Below are the five fundamental phases of a typical project lifecycle, each essential for successful project delivery.

1. Initiation

• Goal: Define the project at a high level and gain authorisation to proceed.
• Key Actions: Develop the project charter; identify key stakeholders; establish initial scope and objectives; assess feasibility and alignment with organisational strategy.
• Outcome: Formal project authorisation and initial clarity on purpose and boundaries.

Key Documents Produced:

• Project Charter – officially authorises the project and the project manager, containing project objectives, scope statement, initial budget allocation, and primary stakeholders
• Stakeholder Register – lists who the stakeholders are, their stake in the project, and communication expectations
• Business case
• Initial risk assessment

Benefits of This Phase:

• Provides formal authorisation of the project
• Ensures alignment with business objectives and organisational strategy
• Establishes clear project boundaries and high-level success criteria
• Creates early stakeholder engagement and buy-in
• Defines the project manager’s authority and responsibility

Signs of Poor Execution:

• Unclear or undefined objectives – leads to confusion, misaligned efforts, and scope creep
• Inadequate stakeholder engagement – results in missed requirements, lack of support, and resistance to change
• Missing or inaccessible stakeholders – regulatory, compliance, security, and subject matter experts not identified early
• No clear business case – team cannot articulate why the project exists or what problem it solves
• Unrealistic expectations – skipping feasibility studies leads to unachievable project goals
• Lack of executive sponsorship – projects without senior management support are very likely to fail

2. Planning

• Goal: Establish the roadmap to achieve project objectives.
• Key Actions: Develop detailed scope and requirements; create Work Breakdown Structure (WBS); define activities, schedules, resource plans, budgets; identify risks and planned responses; create subsidiary plans covering communication, quality, procurement, and change control.
• Outcome: Approved comprehensive project management plan that guides execution.

Key Documents Produced:

• Project Management Plan – comprehensive document integrating all project components
• Scope Statement – defines what work is included and establishes boundaries
• Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) – hierarchical breakdown of project work
• Project Schedule/Gantt Chart – timelines, milestones, and dependencies
• Budget/Cost Management Plan – estimated costs and financial tracking methods
• Risk Management Plan – identifies risks and mitigation strategies
• Communication Management Plan – defines stakeholder communication approach
• Quality Management Plan – establishes quality standards and control metrics
• Resource Management Plan – identifies team roles, responsibilities, and acquisition methods
• Assumption log, risk register, issue register, change log
• Requirements documentation and traceability matrix

Benefits of This Phase:

• Sets foundation for successful execution and reduces uncertainty
• Enables accurate estimations for schedule, cost, and resources
• Provides clear accountability through defined roles and responsibilities
• Establishes baseline for measuring project performance
• Forces different stakeholder expectations to surface early
• Creates systematic approach to resource optimisation and cost savings

Signs of Poor Execution:

• Inadequate planning time – rushing through planning is directly correlated with project failure
• Undefined success criteria – leads to different stakeholder expectations and assumptions
• Lack of change control processes – no mechanism to manage scope, requirements, or schedule changes…..costs and schedule may escalate
• Unrealistic timelines and budgets – underestimating complexity due to optimism bias
• Poor risk identification – failure to conduct proper risk assessments leads to surprises and no risk mitigation
• Missing resource plans – insufficient budget, skilled personnel, or technology allocation
• No documented requirements or scope – stakeholders will have differing expectations

3. Execution

• Goal: Complete the work defined in the plan to produce the project deliverables.
• Key Actions: Allocate and manage resources; perform scheduled activities; coordinate team efforts; manage stakeholder communication; procure needed goods/services; ensure quality control.
• Outcome: Project deliverables produced and objectives met according to scope, time, and cost baselines.

Key Documents Produced:

• Project deliverables – the actual products, services, or results
• Team assignments and resource allocation
• Status reports and updates
• Quality assurance documentation
• Dashboard and flow charts
• Contracts and agreements with vendors
• Refined project plan based on ongoing adjustments

Benefits of This Phase:

• Transforms plans into tangible, measurable results
• Creates the actual value and outcomes the project was authorised to deliver
• Enables team coordination and collaboration toward common goals
• Produces deliverables that meet stakeholder expectations
• Generates momentum and visible progress

Signs of Poor Execution:

• Ineffective communication – lack of coordination causes delays, misunderstandings, and misalignment
• Weak leadership – project manager fails to guide, coordinate, and keep team aligned
• Shifting organisational priorities – constant changes disrupt project focus and direction
• Resource constraints – insufficient skilled personnel, budget, or technology
• Poor task delegation – unclear responsibilities lead to gaps in accountability
• Low team morale – demotivation from unclear goals, lack of recognition, or fear of project failure
• Scope creep – uncontrolled changes expand project work without proper evaluation
• Quality issues – deliverables and documents don’t meet standards due to inadequate quality control

4. Monitoring and Controlling

• Goal: Track, review, and regulate progress and performance.
• Key Actions: Measure project performance against plans; monitor risks; manage changes through formal processes; conduct quality assurance; communicate progress and issues to stakeholders.
• Outcome: Early identification and correction of variances, keeping the project on track.

Key Documents Produced:

• Status Reports – regular updates on project performance
• Quality Reports – verification that deliverables meet standards
• Risk Reports – ongoing risk assessments and mitigation status
• Performance Reports – KPI tracking and earned value analysis
• Updated change logs and issue logs
• Decision logs
• Budget variance reports
• Schedule performance updates

Benefits of This Phase:

• Early problem detection – identifies issues before they escalate into major problems
• Risk mitigation – proactive identification and management of potential threats
• Maintains alignment – ensures project stays on track with objectives, schedule, and budget
• Data-driven decisions – provides real-time metrics for informed decision-making
• Stakeholder satisfaction – keeps stakeholders informed and confident in project progress
• Dramatically improves success rates – projects with robust monitoring are much more likely to finish on time and within budget
• Efficient resource utilisation – enables optimisation of resource allocation

Signs of Poor Execution:

• No regular performance tracking – failure to measure progress against baselines
• Reactive rather than proactive – problems only addressed after they become crises
• Poor KPI definition or tracking – inability to gauge actual project health
• Delayed or missing status reports – stakeholders lack visibility into project status
• Uncontrolled scope creep – changes implemented without proper evaluation and approval
• Cost and schedule overruns – budget exceeded and deadlines missed without corrective action
• Inadequate risk management – risks not identified or mitigation plans not executed
• Communication breakdowns – lack of coordination between team members and stakeholders

5. Closing

• Goal: Finalize all project work and formally close the project.
• Key Actions: Obtain formal acceptance of deliverables; close contracts and procurements; release resources; archive documentation; conduct lessons learned actions; communicate project closure.
• Outcome: Official project closure with documented outcomes and lessons captured for future projects.

Key Documents Produced:

• Final Report – summary of project performance including scope, quality, cost, schedule objectives, and achievement of benefits
• Project Closure Report – comprehensive documentation including successes, challenges, lessons learned, and final budget vs. actual costs
• Lessons Learned Documentation – captures what worked well and areas for improvement for future projects; ideally changes organisation documents or templates to incorporate the learning
• Final Product/Service Transition – formal handover documentation to operations or client
• Stakeholder satisfaction evaluation
• Contract closure documentation
• Updated organisational process assets

Benefits of This Phase:

• Archives project information – preserves knowledge for future reference and organisational learning
• Releases resources – frees team members and budget for new work
• Ensures formal acceptance – confirms deliverables meet requirements and client has approved
• Captures lessons learned – enables continuous improvement across the organization
• Provides closure – gives team members and stakeholders psychological completion
• Evaluates project success – measures achievement against original objectives and success criteria
• Maintains professionalism – ensures all contracts fulfilled, vendors paid, and obligations met

Signs of Poor Execution:

• No formal closure – project just “fades away” without official sign-off
• Missing lessons learned – failure to capture what went well and what didn’t
• Incomplete deliverables – work not fully completed or accepted by client
• Unreleased resources – team members remain assigned despite project completion
• Unpaid vendors or unresolved contracts – procurement documentation incomplete
• No stakeholder evaluation – missing feedback on satisfaction and perception of success
• Inadequate documentation – project artifacts not properly archived for future reference
• No celebration or recognition – team contributions not acknowledged, affecting morale