Introduction
A project life cycle forms a fundamental part of any project. Project managers, leaders, and team members working closely on a project rely on this structural plan to outline their projects. You will gain a comprehensive understanding of this subject and other key facets of the project life cycle in this article, as it touches all the crucial aspects of this concept.
With this approach, one can easily facilitate projects by taking care of day-to-day task closures, consistent tracking of accountabilities from the project dashboard, and goal accomplishment at the end of every session.
What is the Project Life Cycle?
A project life cycle refers to the lifecycle of a project, which progresses through a series of phases. This is a gradual process involving 5 phases that drives a project from the beginning to the conclusion. The project managers rely on this framework to outline their projects until the time it is completed. These primary phases of a project life cycle are initiation, planning, execution, progress monitoring, and closing.
Who Manages the Project Life Cycle?
The project manager is the one managing the project life cycle in project management. Although multiple other designated people are also proactively involved in the project life cycle, the project manager and the team members are the ones coordinating and directly responsible for handling the project. They oversee the entire project from the start to the end, ensuring everything follows the initially laid-out plan.
The 5 phases of a project life cycle
- Project Initiation Phase: As the name suggests, this is the foremost phase that originates from the first idea of the developers or those involved in the creative team of a project. In this phase, not only is the project’s vision laid out, but also the other associated aspects are taken into account, such as the roadmap to be followed, the goals to be achieved, the target audience to associate with, and the stakeholders to communicate with. Ultimately, this will be the foundational stage of the project.
- Project Planning Phase: Once the project idea is finalized, a structured plan is developed following necessary discussion. Everyone involved in the project contributes their ideas and suggestions, and eventually, a checklist of tasks is designed. This includes the total number of tasks to be completed during the project tenure, the duration defined for each task, and a dependable risk assessment and management plan, in case something fails to work out as intended. Moreover, an individual’s roles and responsibilities within the team are also defined in this phase.
- Project Execution Phase: The project execution phase is considered the most critical of all phases because this is where the implementation takes place. At this stage, the team members’ performances are analyzed, shortfalls are identified, and regular discussions are conducted to incorporate new ways of improvement into operations, thereby scaling deliverables. Throughout the project’s progress, the necessary amendments are also taken into account.
- Project Monitoring & Controlling Phase: At this stage, the progress made in a project is closely monitored, and required corrective actions are taken to improve the project. Loopholes are recognized, and a workable solution is discovered to address them. Regular monitoring and supervision eliminate room for confusion and errors, thereby contributing to the successful closure of the projects.
- Project Closing Phase: The final stage of the project life cycle in project management encompasses several smaller stages, as many factors contribute to the successful completion of a project. Before it concludes, every detail is revisited and reviewed so that the key takeaways from the project are documented in a comprehensive report. All the associated tasks are worked out simultaneously, and documentation is also taken care of before it is considered complete.
Also, know: Project Planning Steps
What are the Challenges of the project life cycle management?
There are many challenges that the project managers can face while supervising and working on a project. Some of the most common challenges include:
- Scope Creep: When a project’s requirements grow beyond the original plan of the project, without the other associated adjustments, such as time, budget, and other resources. Scope creep often leads to delays, poor delivery quality, and dissatisfaction among stakeholders.
- Lack of Collaboration: In project management, situations of poor collaboration may arise due to miscommunication, undefined goals, and inadequate assurance. This must be addressed to avoid repeated efforts, waste of resources, and time.
- Insufficient Resources: When a project falls short of the required funds, resources, equipment, or workforce, this can lead to a situation of inadequate resources.
- Budget Constraints: Budget limits refer to the scarcity of funds experienced during a project, which ultimately compromises the project’s quality and efficiency. This kind of situation often requires revising the original plan to manage resources sensibly and supervise the entire project life cycle in project management.
- Lack of Accountability: This is one of the major drawbacks in project life cycle management that hampers trust, compromises productivity, causes team conflicts, and ultimately results in project failure. There could be multiple reasons for that. For instance, a lack of communication, restricted supervision, and people not identifying their problem areas, but emphasizing others’ shortfalls along the way, are examples of poor accountability.
- Undefined Goals: Failing to set clear objectives before the start of any project is a major factor leading to project failures. Immediately after the ideation phase, establish goals that everyone will work towards throughout the project life cycle.
- Poor Tracking System: Maintaining a clear record of the work done and tasks to be accomplished in the future is fundamental. Failing to do so can lead to mismanagement, budget exhaustion, task overdues, and team depletion.
- Unclear Requirements: When discussing the project parameters, it is crucial to document the project requirements at the beginning of the cycle. This will help avoid any unexpected situations such as mishaps, internal issues, and disruptions to planning during the project. So, as project leaders, it is essential to acknowledge those areas.
- Communication Breakdown: When information is not communicated properly to others in a team, it leads to communication failure and misunderstandings. Therefore, project heads should give ample time to discussing and planning before implementing ideas for execution. Many companies even prioritize following a structured plan that outlines team members’ responsibilities, task timeline, and status.
- Poor Stakeholder Engagement: It is crucial to involve stakeholders in projects when working closely with them. Effective communication with the stakeholders helps in efficient planning and the appropriate allocation of resources. However, failing to do so can lead to project failures, and confusion can lead to delays.
How Project Management Tools and Templates Support the Project Lifecycle?
Project management tools and templates facilitate planning, task management, automation, tracking, and analytics, providing a meticulous foundation to every phase, which sustains clarity in the system. They simplify each phase of the project management life cycle by outlining the required actions, like planning, tracking, team collaboration, scheduling, and financial management.
- Consistency and Standardization - Project management tools and templates are designed to promise consistency and standardization in projects. By providing a proper framework, it helps with project ideation, development, implementation, and closure. This helps to eliminate errors and also saves time.
- Efficiency - Every project management tool or template provides a framework that enables seamless operations by building efficiency in the system. It organizes every process, upkeeps consistency, and promotes healthy communication among the project members.
- Improved Communication- Project management tools facilitate effective communication by allowing sufficient room for timely updates and proactive involvement of the team members in every task. Additionally, this supports ample transparency and quality deliverables.
- Risk Mitigation - All the tools and templates throughout the project lifecycle are designed to identify potential risk areas in the project on time and address them promptly. With a consolidated platform to map every detail of the project, considering possible preventive measures helps monitor and mitigate the project threats beforehand.
- Resource Management - Planning for smart resource allocation when working on a project is a critical step towards avoiding budget overruns and project disruptions. Project management tools and templates, in this case, help provide a clear depiction of tasks to be completed, the hours required, and other resources needed for the project.
- Documentation and Archiving - This stage involves handling and storing (archiving) project documents to ensure they remain safe and accessible in the future. After all, there could be multiple reasons why one might choose to refer to those documents, such as for study, theory, or official inspection. Proper archiving of documents ensures liability and data integrity.
Advantages and Disadvantages of the Project Life Cycle in Project Management
| Point of Reference | Advantages of the Project Life Cycle | Disadvantages of the Project Life Cycle |
| Project Administration | This involves a higher degree of supervision of the project. Additionally, one gains insight into the line of vision in the project life cycle. | This stage often involves in-depth groundwork and brainstorming, which makes it a time-consuming process. This is often counted as a drawback as it makes the process extremely challenging. |
| Clarity in Roles and Accountabilities | There is a structured collaboration within the team, which enhances the quality of work (with fulfilled roles and responsibilities) and also maintains transparency between the project members. | Team members often experience confusion due to limited room for experimentation and changes in the project life cycle system. Poor communication additionally results in delays in the deliverables. |
| Project Monitoring for Risk Control | Every aspect of the project lifecycle is monitored carefully, right from the beginning, which helps in mitigating any potential threats in the project. There is a well-established risk management system in place, which helps keep track of surprises. | A major drawback of the project life cycle is that there always remains room for project failure, no matter how well a plan is put in place. Embracing only limited changes, following a rigid plan, and time-consuming processes can even result in project delays. |
| Workflow System | When everything within the project is clearly defined - from the project scope, the list of tasks, the roadmap to follow, and the guidelines to consider, teams work proactively and deliveries are fast-tracked. | Here, one cannot keep up with the dynamic requirements of the project because there is a confined scope of work. Also, there is a lot of complexity involved due to a higher need for resources. |
| Customer Experience | A progressive project life cycle means quality output and satisfied customers. With timely updates, greater integration between team members, and enhanced communication, achieving milestones becomes easy. | At times, in conventional work models, there remains a lack of communication with the customers, which affects the delivery of products, as the outcome often differs from the previously outlined plan. |
Conclusion:
This article attempts to give an overview of the concept of the project life cycle and project life cycle phases. A project lifecycle incorporates a series of phases that help the project managers collaborate with stakeholders and clients to drive a project from its conception to its conclusion. This is a structured framework that acts as the foundation for the seamless execution of projects.
Today, one can try out the multiple project management tools and software available online to outline and accomplish any project. Those who wish to upgrade their knowledge in this field may also consider pursuing professional certification courses in PMP. Taking up this training will not only boost your professional career but also build your demeanor to lead projects of all sizes.
FAQ :
What tools should be used throughout the project lifecycle to maximize success?
For enhanced team collaboration, structured procedures, and successful project delivery, a few fundamental tools or software that can be used are Kanban Boards, Scrum Boards, Gantt Charts, Project Calendars, etc.
Are project lifecycle and process groups the same?
No, both are different. A project lifecycle defines the various phases involved in a project from the beginning to the end. (for instance, project initiation, project planning, and execution). Process groups are a collection of project management activities that are integrated and executed throughout the project lifecycle. This includes initiating, planning, executing, controlling, and closing.
What is the most important phase of project management?
Well, this is something that people hold different opinions about. While for some it is the planning phase, for others it is the initiation phase. But if we look at it from a broader perspective, it is the Planning Phase that holds the most importance in project management.
How do the project management phases help reduce project risk?
All the project management phases are designed in a way that they entail all the crucial aspects of the risk management process. This includes initiation (identification of project risk), planning and analysis (strategies to avoid risk), execution (implementation of risk control measures), and monitoring and mitigation of potential threats.
Can the project management life cycle be customized to fit different types of projects?
Yes, the project management life cycle is highly customizable and can be tailored to the evolving needs of different projects, irrespective of their size. Project managers leading the projects can choose whatever alterations they want to make to it with their choice of process and tools.
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