We all know that a project is a temporary endeavor. All projects have some start and end date. However, when I teach project management training classes I like to ask the participants exactly what they consider to be the end of a project.
After some discussion, we realize that there are many candidate events that could signify the end of a project and, in most organizations, the definition is not consistent.
One idea is that an end-of-project meeting could mean the project is officially over. Although ending the project at the end-of-project meeting helps a little bit, it doesn’t answer the total question, since you still need to decide when to schedule this meeting. You could hold the meeting after a number of events, for example after you go live or 30 days after you go live. The ultimate definition of project completion is not resolved by this answer.
The second definition that doesn’t help is that the project ends when the money runs out. Although in many projects, this is actually true, it doesn’t help you in terms of the basic definition. Ending a project when the budget runs out is a financial answer and it is highly arbitrary. It doesn’t answer the more fundamental project management question of how to define the end of a project.
There are a number of events that could signify that a project has ended…
How do I end thee? Let me count the ways at: http://journyx.com/rss/redir/zdni-projend.html