Module 9:

Project Closure

We would like to acknowledge the support of the Project

Management Institute and the International Institute for
Learning, Inc. for permitting the use of their intellectual property
in this curriculum.

Module 9 Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this module,

participants will be able to:
Identify Project Manager responsibilities
for closing projects
Identify tasks for proper finance,
administrative and contract closure
Lead end of
project
learning

Project End, Extension,

Expansion?

Role of the Project Manager during

Closure
1. Verify your project scope and stakeholder
acceptance
2. Formally terminate activities of the project
3. Close project finances, administration and
contracts
4. Articulate and complete a handover strategy
5. Report to donors
6. Promote learning

Scope Verification & Stakeholder Acceptance

Did you do what you said you were

going to do?
Two steps:
Sit down with your team and check the
WBS
Sit down with the stakeholders

Financial Closure
Has all permitted funding been received from the donor?
Have all receivables (project advances, travel advances,
and advances to vendors) been liquidated or transferred
to another project number?
Have all payables been paid?

Administrative Closure
Close out the books
Set up project archives or files
Handle equipment, facilities, etc.

Contract Closure
Contract Closure
Formal closeout of all contracts, review of
deliverables, including internal Legal Closing
Procedures and External Closing Procedures.
Internal Closeout
Activities required by the agency and by
contract such as; terminating the contract for
moving out agency operations, relieving
personnel contracted by agency, etc.
External Closeout
Legal termination of any contracted support
during project, including acceptance of
deliverables, etc.

Administrative Closure
Administrative Closeout
Activities that are required for reassignment of personnel and
other resources, documents required by the agency or donor
Internal Closeout
Activities required by the agency such as; moving out of agency
operations, return of assets, packing up of daily operations.
Including documenting lessons learned and report to donor.
External Closeout
Activities established with other working groups or commercial
activities, including formal and informal coordination with these
groups.

Handover
Train handover stakeholders.
Distribute documentation.
Complete administrative and contractual
tasks
Provide interim support.
Clean up postponed changes and issues.

End of Project Learning

Learning Activities
Should be:
Timely
Relevant
In context
Filed and accessible

Why evaluate?
The main objectives of program evaluations are:
To inform decisions on operations, policy, or strategy
related to ongoing or future program interventions
To demonstrate accountability to decision-makers
(i.e. donors).
Shows a clear linkage between your design (using
LogFrame) and your actual deliverables.

2005 Habitat for Humanity

After Action Review

Review the activity and its related objective or
deliverable. For each one ask the following:
1. What did we set out to do?
2. What did we achieve?
3. What went really well?
4. What could have gone better?
5. What prevented us from doing more?
6. What can we learn from this?

Final Evaluations
Conducted toward the end of the project.
Largely judgment oriented determining
overall merit, worth or value of a project.
Generally include an external evaluator
and require more planning and
investment.

Ex-Post Evaluations
Conducted at a defined period of time
after project completion.
Knowledge-oriented, emphasizing
sustainable impact evaluation
Are especially useful when advocating for
interventions in a specific program or
portfolio area.
Not conducted as regularly as final
evaluations.

Advantages

Internal

Provides a fresh look at the project and

can draw from other project experiences
Not personally involved, easier to be
objective
Is not part of the power and authority
structure of the project
Trained in evaluation methods and has
wide experience planning and
conducting other evaluations
Better able to focus for longer periods
of time on evaluation tasks

Has in-depth understanding of the

project and can interpret attitudes and
behaviors of participants and
stakeholders
May lessen anxiety as he is well-known
to project stakeholders and has
established relationships
Less expensive

Disadvantages

External
vs.
Internal
External
Evaluators

May have limited understanding of the

project, and participants and
stakeholders involved and therefore
needs time to digest information on
the project
May cause more anxiety as he does
not have an established relationship of
trust with project stakeholders
More expensive

May be unwittingly constrained by

attitudes such as We have always
done it this way
Personally and professionally involved,
so harder to be objective
Is part of the power and authority
structure of the project
May not be trained in evaluation
methods and may have limited
experience planning or conducting
evaluations
May have time constraints for

CELEBRATE!
Celebrate successful conclusions
Recognize closure
Acknowledge social relationships