In this last step of your software selection project, let’s look at the important steps you must take so you can close it out.
Below, we’ll go over a few things you need to do, including:
-
- Record project lessons
- Hold a project close meeting
- Create a project close report
- Archive project documents
Record lessons learned
Take the time to look back, talk about the project, and learn from the experience.
Some people call this step the post-mortem analysis, while others call it a retrospective analysis. No matter what you call it, it’s important.
The “lessons learned” meeting is one of the most important outcomes of a project.
At this meeting, the project team and key stakeholders gather to identify and talk about things that went well — and not so well — in the project.
Keep a positive attitude and provide constructive feedback. By identifying the things that went well, the participants can use that information when building a timeline and process for future projects. Why re-invent the wheel?
In contrast, by recognizing the things that didn’t go so well, the team can pinpoint causes and avoid repeating those mistakes in future projects.
Keeping good notes, and encouraging the team to do the same throughout the project, makes this “lessons learned” meeting less painful and more productive.
Project close meeting
Conducting a project close meeting is very valuable. The idea is for the stakeholders, the leadership team, and the software selection team to:
- Meet and talk about the lessons learned
- Review and approve any final deliverables of the project
- Address any questions about the selection of the software
Project close report
Produce a final project close report to document:
- Lessons learned
- The selection process that was followed
- Criteria that were used
- Vendors that were evaluated
- Scores given to each vendor.
The close report will be incredibly useful in the future when auditors or any other parties ask why the solution was chosen and how the company made that decision.
Often, the key participants in the selection of a software are no longer with the company or don’t remember the details when the questions come up.
Archive project documents
Before the project manager moves on to the next assignment, they should put together the project documentation and archive it for future reference.
And that’s your tour through the methodology and best practices to follow when choosing your company’s next software solution. We hope this helps you.
At Roghnu, we’ve mastered this methodology. Contact us so we can help you find the best software for your needs and budget.
Read the rest of entries in the Software Selection Series:
Step 1: Choose Your Consultant
Step 2: Start the Project
Step 3: Define Requirements
Step 4: Source Your Proposal
Step 5: Choose Your Vendor
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