By definition, projects are temporary; thus, they must be closed out. The process of closing a project varies from organization to organization and from project to project. The most significant part of the closure process is the client's acceptance of the project deliverables. Although this may be a formality for some projects, for others it may be a complex process that requires time and resources. When a project is nearing its closing stage, management is often rushes to move to the next project, and it is possible that critical closing activities are often performed rapidly or skipped altogether missing an opportunity to gain insight from a completed project’s lessons learned. These activities include mainly obtaining the client's final acceptance on deliverables, conducting post-project appraisals and post-implementation audits. Scenario for the Discussion You were the project manager for a project that was just completed. There were schedule issues throughout the project and it ran over by three months. Management is anxious to move the resources on to new projects that are waiting for them. Your manager has directed you to skip the formal close out process because you are needed on a new project and because she feels the schedule issues had already been discussed at length. You do not say anything then but when you think about it later you realize that you disagree with the decision not to conduct a formal project close out and you need to voice your opinion to your supervisor. By Day 3 After considering the scenario, post your response to the following questions: What are the top three reasons that will convince your supervisor of the importance of conducting a formal project close out? Why did you choose those three? After considering your input your supervisor has asked you to propose an abbreviated closing process that includes the most critical steps. What solutions do you suggest? What are some of the pros and cons of conducting only an abbreviated project closeout process?