Ch8. Project Closure and the PMO — Completing Your PMP Prep

Project Closure

Projects close in two ways:

Normal closure: All objectives met, deliverables accepted, stakeholders satisfied.

Early termination: Discontinued due to unavoidable circumstances (budget exhausted, strategy changed, business case no longer valid).

Closure Activities

Obtain final deliverable acceptance
Formally close contracts
Complete final lessons learned documentation
Release team and resources
Write final performance report
Archive project records

Early termination requires the same closure process: Even if the project is cancelled mid-execution, all closure activities must be performed — lessons learned, contract closure, resource release. Skipping these creates organizational and legal risks.

PMO (Project Management Office)

The organizational unit responsible for standardizing and supporting project management practices.

PMO Types

Type	Control Level	Role
Supportive	Low	Provides templates, training, information
Controlling	Medium	Requires compliance, conducts audits
Directive	High	Directly manages projects

Portfolio, Program, and Project

Portfolio (strategic goal achievement)
  ├── Program (integrated management of related projects)
  │     ├── Project A
  │     └── Project B
  └── Project C (standalone project)

Project: Temporary effort to create a unique product, service, or result. Program: Related projects managed together to realize benefits impossible individually. Portfolio: Collection of projects/programs aligned to strategic objectives.

Business Case and Benefits Realization

Business case: Document justifying the project investment. Answers: Why should we do this?

Benefits realization management: Tracking whether expected benefits are actually achieved after project completion.

Project completion ≠ benefits realized. Example: A system build finishes on time and on budget, but the productivity improvement isn’t measured until 6–12 months later.

Key Concept Cards

PMO Types ★★★★★ : Supportive (low control, service provider) → Controlling (medium) → Directive (high control, direct management). Choice depends on organizational maturity.

Portfolio vs Program vs Project ★★★★★ : Portfolio=strategic objectives, Program=integrated benefits, Project=temporary unique deliverable.

Benefits Realization ★★★★☆ : Project closure ≠ value delivery. Post-project tracking is needed to confirm expected benefits actually materialize.

Practice Quiz

Q1. An organization provides project methodology templates and training but project teams operate independently. What type of PMO is this?

Supportive PMO. Low control level — it provides templates, training, and best practices but does not mandate compliance or directly manage projects.

Q2. A project completed on time and within budget but the expected ROI was not achieved. Was this a project management failure?

Not necessarily. Project management success (on-time, on-budget, in-scope delivery) and benefits realization (achieving business value) are distinct. However, modern PM practice increasingly includes accountability for benefits tracking. If the business case assumptions were wrong or the implementation strategy changed after delivery, that’s a separate analysis. The PM’s role extends to flagging risks to expected benefits, even post-close.