello, everyone. Welcome to the five minutes PM podcast today. I like to talk about the project. Closeout many people ask me, why do I need to do the protocols, or why not just finished a work? And its on the main object. One of the pros at Closeout is to make sure that you were doing the proper transition. For example, let's suppose your project is to create a new platform to produce a new kind of car. So you need to transition this to the production.

So you need to prepare and transition this So. This is a very important point because the project is over, but the product is on his a started the product life cycle. So it's very important and it's also very important because it's also will make sure that you reach it, the goals. So this is the time also for you to compare with your business case, with your project charter. And he will say, okay, did I produce what I was supposed to produce?

Also check the cost, check the scandal. Did I finish on time? Did I finish on budget? So it's a very, very important moment for me to take care of this. So basically the project calls out will help me exactly to close the door of the Project to finish two. It's like a major milestone. The project is over and what do we need to do when we are talking about the Closeout we need to prepare the Closeout documents.

The Closeout documents is a set of documents where you prove that you were delivering acceptance documents, documents, stakeholder management documents. Because for example, some stakeholders could exercise a huge influence on the project, but now the project is over. We will, they continue to exercise influence over the product. We are not anymore. So it's very important. Maybe the set is a very different set of people. Also you need to prepare the documents and also execute regarding that demobilization of the teams.

Okay? You have team now the Project doesn't exist anymore. So witch kind of transition you will be doing with the team, how you can keep people motivated because the, one of the most important points of managing people, HR in Project environment is to make sure that we bring some kind of safety and reward for the people in the project. Because if they don't feel safe, what will happen in the mid off, there's a kitchen, very close to the chaos point, very close to very critical point.

They will just leave looking for more stable solutions because at the end of the month, they need to pay their bills, right? Not, not today, but we need to pay it off. So they will choose for a more safe position. So how we can handle this properly and also create a team that could benefit heavily off this process of learning through projects. So it's very, very important last but not least celebrate. It is also a moment where you celebrate all the challenges and you celebrate that.

You overcame the challenges. One thing that it's very, very important is that what do you do if your project is a failure, let's suppose that you decide to cancel the project. The in the middle of, should I do the Closeout the answer is yes. Yes. When you cancel a project, you are canceling desiccation of the project. You are not canceling the Closeout of the product. Y because at this time you need to register all the lessons learned, okay?

Why this project was a failure? Why, what went wrong in how I can avoid learning from the pain? Right? Learning from the pain that I have, how we can avoid this. So it's very important. Many people think that, okay, my project was canceled. So I go need to do anything. Now you need, you need to make all the Closeout documents, compare everything, how much money you spend with this? How much time? Okay. What, where the roots is, the failure, why thinks went wrong?

So it's very, very important that you figure out this and close out process is something that must be taken very, very serious. Okay. We can not work. Thinking that the close out is just a bureaucratic feeling of paper and checklist. Not at all. It's a very important learning process, a very important that could leverage your company in your organization to a higher level. Think about that. Okay. See you next week with, for not a five minutes before Podcast.

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