Copyright 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Chapter 13

Project Termination

Note on the book vs. the PMBOK

The book seems very focused on an academic, empirical study of why and how projects terminate.– What might you see in the real world?

The PMBOK is more instructive and normative– This is how you should close a project.

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Closing vs. Termination

Termination is when a project is actually done. (Nothing else will be done.)

Closing is the final phase– Closing begins when the deliverables have

been delivered– But there is still stuff left to do!– Closing continues until all reports are in

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The Varieties of Project Termination

Termination by extinction Termination by addition Termination by integration Termination by starvation

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Termination by Extinction

Extinction occurs in any scenario where the project goes away

– Successful– Unsuccessful– Changes in environment– Take too long– Murder

When work on a project stops, some organizational work continues

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Termination by Addition

Applies to an in-house projectWhen the project is successful, it is

institutionalizedWhile the project goes away, project

personnel and assets are transferred to the new business

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Termination by Integration

The most common way to terminate a project, especially for internal projects

The project comes into the business– It is absorbed into the existing structure

That structure absorbs the assets of the project

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Termination by Starvation

Termination by starvation involves greatly reducing the budget of a project

Used when it is politically dangerous to cancel a project

Bad manners to enquire the status of the project

KnowledgeAreas

Project Management Process Groups

Initiating Planning Executing Monitoring & Controlling

Closing

Integration Develop Project Charter

Develop Project Management Plan

Direct & Manage Project Execution

Monitor & Control Project WorkPerform Integrated Change Control

Close Project or Phase

Scope Collect RequirementsDefine ScopeCreate WBS

Verify ScopeControl Scope

Time Define ActivitiesSequence ActivitiesEstimate Activity ResourcesEstimate Activity Durations Develop Schedule

Control Schedule

Cost Estimate CostDetermine Budget

Control Costs

Quality Plan Quality Perform Quality Assurance

Perform Quality Control

HR Develop HR Plan Acquire Project TeamDevelop Project Team

Manage Project Team

Communications Identify Communications

Plan Communications DistributeInformation

Manage Stakeholder ExpectationsReport Performance

Risk Plan Risk Management Identify RisksPerform Qualitative Risk AnalysisPerform Quantitative Risk AnalysisPlan Risk Responses

Monitor & Control Risks

Procurement Plan Procurements Conduct Procurements

Administer Procurements

Close Procurements

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The Termination Process

1. Must first decide to terminate

2. If the decision is to terminate the project, the decision must be carried out

3. Easy decision if scope/deliverables are clearly defined and met successfully

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The Decision Process

Sunk costs are often not relevant to the decision about terminating a project

Primary concern for project continuance or termination is whether or not the organization is willing to invest the estimated time and cost required to complete the project

Can use ETC to guide this decision

Good Monitoring & Controlling lead to good Closing/Term’n decision

Earned value analysis is performed continually throughout the project

If you know how far on or off track you are, you can make the decision to terminate unsuccessfully or show that there is a light at the end of the tunnel

Worse if you don’t monitor as you go. (We should have stopped work on this weeks ago!)

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Good Monitoring & Controlling lead to good Closing/Term’n decision

(side note not from book, related to Control and Closing)

Gold Plating refers to the addition of any feature not considered in the original scope plan (PMBOK)

considered bad Project Management.does not prevent new features from being

added to the project. Just says that they must follow change order process

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Good Initiation & Planning lead to smooth Closing and Termination

Clearly defining the Scope/Deliverables from the outset makes it clear when execution is done

Good planning and control of scope change keeps this definition up-to-date

Plan ahead to gain acceptance from the client and/or sponsor

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Good Initiation & Planning lead to smooth Closing and Termination

To most cleanly close a successful project use an acceptance form– Deliverables and success criteria are defined in

the original plan and agreed to by client– Any scope changes have been documented and

approved according to a pre-agreed process– Present client with a checklist of deliverables

and success criteria, and get their signature!– Final checkbox: Project is accepted by client.

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Good Initiation & Planning lead to smooth Closing and Termination

Contingency planning for failure, though seemingly negative can also be helpful

Define what would be grounds for early termination

Define who gets paid what in the event of an early termination

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Things to Do at closing (or closeout)

Ensure tasks are completed Notify the client Finish the paperwork Send out final invoices to the client Redistribute resources Clear with legal counsel Determine what records to keep Assign support Close the project books

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The Final Report—A Project History

Project performance Administrative performance Organizational structure Project and administrative teams Techniques of project management

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The Final Report—A Project History

Earned Value Analysis chart now provides a numerical project history

Budgeted vs. Actuals should be communicated back to estimators to improve their estimation process over time.

“Lessons Learned” should actually be learned and written down to be remembered