AGILE CLOSE-OUT¶

Closure of agile projects¶

Agile projects usually do not have a regular project close-out, compared to traditional project management. The reason for this is that due to the continuous, incremental delivery of value items as well as the cyclical reviews with involved stakeholders, a closure is possible at any time, provided that the project objective has been fulfilled and the customer is satisfied with the product.

Project conclusion is nevertheless important to ensure an orderly transition. This includes handing over the finished product and related documentation, concluding open issues and, of course, doing the lessons-learned [66][67].

The handover of the project deliverable may include:

• Source code
• Test cases and results
• Documentation and change logs
• Presentation slides or videos
• Results of user analyses
• Database schemas (blueprint of the database with sample data)

Open issues that need to be completed can be:

• Tidying up the working environment (pinboards, boards, etc.)
• File or destroy remaining documents
• Returning borrowed work equipment
• Paying suppliers or subcontractors and finalising purchase orders

For lessons-learned, the following questions can be asked:

• Were any improvements from the Sprint Retrospectives handed over to those responsible in the company?
• What were the key lessons learned about the team's way of working?
• How effective was the agile approach?
• What could be improved in the Developers' work environment?
• If suppliers were involved, how did they perform? Was the budget spent wisely and would you engage them again?
• What was your personal contribution to the project?

Of course, a full project close-out also includes a small closing ceremony to thank the team for the work they have accomplished - people like to be acknowledged. In addition, each team member is given the opportunity to personally come to an end with the project so that they are ready for the next challenge!