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Project Termination

This document discusses project termination and the importance of planning for it. It describes common reasons projects terminate like low probability of success or cost growth. There are four varieties of termination: by extinction, addition, integration, or starvation. Typical termination activities include reassigning personnel, closing accounts, transferring equipment, and developing a project history to capture lessons learned. The project history should document performance, administration, organization structure, teams, and project management techniques used. Challenges to creating a useful history include competing priorities and lack of a single responsible party.

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Avishya Jaswal
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69 views

Project Termination

This document discusses project termination and the importance of planning for it. It describes common reasons projects terminate like low probability of success or cost growth. There are four varieties of termination: by extinction, addition, integration, or starvation. Typical termination activities include reassigning personnel, closing accounts, transferring equipment, and developing a project history to capture lessons learned. The project history should document performance, administration, organization structure, teams, and project management techniques used. Challenges to creating a useful history include competing priorities and lack of a single responsible party.

Uploaded by

Avishya Jaswal
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 15

Project Termination

 Types of
terminations
 How and why
projects terminate
 Typical termination
activities
 Need for a project
history

13-1
All Things Come to an End . . .
 Termination rarely has much impact on
technical success or failure . . .
 But a huge impact on other areas
 Residual attitudes toward the project (client,
senior management, and project team)
 Success of subsequent projects
 So it makes sense to plan and execute
termination with care

13-2
When Do Projects Terminate?
 Upon successful completion, or . . .
 When the organization is no longer
willing to invest the time and cost
required to complete the project, given
its current status and expected
outcome.

13-3
Most Common Reasons
Projects Terminate
 1. Low probability of technical/commercial
success
 2. Low profitability/ROI/market potential
 3. Damaging cost growth
 4. Change in competitive factors/market
needs
 5. Unresolvable technical problems
 6. Higher priority of competing projects
 7. Schedule delays
Source: Dean, 1968
13-4
Four Varieties of Project
Termination
 1. “Termination by extinction”
 Project has successfully completed, or it
has failed
 Natural passing, or
“termination by murder”( e.g mergers char :
suddenness)
 Either way, project substance ceases, but much

work needs to be done


 Administrative
 Organizational

13-5
Four Varieties of Termination (cont’d)
 2. “Termination by addition”
 The project becomes a formal part of the
parent organization
 People, material, facilities transition
 E.g Tata Nano
 Project->deptt/div/company
 3. “Termination by integration”
 Mostly for successful projects
 Output of the project -Technical integeration in
the parent or client organistion
 Project assets are distributed to and
absorbed by the parent

13-6
Four Varieties of Termination
(cont’d)
 4. “Termination by starvation”
 Exsists as legal entity
 Withdrawal of “life support”
 Can save “face,” avoid embarrassment,
evade admission of defeat

13-7
Typical Termination Activities
 In general, there are seven categories
of termination tasks. Examples of
activities:
 1. Personnel
 Dealing with “trauma of termination”
 Finding “homes” for the team
 Who will “close the doors?”
 2. Manufacturing
 New operation integerated into the firm’s
system
 Provisions for training, maintenance, spares
13-8
Termination Activities (cont’d)
 3. Accounting and Finance
 Accounts closed and audited
 Resources transferred

 Project property and equipment distributed

according to contracts and agreements


 4. Engineering
 Drawings complete/on file
 Operating manuals and change procedures
clarified

13-9
Termination Activities (cont’d)
 5. Information Systems
 Configuration and documentation in place
 Systems integrated (new with old)
 6. Marketing
 Sales and promotion efforts in line
 7. Administrative
 All organizations aware of change
 Std. administrative procedures been installed

13-10
A Design for Project
Termination, Figure 13-2

13-11
Project History
 One of the major aims of termination is
development and transmittal of “lessons
learned” to future projects
 One way to do that is through a project
history

13-12
Contents of a Project History
 1. Project Performance
 What was achieved; successes, challenges,
failures
 2. Administrative Performance
 Reports, meetings, project review procedures; HR,
financial processes
 3. Organization Structure
 How structure evolved, how it aided/
impeded progress

13-13
Contents of a Project History
(cont’d)
 4. Project and Administrative Teams
 Performance of the project team,
recommendations
 5. Project Management Techniques
 Planning, budgeting, scheduling, risk
management, etc.: what worked, what
didn’t

13-14
Challenges to Meaningful
Project Histories
 Since the project history has so much
potential benefit, why is it often done poorly,
or not at all?
 Possible reasons
 No one sees it as their job
 PM has many other priorities, especially as project
winds down
 Long duration projects mean many PMs,
voluminous record, little corporate memory
 PMs may be more attuned to looking forward than
looking back
13-15

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