Project Management Life Cycle Phases

Every project must follow a specified structure from initiation to completion, regardless of industry type. This formalized structured approach is referred to as the project management life cycle. These phases are the foundation of project management, as they help project managers and their teams move through all the stages efficiently, and ensure risk management, effective resource management, and better goal alignment.

By following a systematic life cycle of project management, organizations can achieve successful project outcomes while staying within scope, time, and budget. There are five important phases of project management, which include, initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and control, and closure. This article will help in diving deeper into each phase and understand the significant role of this life cycle.

What is a Project Management Life Cycle?

Project management plays a crucial role in the successful execution of the projects. It is a process that involves planning, organizing, and managing resources to achieve successful completion of project goals and objectives. It is one of the vital skills of any business. This enables project managers to oversee complex projects and make sure that they are completed on time and within the budget. Project management involves working on varied types of methodologies. Each methodology has its own set of advantages and disadvantages, and this can easily be explored by enrolling in the PMP certification.

One of the most used methodologies is the waterfall methodology. With this methodology, a project is divided into five structured and formalized phases. These phases are:

Individuals are looking to enhance their project management skills with the help of Microsoft tools, so Microsoft Project Excellence can be a great choice. This training can assist you in providing thorough training of the software, equipping participants with the essential knowledge to effectively plan, manage, and communicate project details with the organization.

What is the Importance of Project Management Life Cycle Phases?

Project management life cycle phases are crucial to ensure smooth and efficient movement of projects, that too within the time frame, scope, and budget of the project. In fact, with the help of these phases, project managers get a clear roadmap of how to go about a particular project. By inculcating these approaches in daily life, teams can anticipate challenges, minimize risks, and ensure that no critical tasks are overlooked.

According to a study done by the Project Management Institute (PMI), it has been shown that organizations using standardized project management practices, see 28 times better project performance than those who don’t.

Here are a few aspects that can be mastered if the business implements a well-defined project life cycle:

Project management is not just about meeting deadlines and getting done with the project. It’s also about efficient workflow and smooth functioning of the project. A structured and well-organized project life cycle, backed up by industry standards like PMBoK, can ensure that projects run smoothly, risks are mitigated and the team stays aligned.

5 Phases of Project Management Life Cycle

Managing a project is not at all a cakewalk, no matter the scope and budget. From planning the strategies to handling the immediate changes of the client to shipping the deliverables on time, there are a lot of things that can go wrong.

When a project is divided into meaningful phases, each having its own goals and deliverables, then it becomes easier to control the project and also the quality of the output.

When a project manager is expected to manage projects for their organization and too many things are overwhelming them, then in that case, it’s better to start learning the basic stages of the project management life cycle. This comes under one of the most essential project management skills, that can help the project manager thrive.

The project management life cycle has 5 phases: Initiation, Planning, Execution, Monitoring and Control, and Closure.

Project Initiation

Project initiation is the first stage of a project management life cycle, where abstract ideas are turned into meaningful goals. In this stage, individuals need to develop a project case and define the projects on a deeper level. To do this, individuals need to determine the need for the project and create a proper project plan.

A document, called the project charter, is created with important details like, project constraints, goals, appointment of the project manager, budget, scope, estimated delivery date, etc.

Once it’s done, it’s also crucial to identify the stakeholders for the project that will be involved in the project.

All these aspects are essential to follow in the project initiation step, to build a smooth base of the project.

Project Planning

Once initiating and creating a project charter is done, it’s now important to plan and build strategies for the project. It’s like creating a whole roadmap for your project. If modern project management methodologies, like agile project management, are utilized then it’s easy to go through this stage smoothly. If not, then this stage takes up most of the time of the project.

Goals for the project can be developed in two ways- SMART goals and CLEAR goals.
The SMART aspect of goals ensures that the goals for the project are critically scrutinized. The acronym for SMART refers to

This method reduces risk and establishes that sense in project managers which allows them to make clearly defined goals that are easy to understand.

Another one is the CLEAR criteria, which is designed to cater to the dynamic and ever-changing nature of a modern workplace. The acronym CLEAR stands for:

Project Execution

Now comes the execution phase where the team does most of the actual work. A project manager must ensure smooth workflows, aim to mitigate the risks involved, and carefully monitor the progress of the team.

Also, during this phase, a project manager must ensure effective collaboration with stakeholders. This ensures that everybody stays on the same page and the project runs smoothly without any discrepancies.

After the project has been executed, it’s now time to closely monitor and track the performance of the project. This includes measuring the results of the project against the plan and strategies that were earlier designed.

As a project manager, one must ensure that no one deviates from the plan and stays on the same page. This can be ensured by establishing Critical Success Factors (CSF) and Key Performance Indicators (KPI).

Moreover, in this phase, the project manager must quantitatively track and carefully check the cost of the project. This is important to ensure that the project remains in the budget.

Project Closure

The last phase of the project management life cycle is the closure. This stage is officially the end of the project and wrapping up loose ends. This includes: closing out any financial accounts, shutting down the computer system or other equipment that was used for the project, and completing any final paperwork formalities. This stage is important to ensure that all the tasks are completed. The project manager ensures that all the formalities are done and makes sure to notify the stakeholders about the same.

Conclusion

Project management is not only about the completion of deadlines it’s much more that. To ensure smooth and effective workflow, and avoid burnout, project managers must follow a structured and organized approach while working on projects. This approach must be ensured irrespective of the industry type and complexity of the projects. The five phases of a project management life cycle include: initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and control, and closure.

By mastering the project management life cycle, businesses can thrive, achieve better results, and minimize uncertainties.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the project management life cycle?

Project management plays a crucial role in the successful execution of the projects. It is a process that involves planning, organizing, and managing resources to achieve successful completion of project goals and objectives.

2. What is the goal of the planning phase of the project?

The planning phase involves creating a roadmap for the project. This includes developing a project schedule and setting goals (using methods like SMART and CLEAR).

3. What is the importance of the project management life cycle?

The project management life cycle is important as it assists the projects to be completed on time, within budget, and with the desired quality.