5 Stages of Project Management Life Cycle!

When we say Project management it means understanding the depth of the project beginning with the purpose, goal, and initiative including the right implications. To fulfill all this the major factor is to understand what is Project Management life cycle all about and what all things it includes.

In this blog, we’re going to go into detail about what these project management life cycles comprise, the important project management steps, and how they can assist one in delivering a well-managed and successful project.

What is the Project Management Life Cycle?

The project management life cycle is truly a high-quality method of portraying the life of a project. It’s the way projects occur; how the periods of a project direct a group from brief through the end. Each project has a beginning and end process; its birth, development, and last but not least “its death” when the project lifecycle is completed.

5 Stages of the Project Management Life Cycle

1. – Project Initiation- The beginning step of the project
2. – Project Planning-  Planning what and how to do
3. – Project Execution- Making the project happen
4. – Project Monitoring and control- Keeping track of the project
5. – Project Closure- Coming to the end of the Project

Below, each of the stages is explained in detail and what happens in each of the 5 phases of the Project Management Cycle

1- Project Initiation

This is the initial stage of the project, and the main objective of this stage is to portray the project at a high level. Additionally, this stage for the most part starts with a business case. This is the point where you will explore whether the project is achievable and if it should be undertaken. If the possibility of testing needs to be done, this is the phase of the project wherein that will be finished. 

Moreover, partners will do their due diligence to help choose if the task is a “go.” If it is given the green signal, you should make a venture contract or an undertaking commencement archive (PID) that outlines the requirements and reason for the project. It should incorporate partners, business needs, and the business case.

Tip: There are a lot of Project Management Courses that stick to PMBOK Guide rules which are easily accessible online that you can download to get started.

2- Project Planning

After the project is approved to go ahead based on your project initiation document, business case, and state of work you step into the planning phase.

Furthermore, in this phase of the Project management life cycle, you diversify the projects into smaller tasks, create your team, and make a schedule for the completion of the task. 

You can follow this rule:

C.L.E.A.R. Goals: A new way of setting goals that involve the environment of the new generation’s fast-paced business era.

Collaborative: The goal is to encourage employees to work in a team.

Limited: Employees should be in a limited time frame and scope to keep things manageable. 

Emotional: Goals should come within the passion of employees and it should be something they can have an emotional attachment to. This can develop the quality of work.

Appreciable: Divide larger goals into smaller parts so that they can be quickly achieved.

Refinable: As new conditions arise, you should be flexible enough to adapt the goals and refine them as needed.

Tip: You should make smaller goals within the larger project, and make sure that each goal is achievable in the mentioned period. Remember, smaller goals always have a high potential for achievement. You can get more guidance on this with the help of Project Management Training. 

3- Project Execution

This is the stage where we create and fulfill expectations. This generally feels like the heart of the project since tons of work is going on during this time, similar to status reports and meetings, improvement updates, and execution reports. A “Set-up” meeting for the most part implies the beginning of the Project Execution phase where the groups involved are guided regarding their responsibilities. 

Tasks to complete during the Execution Phase include:

• Creating Team
• Appoint resources
• Execute project management plans
• Acquisition of the management if required
• The PM coordinates and oversees project execution 
• Set up global positioning frameworks 
• We execute undertaking tasks
• Status Meetings
• Update project plan as needed 
• Alter project designs depending on the situation 

While the project observing stage has an alternate set of requirements, these two stages frequently happen at the same time.

4- Project Monitoring and Control

This phase is tied in with knowing the project progression and execution and approving that all incident matches up with the project management plan. Moreover, project managers will utilize the (KPIs)  key performance indicators to determine whether the project is on target. A PM will ordinarily pick one to five of these KPIs to quantify project execution: 

Project Objectives: Measuring if a project is on time and a financial plan is a sign that the project will meet partner objectives. 

Quality Deliverables: This decides whether the particular task expectations are being met. 

Cost Tracking and Efforts: PMs will represent the effort and cost of assets to check whether the financial plan is on target. Hence, this kind of following educates if a project will meet its finish date dependent on current execution. 

Project Performance: This screen changes the project. It assumes control of the range of issues that arise and the speed at which they are resolved. Additionally, these can happen from unexpected obstacles and degree changes. 

During this time, PMs may have to change timetables and resources to guarantee the project is on target.

5- Project Closure

This stage addresses the completed project. Some PMs organize small gatherings to thank project participants for their efforts. When a project concludes, a PM will often convene a meeting to evaluate what went well in a project and identify project failures. Thus, this is particularly useful to comprehend exercises learned so upgrades can be made for future projects.

However, when the project is finished, PMs have a couple of tasks to finish. Create a project punch list for unfinished tasks and collaborate with colleagues to complete them. Also, play out a last project budget plan and set up the last project report. At last, they should gather all project documentation and deliverables and keep them in a single place.

Also, Read:

Project Management Methodologies

Project Manager Qualities

Conclusion

So get your hands on PMP certification with the best PMP Institute- ProThoughts. Making the right choice can make the difficult task easier with ProThoughts. A versatile institute that will help you in achieving and executing the project as per your goals.