Discussion: Planning and Conducting a Lessons Learned Analysis

Project closing activities typically include a transition to on-going operations after the project deliverables have been accepted by the customer. As team members are released to work on new projects, it can be tempting to skip the lessons learned analysis, because everyone is in a hurry to move on.

The lessons learned analysis is one of the most important outputs of the project closing process. That analysis should be added to the organization's knowledge base to guide future projects. One of the best approaches for preparing the project team for the final project closeout is to introduce these procedures throughout the project as you conclude each project phase.

With these thoughts in mind:

Post a plan for conducting a lessons-learned analysis with your project team and key stakeholders to assess the lessons learned during the scheduling phase of your project. It is understood that you have not actually completed this phase, but it is important for you to plan how you will include an analysis of the lessons learned during the closeout process for scheduling phase of the project.

• Post a memo to the project team and key stakeholders scheduling the lessons-learned meeting, and describing the purpose of the meeting.
• Include an agenda (customized for your course project) of the items that will be discussed.
• Describe how the outcomes of the meeting will be recorded and added to the organization's knowledge base.