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Definition of project life cycle: Exploring the 5 phases

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When you’re starting a big project, establishing a foundation for success is crucial.  However, it can be tough to figure out where to begin. One key to success is understanding the project life cycle – a series of stages a project goes through from start to finish.

The project life cycle includes five main stages: initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and controlling, and closure. Keeping an eye on the completion of each phase helps ensure the project stays on time and within budget. 

In this article, we’ll explore the definition of project life cycle in depth and show how tools like Jira can streamline and enhance each stage of the process.

What is the project life cycle?

The project management life cycle provides a structured plan for project managers to guide their projects to successful completion. It includes all the stages needed in a project – from the inception of an idea to the final implementation.

When project managers have a clear understanding of the various project management phases , they can see the big picture and better know how to handle each stage. These phases break the project down into simpler steps, making it easier for project managers to anticipate what’s coming next. This, in turn, helps them stay on track and ensure the project’s success. Using the right tools and methods also contributes to effective team management throughout the project life cycle.

The 5 project life cycle phases

The project life cycle outlines the different stages a project goes through from start to finish. It encompasses several key phases, each addressing different needs as the project progresses. This framework offers a high-level view of the project’s evolution, ensuring you hit important milestones along the way. There are typically five project life cycle phases : initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and controlling, and closure. 

Initiation is where you define the goals, scope, budget, and timeline. Planning follows, focusing on creating a detailed action plan. Execution then carries out the plans to deliver the product. Once the project begins, you must monitor the project and control for any deviations from the plan. Finally, closure involves wrapping up tasks, obtaining project acceptance, and archiving records.

Even though the names and exact number of phases may differ, most project life cycles follow a similar pattern of planning, execution, and closure. The key is to have a structured approach that helps manage resources, timelines, and deliverables as the project moves from one stage to the next. 

Throughout the phases, project managers monitor and control their teams' efforts, tracking progress and adjusting work as needed to keep the project on schedule and within budget.

Initiation phase

The initiation phase marks the beginning of a project, with the project manager defining the scope and objectives. During this phase, it’s vital to align stakeholders on common goals and lay the foundation for a successful project.

Next, the project manager creates a project charter , outlining the purpose, goals, and scope of the project. This charter includes the following key information:

• Project purpose and justification
• Main objectives and deliverables
• Key stakeholders and team members

Initial schedule and budget estimates

The project manager also conducts a feasibility assessment to determine if the project is realistic and worthwhile.

Planning phase

During the planning phase, the project manager develops a detailed project plan and roadmap . This involves determining key scheduling details, resource allocation, and risks that could impact the project. The goal is to create a comprehensive map of how the team will execute the work.

Jira Product Discovery (JPD) helps gather and organize product ideas, features, and solutions, creating custom, up-to-date roadmaps that show which features the team will build, when, and why. JPD helps project managers identify and prioritize ideas or features that will have the most substantial impact on the project's success. 

Execution phase

During the execution phase, the team puts the project plan into action. The project manager plays a key role in coordinating resources, including people, tools, and materials, while also ensuring the team is well-informed about their individual tasks and timelines.

Jira  is a collaboration tool that helps teams track work activities and offers simplified project tracking and enable seamless project management across both software and business teams, all while accommodating each team's unique working style.

Jira provides end-to-end management of this critical stage. The platform handles the day-to-day demands of executing complex projects, freeing up teams to focus on delivering work rather than struggling with spreadsheets and disjointed tools.

With Jira, project managers can assign tasks, set deadlines, and automate reminders so nothing slips through the cracks. With all their work in one place, they can understand how each task impacts the timeline and budget. This allows for immediate adjustments to keep the project moving forward.

Monitoring and controlling phase

The monitoring and controlling phase involves regularly checking project progress and team performance to ensure everything adheres to the project plan.

During this phase, the project manager identifies any deviations from the plan and budget, determining the cause to take corrective action. Tools such as status reports, time tracking, budget reports, risk management plans, and stakeholder reviews make it easy to see the most important metrics and milestones. To make changes to the plan, team members should submit a change request for approval. 

Closing phase

The closing phase marks the formal end of a project. During this phase, the focus is on getting final approvals and sign-offs, conducting a post-project review, identifying what went well, determining areas for improvement, and documenting lessons learned. These activities foster a culture of continuous learning and promote accountability and transparency.

Agile approaches to the project life cycle

In traditional project management, teams typically establish a fixed plan that does not change. Agile project management , on the other hand, allows for changes to the project plan. In the Agile methodology , teams engage in short, frequent check-ins and make adjustments. This approach focuses on iterative development, customer collaboration, and adaptability. The best methodology depends on the project type.

Scrum is a widely adopted Agile methodology in which Scrum teams work in time-boxed iterations, with daily stand-up meetings to discuss progress, challenges, and plans. In Kanban , another Agile methodology, teams visualize workflows using a Kanban board, allowing them to prioritize tasks and maintain a smooth workflow.

Benefits of effective project life cycle management

Effective project life cycle management streamlines processes in several ways:

• Improved project visibility: Teams can proactively remove obstacles to ensure timely, high-quality results. This enables more effective decision-making.
• Better risk management: Teams can spot risks early and find solutions. Regular risk checks ensure projects stay on time and avoid costly delays or failure.

Enhanced stakeholder communication: With regular updates, progress reports, and meetings, participants stay more informed and involved throughout the project life cycle.

Project managers can use Jira tools to organize and prioritize ideas, making it easy to create and share custom roadmaps with the team.

• Jira  breaks large projects into manageable tasks, tracks progress, and encourages teamwork across all teams and the organization.
• Jira Product Discovery works with Jira, providing context for and visibility into software development projects, business tasks, and more.

Ensure a successful project life cycle with Jira Product Discovery

Jira, a popular project management tool, offers several features and project planning templates to streamline processes and provide context and visibility for projects.

JPD helps with planning, tracking, and managing project phases. With JPD, product teams can neatly gather and organize product ideas, opportunities, features, and solutions within a centralized tool. This helps in the  prioritization of features to find those with the most significant impact.

Jira is effective project management tools that natively integrate with JPD, providing context for and visibility of all project tasks. 

Project life cycle: Frequently asked questions

How does agile differ from traditional project life cycles.

Agile and traditional project life cycle approaches differ significantly in their approach to change and planning. Agile is known for its flexibility and iterative nature, embracing change and promoting continuous review and adaptation. As the project progresses, the team continuously gathers new information, insights, and feedback, allowing them to understand what works and what doesn't. This enables them to make dynamic adjustments to the project plan to make it more effective and aligned with the project's goals.

Traditional approaches are more sequential and rigid. Project managers conduct detailed planning upfront, and the team adheres closely to the plan. In this approach, change is challenging to accommodate.

Each approach has advantages, but Agile is better suited for projects where change is expected or necessary.

How does project life cycle management contribute to organizational growth?

Project life cycle management helps teams optimize the utilization of resources, including people and tools. This improved efficiency allows teams to complete projects on time, contributing to the success of the organization.

What are the potential challenges faced during the project life cycle?

Project management can be complex and challenging, requiring careful attention to potential obstacles, such as scope creep, resource constraints, and communication breakdowns.

Scope creep happens when project requirements expand beyond what the team decided at the start of the project, leading to insufficient resources, delays, and deviations from the project plan. Change control processes help eliminate scope creep. Project managers must check the project's scope often, communicate changes, and involve stakeholders to make sure any changes match the project goals.

Resource constraints can cause delays, jeopardizing successful project completion. To overcome these resource issues, check your resources early in the project planning . Create a backup plan ahead of time. This is how you can find potential problems and think of solutions, like getting outside help or shifting your resources.

Productivity suffers when there are communication breakdowns , which encompass insufficient communication, disagreements, and poor collaboration. Creating a culture where people are happy to share information within the project team and holding regular meetings, both formal and casual, can keep everyone on the same page and prevent communication breakdowns. Project management tools, such as Jira, simplify communication, track progress, and simplify information sharing.

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If you’re just diving into the world of project management for the first time, you might feel intimidated by starting a new project. Fortunately, you can utilize the project life cycle, which is a set of stages that takes a project from start to completion. Read on to learn about each phase of the project lifecycle, its role in the success of the project, and how you can properly manage each phase for optimum results.

What are Project Phases?

Project phases are smaller portions of a project that represent distinct goals or milestones in the larger project lifecycle. Within the project lifecycle, there are 5 project phases, as defined by the Project Management Institute: 

• Project Initiation
• Project Planning
• Project Execution
• Project Monitoring and Control
• Project Closure

Each phase comes with specific requirements of the project team, as well as key deliverables and action items that keep the project moving forward successfully. Mastering project phases is essential for keeping the project on track while completing essential tasks and checkpoints throughout the process. 

Read more: 14 Important Questions Project Managers Should Ask the Team

What are the 5 phases of project management, project initiation phase.

A team’s performance during the Project Initiation Phase can result in either authorization, delay, or discontinuation of a new project.

The main goal of the Initiation Phase is to ensure that the project meets business needs and that stakeholders and project teams are aligned on the project success criteria throughout the project life cycle.

To achieve the project goal, it’s best to involve internal and external stakeholders from the Initiation Phase . This way, you can effectively align expectations and increase the likelihood of completing all the deliverables throughout the project management life cycle.

During the Initiation Phase, the entire project team defines the project idea, and the project sponsor evaluates it and authorizes the project to proceed. The project manager starts the documentation process, which includes the justification, deliverables, risks, estimated cost, and resource requirements.

The Project Charter is a key deliverable of the Project Initiation Phase and contains all this information. It is the first formal definition of the project. It authorizes the project to exist, establishes the authority of the project manager, and documents high-level requirements, project milestones, and success criteria.

Another important document in the Initiation Phase is the Stakeholder Register. This document includes information about all the stakeholders of the project. It identifies the people, groups, and organizations that have an interest in the task, project, and its results.

Approval of the Project Charter signals the advance of the project to the next phase, the Project Planning Phase.

Read more: What is a Project Charter? Complete Guide & Examples 2023

Project Planning Phase

Once the expectations and success criteria are clear, the next project management life cycle phase focuses on planning each task the team needs to perform to cover the scope, achieve the deliverables, and meet the overall goal.

In the Project Planning Phase, the project team members dive into specific requirements, tasks, timelines, and actions. The project manager works with the entire team to create the design, enumerate the task list, and estimate the budget.

The project team builds the resource plan, the communications plan, and the initial project schedule. The project manager also establishes the roles and responsibilities of the team and stakeholders. The project scope is finalized depending on approved available resources and client priorities.

During the Planning Phase , the project team finalizes the Work Breakdown Structure, Project Plan, Requirements List, Communications Management Plan, and other relevant documents to iron out the workflow and coordination with involved parties.

The Project Plan is a key deliverable and contains a detailed work breakdown structure (WBS) or task list with start and end dates, and estimated effort and duration. It identifies milestones, resources, and the schedule. It also includes task dependencies that will allow the project team to use the critical path method if it chooses.

Other important deliverables are the Communications Management Plan, which helps facilitate effective communication with stakeholders, and the Resource Allocation Plan which identifies the schedule of project team resources as to their availability during the whole project life cycle.

Something PMs should keep in mind: As you discover more information, you may have to adjust your previous Project Plan and related procedures. More complex projects will require more back-and-forth approvals for every task created.

Project planning is an iterative process so the project manager should review, revise, and revisit all the plans at least once a month until the completion of the project. It is crucial for the project team to involve relevant stakeholders in this stage of the project life cycle as well.

Read more: Project Management Communication Plan

Project Execution Phase

The Project Execution Phase is where the project team executes and follows through on tasks based on the Project Plan. At this stage, the team spends most of its time coordinating with people, helping to ensure quality work, keeping track of resources, and updating stakeholders.

Sometimes called the Implementation Phase, this is the phase when the project manager tries to manage every task and aspect of project delivery to keep the project on track for the remaining duration of the project life cycle.

The project team focuses on achieving all the objectives set in the earlier phases. At this phase, the project leader likely uses project management software to assign every task to team members. Tools that centralize task information, along with resource availability and team communication can simplify and optimize the needed project management processes.

Quality Assurance documentation, meeting minutes, and Work Orders are some of the documents created during the Execution Phase of the project management life cycle.

It’s also likely that you’ll discover new information that will require a revisit and update of the initial project management plans. Be vigilant with change requests, and make sure that the necessary adjustments are managed.

Read more: Understanding Different Types of Stakeholders and Their Roles

Project Monitoring & Control Phase

The best way to ensure progress and improvement is by tracking and reviewing project performance.

Simultaneously during execution, the project team carefully tracks the progress of the project based on the Project Plan established earlier. Tracking the performance of the project through various metrics is crucial to ensure the project stays on schedule, within budget, and within scope.

The project team keeps track of change management documents, spending records, QA checklists, and team time tracking. They are able to measure where efforts and resources go throughout the project life cycle, crosschecking it with the Project Plan.

Both the Execution Phase and Monitoring & Control Phase are critical times that can determine project success. Aside from monitoring the progress of tasks, the project manager also tries to identify issues or risks, creates a mitigation plan with the team, and reports the project status regularly to stakeholders.

Being diligent in recording and measuring project progress puts the project team in a strategic position. They can identify bottlenecks and initiate essential discussions or project management process improvements.

Having a proactive approach will allow the project team to respond rapidly to any change in the plan. Consistent and appropriate status reporting will update interested stakeholders and provide them the opportunity to intervene in or redirect the project as needed.

If additional planning, time, or resources are needed, you’ll need to communicate them to relevant project stakeholders before it’s too late. You’ll also have the data and results to back up your requests, so you have a better chance of justifying your requests and maintaining their trust despite circumstances.

Read more: 10 Best Project Management Software Buyers’ Guide

Project Closure Phase

In the last project management life cycle phase, all the activities related to its completion are concluded. These may involve the submission of a final deliverable, fulfilling contractual obligations, terminating relevant agreements, and releasing project resources.

The causes of a project closure can be completion, cancellation, termination, or transfer to a new organization. The documentation required to complete Project Closure will differ depending on the situation.

In this phase, the project manager communicates the final project disposition and status to all stakeholders. This phase also ensures to inform participants and stakeholders of any follow-on activities or continuing product life cycle so they can communicate and coordinate with the people in charge.

Regardless of the outcome of the project life cycle, however, it would be good for the team to conduct a project retrospective. During this post-mortem activity, the project team can process new lessons and ensure the improvement of current project management processes for a future project.

During the project closeout, documents to turn over can include various project documentation, final meeting minutes, and other closure reports. These documents can identify and capture lessons learned and best practices for future reference and reuse.

It is a good idea to organize and store project materials in a shared team folder. These materials can provide reference during performance evaluation. The opportunity to continuously test, improve, or reinvent ways to manage the whole project life cycle can help grow the organization and its business.

Read more: How to Host a Good Project Post-Mortem Meeting

VIDEO: Recap of 5 Project Management Phases

Why Are Project Phases Important?

All projects go through each of the five phases regardless of their size.

The decision to officially divide a project into phases is an excellent way to manage the team’s focus, allocate resources, and align the entire project life cycle with clients and stakeholders.

By thinking in terms of phases, the project team ensures that deliverables produced at the end of each phase meet the project’s goals. Managing a project by phase also makes sure that the team is properly prepared for the next phase.

Project life cycle phases provide additional benefits. The approach provides a structured approach for project delivery. Defined activities, outputs, and responsibilities create a clear and common roadmap for the project team to follow.

Defined phases and defined roles show a visible framework easily understood by all team members and stakeholders. Assignment of responsibilities by phase clarifies what the team should only be doing in each phase and helps streamline communication.

Working on projects phase by phase helps track and link progress directly to each phase. Completion of each phase is easily recognizable by all involved.

Another benefit of project management by phase is the progressive evolution of the project. This helps identify areas that need greater attention for a particular phase. It also marks clearly the points and opportunities for structured reviews to support project governance.

While PMBOK recommends assigning project phases according to a project’s life cycle, project teams can follow their own system depending on their industry, organizational policies, and other relevant factors. For example, teams and organizations focused on monitoring the usage of resources can use the critical chain project management methodology.

Read next: Key Project Management Terms and Concepts

Throughout the project lifecycle, there are a variety of tools that can be used to limit stress, automate workflows, and keep the project moving successfully. 

Gantt Charts

Gantt charts are a powerful planning tool that can help teams visualize individual deadlines against task dependencies and overall project progress. This type of chart can be especially useful early on in the project lifecycle, particularly the planning stage. 

Project Management Software

Project management software solutions are likely the most well-known tools in project management—and for good reason. Within one application, users can set task deadlines, view project overviews, extract data about project progress, automate workflows, and more. 

Collaboration Tools

Whether it’s a remote team, in-office, or a hybrid blend, collaboration is one of the most important elements of running a successful project. While some project management software solutions offer built-in collaboration tools, utilizing the power of other tools that are directly centered around team communication, such as Slack, can ensure the team has a central space to communicate updates. 

Throughout the project lifecycle, the project manager takes ownership of the project and relays updates to team members. As each phase of the project progresses, the project manager will facilitate discussions, track progress, and address any roadblocks.

The project initiation phase is arguably the most important phase of the project lifecycle, as this is when the project is conceived and approved so that work can begin. During this phase, it’s common for a team to present a proposal in order to gain approval for the project.

Read more: Project Proposal with Template

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Project Management

The ultimate guide to the project management lifecycle.

Erica Chappell

Managing Editor

June 4, 2020

Ready to learn about the project management life cycle?

Project management is a long and complex process that can unnerve even the most experienced management experts!

So to make everyone’s job a little bit easier, the concept of a project life cycle was born.

In this article, we’ll explain what the project life cycle is, highlight each phase of the life cycle, and go over the best project management tool to manage it!

And since the life cycle deals with time and space , we’ll take some help from a few experts to explain this concept.

Say hello to Rick and Morty!

What is Project Management?

What is a project life cycle.

• The initiation phase
• The planning phase
• The execution phase
• The monitoring phase
• The closure phase
• How do you Manage Project Management Processes?

Don’t worry Morty! It’s going to take you a lot less than twenty minutes to get through this!

Project management is the practice of initiating, planning , executing, maintaining, and closing a project to achieve a certain goal .

Here’s an example of a project management plan in action:

Let’s say Rick has a new personal project – gaining muscle so he could beat up aliens!

But how does Rick ensure that he is able to complete the project ?

That’s where project management comes in!

Project management processes allow him to:

• Initiate: decide on how to bulk up
• Plan: create a workout routine
• Execute: follow the routine
• Maintain: add more reps to the exercise if necessary
• Close: finish the plan

Similarly, in businesses, projects are operations that are conducted to meet specific goals and objectives . And unlike Rick’s muscle-building program, this project management process consists of project resources, team members, and deadlines.

The product life cycle helps you organize all these resources and activities to ensure that your project is a success!

Just like the human life cycle spans from birth to death, the project life cycle is the process that needs to be followed to lead a project from start to finish.

Managing an entire project on your own can be really intimidating. 

Think about it.

You not only have to manage the work, but also the team, the customer’s expectations, the processes, and the project deliverables .

This might lead you to end up feeling like Rick here!

That’s why it’s important to split the work into small manageable steps.

In the life cycle , work is split into five different phases to make it a lot easier to deal with. 

Almost every project manager uses the project management lifecycle to achieve project success – and so should you !

What are the 5 Key Life Cycle Phases?

The project life cycle is made up of the:

• Initiation phase
• Planning phase
• Execution phase
• Monitoring phase
• Closure phase

Your project has to pass through each stage of this predictive life cycle to be a success. Additionally, each phase generally has a deadline because you don’t want the project to be stuck in one phase forever! 

Let’s take a deep dive into each phase:

1. The initiation phase

The first phase of the project life cycl e answers the question:

‘Why do we need this project ?’

This phase essentially gives your project a purpose.

In this project phase , you need to:

• Identify a business opportunity
• Develop a project idea to tackle that opportunity

So how do you do that?

Here are the steps involved in this phase :

A. Create a business case

A business case is a document that explains why a new project should be started. The ideal business should be clear, logical, relevant, and comprehensive.

 Business cases vary from project to project , but they have a common structure:

• Table of contents
• Project details
• Analysis of future costs, benefits, and disadvantages

B. Do a feasibility study

After the business case has been approved, you need to create a document that answers the following two questions:

• Will the proposed project work?
• Should the team proceed with it?

It also helps you outline the risks involved and how you’ll solve them.

C. Create a project charter

Every project needs a project charter – otherwise, the project will lack structure.

And without structure, there will be chaos!

Don’t panic, Rick! Here’s how you can create a project charter :

The project charter includes:

• Vision: what you wish to achieve with the project in the future
• Project scope : work that will be covered within the project
• Project’s objective: desired results of the project
• Deliverables: objectives and measures of success
• Responsibilities of the team : what the team is expected to do

With this document in place, the execution phase will go off without a hitch!

D. Assemble a team

To pull off a successful heist, Rick needed a team with unique skills:

Similarly, in order to tackle a project , you need team members with different skill sets. 

Create a doc that lists all the roles for each team member, as well as their responsibilities. 

How do you find these team members?

Create an organizational chart that lists:

• Skills required for a job role
• Experience needed for each position

This will help you narrow down your search for your final project team . 

Now let’s move on to the next phase .

2. The planning phase

What’s the key to project success ?

Planning , planning, and more planning !

A project without a management plan is like a spaceship without brakes! 

It’s bound to crash!

The project planning phase is important because it prevents your team from losing control of the project scope, which ultimately leads to scope creep .

Note: Your project scope includes everything that goes into a project. Scope creep is a management term referring to the rapid, uncontrolled growth of scope during a project.

Now, let’s take a look at what goes on during the planning phase :

A. Creating goals and objectives

Before you start planning ahead, you need to ask yourself, ‘ What do I want to achieve with this project ?’ 

Do you want to:

• Make customers happy?
• Increase revenue?
• Cut production costs?

For example, Rick’s project goals would be to earn money through his cool inventions.

Now, your project planning needs to figure out how you’re going to achieve that goal. 

You need to break that goal down into a few statements called objectives.

For example, Rick’s primary project objective would be to ‘ Produce more Portal Guns ’ to reach his goal.

B. Writing a scope statement

A project scope statement defines what work will be done and what won’t be done in the project .

Here’s what a project scope statement for developing software would include:

• Product Scope: everything that goes into developing your software
• Deliverables: components of the project like specific software features 
• Product Acceptance Criteria: the conditions that need to be met for success
• Risks: issues or constraints that can affect your project

All the stakeholders, including clients and investors, have to agree to the project scope – otherwise, it’s back to the drawing board!

C. Estimating the budget

A study by The Project Management Institute found that around 43% of projects exceed their budget. 

That means you have roughly 1 in 2 chances of going over budget, which can lead to:

• Reduced return on investment
• Financial losses
• Possible project failure!

So stop daydreaming while doing the math!

Calculate an estimate of the costs of all the resources, salaries, and tools required to complete the project and try to follow it as carefully as possible.

D. Gathering resources

Once you’ve set the budgets, you need to make sure your team has everything they need to create a successful project . 

Which means you need to purchase:

• Necessary equipment like servers, laptops, printers, etc.
• Software licenses 
• Project management tools
• Anything else they need for the project!

E. Creating a project timeline

A project timeline lists out all the project tasks that need to be completed sequentially. 

Each task must also have a fixed deadline, so your team doesn’t sleep on the job like Morty here!

3. The execution phase

After you’ve gained approval from the stakeholders, created a team, and developed a project plan, it’s time to get to work on the project !

Mr. Meeseeks is ready… Are you ready too?

In the project execution phase (also known as the implementation phase ), the project manager has a few key responsibilities like:

• Managing team members
• Following the project timeline
• Communicating important information with all stakeholders 

Now let’s take a closer look at project managemen t processes involved in the execution phase :

A. Briefing the project team

Before assigning tasks to your team, it’s important to tell them what they’re getting into. 

Here’s what you need to do:

• Explain how a task should be completed
• Create company Docs to explain certain processes
• Conduct training sessions if necessary

And while you’re assigning tasks, don’t assign an excessive amount of work or it’ll affect project performance .

It’ll leave them overwhelmed like Rick and Morty after too many space adventures!

B. Reporting progress

While your team is working on the project plan, a project stakeholder might regularly ask them to:

And how does your project team show them their project progress?

Your team has to share weekly reports of the tasks they’ve completed, and the project deliverables they’ve finished.

C. Managing issues

As work on the project continues, issues are bound to pop up regularly. 

Your team can face problems related to time management , budget management, software bugs, team morale, and more.

Here’s how you can manage those issues:

• Create a document to store a list of issues
• Ask your team to log issues to the document
• Assign team members to help fix the problems
• Monitor progress of the issue
• Resolve issues when they’re done

Note: The longer the issue remains unresolved, the more problems it can cause. It’s a good idea to mark tasks related to issue management as a high priority . 

D. Holding weekly meetings

At the end of the week, project managers and team members should come together to discuss:

• What they’ve worked on
• The issues that they’ve faced

These meetings ensure that no task slips under the cracks, and the project work is running smoothly.

For example, every morning, Scrum teams host meetings known as daily standups to discuss what they’ll be working on for the day.    

4. The monitoring phase

Even though it’s the fourth phase of the project life cycle , the project monitoring phase happens at the same time as the execution phase .

So how is it different?

This phase is all about measuring and tracking your team’s performance over executing the project plan .

It’s going to help managers like Rick say: 

Let’s take a look at the three project management processes involved in the project monitoring phase :

A. Choosing KPIs

How do you know if the project is on track?

Through KPIs.

KPIs (key performance indicators) are metrics used to measure the team’s performance over key business activities. 

A project manager usually picks a few KPIs like:

• Quality of deliverables: identifies if project deliverable s are being produced
• Costs: ensures if the project doesn’t exceed the budget
• Issue resolutions : monitors the issues that arise and how quickly they are fixed

B. Measuring progress

Now that you’ve set the KPIs, you need a way to measure them. 

Fortunately, a project management tool can help you with this! 

A good project management tool will have dashboards that take in real-time project data (like completed tasks, time tracked, etc.), and track your metrics. Just one glance at these dashboards, and you’ll have a complete picture of what’s going on within the project !

C. Refining processes

The dashboards will also indicate the areas where your project team is crushing their goals and where they’re struggling. Use this to identify bottlenecks in and figure out a way to eliminate them.

5. The closure phase

Because of the time and effort put into the planning stage and execution, most companies rush through the final phase of the project life cycle .

However, this phase is equally important!

There’s still a lot of work that is left to be done after the project is finished. 

Here’s what goes on in the project closure phase:

A. Analyze performance

Verify if the project goals and objectives that you had set earlier were met. 

You should also evaluate how individual team members performed. 

Reports and reviews can indicate whether they met their goals, determine their quality of work, and identify if they met their deadlines.

After analyzing that data, you can (hopefully) tell your project team :

B. Create final documents

You finished your project!

Congratulations.

But you’re not done yet.

When you’re saying goodbye to your stakeholders, you’ll have a lot of paperwork to do! 

This includes:

• Closing contracts
• Creating invoices
• Generating reports

After you’ve sent the paperwork to your client, it’s a good idea to create a copy of it and store it in your archives for future reference.

C. Release resources

After the project team has served its purpose, you have to redistribute them to be available for future projects.

And if there are any unused funds (as if!), you can allocate it for the next project .

D. Celebrate success!

After achieving project success , you should acknowledge your team for doing a great job! 

Consider rewarding your project team with something after the project closure phase . Not only does it boost team morale, but it also creates loyalty. This way, your project team is motivated to work harder on their future projects.  

But for now, it’s time to loosen up. Or as Rick and Morty would say – it’s time to Get Schwifty!

How do you Manage Project Management Processes ?

Project management becomes ridiculously easy when you use a software, like ClickUp. And the best management tools have everything you need to manage each life cycle phase.

Fortunately, that’s exactly what ClickUp was built for:

What’s ClickUp?

ClickUp is the world’s highest-rated project management tool that’s used by teams of all types and sizes worldwide. Whether you use Agile, Scrum or any other project methodologies , it has everything you need to manage every phase of your project life cycle. 

Let’s take a look at how ClickUp can manage your lifecycle processes:

1. For the initiation phase

Whether you like it or not – the initiation requires a lot of paperwork! 

You need to create and store documents like the feasibility study, and the project charte r. 

ClickUp’s solution: Docs

Docs are a great place to store all your initiation phase documents.

Not only does it allow you to create well-formatted documents, but also Docs helps you collaborate remotely in real-time!

And that’s not the best part!

ClickUp allows you to gather and store all your scattered project documents in one place for better accessibility.

So if you have company docs on Evernote, Notion, & Google Docs – you can import them faster than Rick can say his catchphrase:

2. For the planning phase

You’ve set a few goals and objectives for your project . But those goals are useless if there’s no easy way to carefully plan them out!

Don’t worry, ClickUp’s got you covered:

ClickUp’s solution: Goals

In ClickUp, Goals are high-level containers that can be broken down into smaller objectives known as Targets. 

Just create your project Goal and then set measurable Targets to achieve them!

For example:

Rick’s project Goal was to – ‘Earn money through inventions’. 

He then would have two measurable Targets for his project team :

• Create 50 portal guns
• Produce 20 Interdimensional cable TV boxes

As he progresses, he can update his targets in ClickUp. 

And here’s where the magic happens…

ClickUp automatically calculates your project goal progress in real-time! 

This can motivate him to keep pushing forward until their goal.

Note: If you’re using the Agile project management methodology , you can use the Goals feature to create sprint goals to track the progress of the sprint.

3. For the execution phase

If project management was a movie – then the project execution phase would be the fast-paced action sequence!

You need to assign tasks, manage workflow and teams – all under a tight deadline!

Additionally, maintaining proper communication is absolutely crucial during the project execution phase. Even the most planned projects can derail due to miscommunication!

Here’s how ClickUp helps you navigate the execution phase :

ClickUp’s solutions

A. assign tasks.

Assigning project tasks in ClickUp is as easy as summoning Mr. Meeseeks! 

Just create a new task and add all the project team members that need to work on it. Your team members get instantly notified of this and can begin work on it!

B. Track time taken on tasks

Want your team to pick up the pace?

You can add a time estimate to each task to give your team an idea of how long they have to complete it.

To ensure that your team is sticking to the project schedule, each team member can track the time spent on each task with ClickUp’s Chrome extension .

Already using a time tracker?

No problem! 

ClickUp integrates with loads of time tracking tools, including Toggl , Everhour, Time Doctor, and more. This way, your team stays productive – even when they’re working remotely !

C. Comments

Since you don’t have a lot of time on your hands – you need a quick and efficient way to communicate with your team.

That’s why each task has in ClickUp has a comment section, which your team can use for:

• Clearing up any doubts
• Alerting the team about the issues they’ve faced
• Sending documents related to the task

You can even assign tasks to your team members with the Assigned Comments feature.

With an Assigned comment , you can instantly convert a comment into a task, and then assign it to your team members, so they take action on it immediately!

4. For the monitoring phase

During the project monitoring phase, you’re going to have to track your project progress.

Yup – even Rick needs some monitoring help to run a successful project !

Here’s how ClickUp can help you:

ClickUp’s solution – Dashboards

ClickUp’s Dashboard has plenty of Widgets that cover your project’s progress:

• Burn-Up Charts:  determines how close your team is to finish the entire project
• Burndown Charts : visualizes the amount of work remaining in a project
• Velocity Charts: determines the number of tasks your team can complete in a given period of time

Note: These widgets work best when you’re using Scrum and Agile project management techniques.

5. For the closure phase

Just like the initiation phase , the project closure phase also requires a lot of paperwork!

Don’t worry, it’s much easier this time around!

With project management software like ClickUp, you can instantly generate and share reports for detailed insights on how things went. 

ClickUp’s solution – Team Reports

Task completed report.

This report displays the number of tasks completed by each team member.

Worked On Report

This report displays the number of tasks each team member has been a part of.

Time Tracked Report

This report measures the amount of time your team spent on the project tasks.

Worried that these reports will fall into the wrong hands?

ClickUp allows you to customize the permissions to your reports, to ensure that only specific stakeholders can access them.

The project lifecycle organizes your project work into manageable chunks – to make attempting it easier for your project team.

But simply defining your project life cycle isn’t enough.

You’ll also need a project management tool to guide every step of the way.

Luckily, that’s exactly what ClickUp was made for.

It’s going to be the Morty to your Rick – helping you navigate each phase of your project management life cycle with ease!

So sign up for ClickUp , and ensure that project life processes remain as smooth as the sounds of Snake Jazz!

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7 Stages of the Project Management Lifecycle to Follow for Optimal Results

William Delong - Guest Contributor

Lindsay Page

1. Planning

2. analysis, 3. design and analysis, 4. development, 6. implementation, 7. maintenance, understanding project flow from start to finish allows you to set achievable goals..

You’re a project manager who was just handed a high-profile project with a new client. It has a tight deadline, and you need everyone on the team at the top of their game.

What does your project management lifecycle look like? A project management lifecycle creates a step-by-step plan with the best practices to move a project from start to finish. A project manager follows the same structured template for each project, making tweaks as they find ways to improve. It provides a structured way to create, execute, and finish a project.

The beauty of a PM lifecycle is that it's scalable and repeatable across teams and projects.

Once you establish your basic project management process, your teams get better at completing client-facing and internal tasks. Take a look at the seven stages of the project management lifecycle to achieve optimal results regardless of your industry.

Also called initiating, the planning stage is the most important part of the project management lifecycle. As Dwight D. Eisenhower said, "Plans are useless, but planning is indispensable." Planning means you prepare for possible contingencies and leave some wiggle room for unexpected developments.

You can subdivide planning into four main activities:

Determine why you're moving forward with the project. Build a case for it, determine the problem you're trying to solve, and devise a roadmap to fix it.

Create a rough outline of what the project involves. The basic outline should include an estimate of the scope, time, and resources needed for your project.

Get all stakeholders involved, since they bring valuable insights to the project. Stakeholders include staff members, independent contractors, customers, suppliers, government agencies, communities, and nonprofits.

Develop a project hierarchy. The hierarchy typically includes the project manager as the lead, department managers as the next point on the chain, followed by department subordinates. Larger companies may have more complex hierarchies, so go with what works best with your business structure.

Once you have planning in place, dive deeper into what it will take to move the project along.

Once you've sketched out a solid plan for your project, the next phase of project management involves a deeper analysis of data from stakeholders and experts. This will show whether you can move forward.

Conduct feasibility studies

Feasibility studies let your team determine if the project's goals are achievable. All stakeholders evaluate the pros and cons of the project and whether you have enough resources, including technological tools, data, and team expertise.

Summarize your findings

Once your feasibility studies are complete, summarize your findings to the stakeholders. An executive summary (one to two pages) should suffice. If people need more information, you can provide the details of your analysis.

Seek approval from decision makers

Now your project moves into the hands of those who can approve the summary because, after this point, the investment in a project becomes more pronounced.

In the planning stage, you came up with a comprehensive outline of the project's scope. The design stage of project management lets you fill in details of the strategy to let stakeholders move forward based on the data you found in the feasibility study.

For example, your feasibility study determines that digital transformation will cost the company an upfront investment of $75,000 for labor costs and technological tools. However, your study determines that the plan will allow teams to bring in $250,000 more revenue every year because staff can focus on higher-level tasks. The design stage provides more data to help make relevant decisions when advancing a project.

If your analysis proves the project can still move forward, it’s time to proceed to the next stage.

Also called execution, development is where the most time and labor is spent during project management. By now, everyone working on a project knows what tasks need to be completed. People may meet regularly (as outlined in the design stage of project management) to discuss successes and challenges of moving through the project.

Inevitably, some aspects of the project may change during the development stage, as people go deeper into their daily tasks. It's essential to take detailed notes about staff problems and how they solve them, particularly when you move through later project management stages.

Testing, also known as monitoring, happens concurrently with development. This is where you get the bugs out of the system and re-test until you get it right.

If you're a software company, the testing phase of your project management lifecycle occurs when you debug code, retest it, and continue debugging it until you get the results you want. For digital marketers, the testing phase is when you ensure all website plugins work correctly.

Testing in a project also gives you an idea of how efficiently you'll reach your key performance indicators (KPIs) before you enter the next phase. At this point, your project is about to come together with the payoff in sight.

All your team's hard work pays off during implementation. Bits of code come together as software or a platform. A digital marketing campaign kicks off with a website going live and ads pointing to it. Your old computer system is gone and replaced with faster, more effective digital tools.

Implementation sounds like the work is complete and your customers can accept delivery of a brand-new product or service. However, your project management lifecycle is not quite done yet.

Maintenance isn't nearly as laborious as development, testing, or implementation in project management. But it's still vital to the success of a project.

A website and its plugins may require updates. A manufacturer determines that a new kind of raw material works better to create self-sealing stem bolts in their production line, so they improve their processes.

Maintenance takes many forms, and this stage of project management means your team continually evolves, adapts, and improves your products or services.

Once you develop project management stages, you're set

Project management may seem complicated if you don't have it in place already. But once your project management infrastructure is established, it runs itself with occasional tweaks. Conduct monthly research to keep improving, and digest monthly, quarterly, and annual reports to find ways to make the project management process run more efficiently. Consider meeting quarterly to discuss what's working, what's not, and how you can improve your processes.

Need help with your project management? There are plenty of project management software solutions you can choose from.

Our list of project management software

Top 10 Project Management Apps For Marketing Teams

7 Best Open Source Project Management Software

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About the author s.

William is a professional writer and editor specializing in a variety of industries including legal, medical, marketing, and technology. He has over 13 years of experience delivering engaging content.

Lindsay Page is an editor at Capterra. She specializes in editing data-driven research and tech trends reports for small to midsize businesses. She has more than a decade of experience writing and editing for a variety of industries, with particular expertise in cybersecurity, corporate and securities regulation, and finance.

When not editing, Lindsay can be found reading a mystery novel, spending time with her family, and playing competitive tennis. Lots and lots of tennis.

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Capterra value report: a price comparison guide for project management software, 5 key task management software features and top products that offer them, 5 key time tracking software features and top products that offer them, what is a project timeline and how to make one, how to use analogous estimating for quick and effective budget forecasts, 6 top-rated ai-enabled tools for workflow management, the ultimate review of construction project management methodologies, key qualities of a successful project leader, according to award-winning leadership coach, what is project risk management everything you need to know.

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The Project Management Life Cycle Explained

5 Phases of Project Management Life Cycle You Need to Know5 Phases of Project Management Life Cycle You Need to Know

Successful completion of a project is a challenging endeavor. It calls for tasks to meet stakeholder and client requirements; a lot is involved in the project management life cycle process before completion.

No matter what type of project you are working on, comprehensive knowledge about the Project life cycle, phases, or process groups is essential. It keeps your ongoing projects more organized and viable from ideation to completion.

What is Project Management Life Cycle?

Project Management Life Cycle (PMLC) refers to the sequence of stages or phases a project undergoes from Initiation to completion. It provides a structured framework for organizing and managing a project’s various tasks, resources, and timelines. The PMLC is essential for ensuring that projects are planned, executed, and closed systematically, focusing on meeting defined objectives within set constraints, such as time, cost, and scope.

The typical phases in the PMLC include Initiation , where the project’s goals, stakeholders, and feasibility are identified; Planning , during which detailed plans concerning resources, timelines, and actions are crafted; Execution , where the plans are put into action and project deliverables are produced; Monitoring and Controlling , to ensure the project stays on track and adjustments are made as necessary; and finally, Closing , where the project is formally completed, deliverables are handed over, and post-project evaluations are conducted. 

Each of these stages is critical for the successful completion of a project and provides clear guidelines and checkpoints to ensure that the project’s objectives are met efficiently and effectively.

5 Phases of Project Management Life Cycle

project phases – invensis learning project phases – invensis learning

Project Initiation

Project initiation is the first Project Management life cycle phase, where the project starts. It overviews the project and the strategies required to attain desired results. It is the phase where the feasibility and business value of the project are determined.

The project manager starts a meeting to understand the client and stakeholders’ requirements, goals, and objectives. It is essential to go into minute details to understand the project better. Upon deciding to proceed, the project can move on to the next step: assembling a project team.

The Project Charter is considered to be the most important document of any project as it comprises:

• Business vision and mission
• Project goals and benefits
• List of stakeholders
• Scope of the Project
• Project deliverables
• Risks associated with the project
• Project budget and resources

project initiation – project phases – invensis learning project initiation – project phases – invensis learning

Undertake a Feasibility Study

In the initial stage, it is essential to understand the project’s feasibility. See if the project is viable from the economic, legal, operational, and technical aspects. Identifying problems will help you analyze whether you can solve issues with appropriate solutions.

Identify the Project Scope

Identifying the project scope involves defining the project’s length, breadth, and depth. On the other hand, it’s equally essential to outline functions, deadlines, tasks, features, and services.

Identify the Project Deliverable

The next step is to outline the project deliverables upon identifying the project scope. The project deliverables include defining the product or services needed.

Identification of Project Stakeholders

A thorough identification of project stakeholders is essential. Meeting with team members and experts to identify project stakeholders is better. Documentation of relevant information on stakeholders and their impact on the successful completion of the project is required.

Develop a Business Case

Before developing a business case, check whether the essential pillars of the project, such as feasibility, scope, and identification of stakeholders, are in place. The very next step is to come up with a full-fledged business case.

Creating a statement of work (SoW) and forming a team to wrap up the project initiation phase.

Read out the blog on Project Management Triangle to effectively manage critical project management factors!

Project Planning

A lot of planning related to the project takes place during this phase. On defining project objectives, it is time to develop a project plan for everyone to follow.

The planning phase frames plans that help guide your team through the implementation and closing phases. The program created at this point will help you manage cost, quality, risk, changes, and time.

The project plan should include all the essential details related to the project goals and objectives and how to achieve them. It is the most complex phase in which project managers handle operational requirements, design limitations, and functional requirements.

The project planning phase includes the following components:

Creating a Project Plan

A project plan is a blueprint of the entire project. A well-designed project plan should determine the list of activities, the time frame, dependencies , constraints involved, and potential risks. It assists the project manager in streamlining operations to meet the end objective and tracking progress by making appropriate decisions at the right time.

Creating a Resource Plan

The resource plan provides information about various resource levels required to accomplish a project. A well-documented plan specifies the labor and materials to complete a project. Resources used should have relevant project management expertise. 

Budget Estimation

Framing a financial plan helps you to set the budget and deliver project deliverables without exceeding it. The final budget plan lists expenses on material, labor, and equipment. Creating a budget plan will help the team and the project managers monitor and control the costs throughout the Project Management life cycle.

Gathering Resources

Gathering resources is essential to project planning as it helps monitor the project’s quality level. It is not enough to assemble a well-balanced team from internal and external resources. Resources like equipment, money, software solutions, and the workplace should be given to complete the assigned tasks.

Anticipating Risks and Potential Quality Roadblocks

The risk plan will help you identify risks and mitigate them. It will comprise all the potential risks, the order of severity, and preventive actions to track it. Once threats are under control, delivering the project on time is possible, adhering to quality.

Project Execution

Project execution is the phase where project-related processes are implemented, tasks are assigned, and resources are allocated. The method also involves building deliverables and satisfying customer requirements. Project managers or team leaders accomplish the task through resource allocation and keeping the team members focused.

The team involved will create project deliverables and seek to achieve project goals and objectives as outlined in the project plan. This phase determines whether your project will succeed or not. The success of the project mainly depends on the project execution phase. The final project deliverable also takes shape during the project execution phase.

There are a lot of essential things that are taken care of during the execution phase. Listed below are a few of them:

Reporting Progress of a Project

During the project execution phase, it is essential to get regular project updates as they provide the required information and even identify the issues.

Hold Regular Meetings

Before you kick off a project meeting, be clear about the agenda and inform team members of the meeting well in advance. If communication is timely and straightforward, the productivity of ongoing projects and those in the pipeline will not be affected.

Manage Problems

Problems within the project are bound to occur. Issues such as time management, quality management, and a weakening in the team’s morale can hinder the success of a project. So make sure all problems are solved in the beginning.

Project Monitoring and Control

The monitoring and control phase measures the project’s performance and track progress. It is implemented during the execution phase. The main goal of this phase is to check whether everything aligns with the project management plan, especially concerning financial parameters and timelines.

The project manager is responsible for making necessary adjustments related to resource allocation and ensuring that everything is on track. A project manager may conduct review meetings and get regular performance reports to aid this.

Monitoring project activity after the project execution phase will allow the project manager to take corrective actions. Meanwhile, considering the quality of work will also help to make the necessary improvements. Keeping an eye on the budget will help to avoid unnecessary expenses and resources.

Project Closure

With much time and effort invested in project planning, it is often forgotten that the final phase of the project management life cycle is equally important.

The project closure phase represents the final phase of the project management life cycle, also known as the “follow-up” phase. Around this time, the final product is ready for delivery. Here, the main focus of the project manager and the team should be on product release and product delivery. In this stage, all the activities related to the project are wrapped up. The closure phase is not necessarily after a successful completion phase alone. Sometimes, a project may have to be closed due to project failure.

Upon project completion and timely delivery to clients, the project manager’s role is to highlight strengths, list the takeaways of the project, identify the ambiguities, and suggest how they could be rectified for future projects. Taking time to recognize the strengths and weaknesses will help to handle projects with more dedication, which builds the project manager’s credibility.

Once the product is handed to the customers, the documentation is finalized, the project team is disbanded, and the project is closed.

Enroll in Invensis Learning’s Project Management Courses and gain mastery in effective project delivery on Time!

Why Process Groups in Project Management?

For a project to be successful, the project team should:

• Determine suitable processes required to meet the project objectives
• Work to achieve requirements by using a defined approach
• Arrange and maintain appropriate communication and engagement with stakeholders
• Comply with requirements to meet stakeholder needs and expectations
• Balance the critical constraints of scope, schedule, budget, quality, resources, and risk to produce the particular product, service, or result

The project manager and his team are responsible for deciding which processes are appropriate and how to utilize them to get the best out of the project.

The processes in project management are connected and aligned with each other in one way or the other. Modifications and changes performed during one process affect other related processes. For instance, a change in scope typically affects project cost, but it may not affect the level of risk. These process interactions often require compromises among project requirements and objectives. These adjustments could vary from project to project and organization to organization. The role of a project manager is to manage these interactions to meet sponsor, customer, and other stakeholder needs. Sometimes, a process or set of processes may need to be iterated several times before achieving the required outcome.

Characteristics of a Project Life Cycle

The generic life cycle structure commonly exhibits the following characteristics:

• At the start, cost, and staffing levels are low and reach a peak when the work is in progress. It again starts to drop rapidly as the project begins to halt
• The typical cost and staffing curve do not apply to all projects. Considerable expenses secure essential resources early in their life cycle
• Risk and uncertainty are at their peak at the beginning of the project. These factors drop over the project’s life cycle as decisions are reached and deliverables are accepted
• The ability to affect the final product of the project without impacting the cost drastically is highest at the start of the project. It decreases as the project advances toward completion. It is clear from Figure 2 that the cost of making new changes and rectifying errors increases as the project approaches completion

characteristics of the life cycle – invensis learning characteristics of the life cycle – invensis learning

These features are present almost in all project life cycles but in different ways or degrees. The intent of the adaptive life cycles lies particularly with keeping stakeholder influences higher and the costs of changes lower throughout the life cycle than in predictive life cycles.

Let’s take a look at how knowledge of the project life cycle benefits an organization:

• It helps professional services teams to be more proficient and profitable
• The project life cycle helps the organization
• It makes the flow of communication easier
• The knowledge emphasizes reporting and examining previous projects

Important Elements of Project Management Process Groups

There are some project management processes, apart from the five above, which run through all of the phases:

• Phase Management: As the name suggests, a project manager’s job is to satisfy the conditions for completing each phase and starting the next one. Before exiting a phase, he must be fully aware of the deliverables that must be completed and accepted by the concerned stakeholders.
• Communication: Communication plays an integral part in any project. A project manager must ensure communication responsibilities are clear with team members, the project board, stakeholders, and related third parties. Insufficient or improper communication is a common problem area for projects and needs to be appropriately addressed.
• Procurement: This is a specialist area. Some projects, like the ones involving information technology, hire third parties to manage purchasing or any other department. Efficiently managing these third parties is an essential task for a project manager.
• Integration: Many projects impact their department or area and other business areas. As a project manager, one must ensure that he reflects on how the project will interface with other projects or functions or affect other businesses.

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How Project Management Templates Can Help Manage the Project Lifecycle?

Project management templates are pre-defined formats or structures used to capture, track, and communicate various aspects of a project. Leveraging these templates can streamline the Project Management Life Cycle (PMLC) in multiple ways:

Consistency and Standardization

• Ensures that all projects follow a consistent format, making it easier for team members and stakeholders to understand the project’s status, requirements, and outcomes
• Facilitates adopting best practices across projects and reduces the likelihood of missing critical steps or information
• Reduces the time spent creating documents from scratch, enabling project managers to focus more on execution and decision-making
• Offers quick reference points and checklists to ensure all phases of the PMLC are addressed

Improved Communication

• Provides clear and structured formats for project updates, making it easier to communicate progress, risks, and changes to stakeholders
• Enhances transparency and ensures everyone is on the same page

Risk Mitigation

• Templates often come with sections for risk identification and mitigation strategies, ensuring that potential issues are addressed proactively
• Provides a structured way to capture lessons learned, which can be useful for future projects

Resource Management

• Templates can include sections for resource allocation, timelines, and budgets, helping track and optimize resource use throughout the project

Documentation and Archiving

• Ensures that all critical information, decisions, and changes are documented, providing a historical record for future reference or audits
• Simplifies handing over the project or integrating new team members by offering a clear record of project details

Project management templates serve as a blueprint for managing and executing projects, ensuring no critical aspect is overlooked. By using them consistently, organizations can enhance the effectiveness of their project management processes, leading to better project outcomes and increased stakeholder satisfaction.

Types of Project Management Life Cycle

There are several types of project management life cycles, each with its own steps and processes. Some of the most common types include:

• Waterfall : This is a linear, sequential approach in which each project phase must be completed before moving on to the next. Waterfall is often used for projects with well-defined requirements and a clear end goal.
• Agile : This flexible, iterative approach emphasizes rapid development and continuous improvement. It is often used for projects with rapidly changing requirements or unclear end goals.
• Iterative : This is a cyclical approach that involves repeating the project life cycle multiple times to refine and improve the project. It is often used for projects with complex requirements or high uncertainty.
• Hybrid : This approach combines elements of two or more project management life cycle types. It is often used for projects that have characteristics of different types of projects and require a tailored approach.
• Lean : This approach is based on the principles of Lean manufacturing, it emphasizes on reducing waste, maximizing value, and empowering the team.
• Kanban : This approach is a scheduling system for lean manufacturing and just-in-time manufacturing (JIT). Kanban is a visual process-management system that tells team members what to produce when, and how much to produce.

Each type of project management life cycle has its own advantages and disadvantages, so choosing the right one for your specific project is important.

 Project Management Lifecycle in Different Industries

Construction industry.

The project life cycle in the construction industry typically includes the following stages:

• Conceptualization and planning (defining project goals and objectives, developing a project plan and schedule, identifying and allocating resources)
• Design and engineering (creating detailed design plans and specifications, obtaining necessary permits and approvals)
• Procurement and construction (soliciting bids and awarding contracts, managing the construction process)
• Closeout and commissioning (completing final inspections and tests, obtaining final approvals and certificates, conducting a project review, and identifying lessons learned)

Software Development Industry

In software development, the project life cycle typically includes the following stages:

• Planning and analysis (defining project goals and objectives, identifying project scope and constraints, creating a project plan and schedule)
• Design and development (creating detailed design plans and specifications, developing and testing software)
• Implementation and maintenance (deploying the software, providing ongoing support and maintenance)
• Closeout and review (conducting a project review, identifying lessons learned, conducting post-implementation evaluations)

Product Development Industry

The project life cycle in the product development industry typically includes the following stages:

• Research and Conceptualization (Defining the problem, researching solutions, creating a concept)
• Design and Development (Creating detailed design plans and specifications, prototyping and testing)
• Production and Distribution (Manufacturing and delivering the product to customers)
• Closeout and Review (Evaluating the product, identifying lessons learned, conducting post-launch evaluations)

Manufacturing Industry

 In this industry, the project management life cycle includes the phases of product design, process design, equipment design, implementation, and maintenance. This process involves coordinating the efforts of engineers, production workers, and management to design, build, and maintain manufacturing equipment and processes according to the project’s specifications and budget.

Pharmaceutical Industry

The project management lifecycle in this industry includes the phases of discovery, research, development, testing, and launch. This process involves coordinating the efforts of scientists, medical researchers, and regulatory affairs to develop, test and launch a new drug.

IT Industry

The project management lifecycle in this industry includes the phases of initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and controlling, and closing. This process involves coordinating the efforts of IT professionals, such as network administrators, software developers, and IT managers, to design, implement, and maintain IT systems and infrastructure.

The project life cycle can vary depending on the industry and the specific project. Still, these examples give you an idea of the stages and activities typically included in different projects.

Project Management Lifecycle Example

One example of a project management lifecycle is the construction of a new hospital.

• Initiation : The hospital board initiates the project, which identifies the need for a new facility to meet the community’s growing healthcare needs. A project manager is appointed to lead the project, and a project charter is developed outlining the project’s objectives, scope, and stakeholders.
• Planning : The project manager works with architects and engineers to design the new hospital, considering patient flow, medical equipment needs, and building codes. A detailed project plan is developed outlining the schedule, budget, and resources required for the project.
• Execution : The project manager coordinates the efforts of the construction team, including workers, subcontractors, and suppliers, to build the new hospital. Regular progress meetings ensure the project stays on schedule and within budget.
• Monitoring and Controlling: The project manager closely monitors the project’s progress and makes adjustments as necessary to keep the project on track. This includes identifying and addressing any risks or issues that may arise.
• Closing : The project manager reviews the project to ensure that all objectives have been met and that the new hospital is ready for operation. The project is formally closed, and the project team is disbanded.

Throughout the project, the project manager communicates regularly with the hospital board and other stakeholders to inform them of the project’s progress and address any concerns they may have.

Professional project managers must be familiar with the practice and execution of five main process groups. The only way to make oneself most worthy or valuable to a company is to know how to initiate, plan, execute, monitor, and close a project. As the project manager undertakes and leads more projects, he/she gains enough experience to understand what works best for the progress and growth of the company. Give yourself a chance to grow in your Project Management career with PMP certification training and gain the best skills and practices to manage projects. 

Know more about Project Management best practices through Invensis Learning’s Project Management certification training on PMP Online Training , CAPM Certification Prep , Prince2 Course , Project Management Fundamentals , etc

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Project Management

Roles & responsibilities, principal investigators.

• Perform scientific or technical work
• Ensure project work is conducted in an ethical manner and in line with applicable UH policies & procedures, governmental rules and regulations, and sponsor requirements
• Ensure safety and welfare of research subjects, personnel and the public
• Ensure propriety of project expenditures and procurement
• Certify cost share and effort reporting
• Comply with reporting requirements
• Comply with and respond to external audit requests in a timely manner
• Comply with and respond to periodic internal compliance review requests in a timely manner
• Perform analysis with ORS Form S-5 to determine that a subaward is appropriate, and retain the form in the project files
• Obtain all applicable items on the UH-issued Subaward Checklist from the subrecipient and comply with the UH-issued subaward process
• As applicable, approve substantive changes to the subaward in a timely manner
• Ensure subaward invoices are appropriate
• Conduct subrecipient monitoring, as applicable

Fiscal Administrators

• Advise PI on allowability, prior approval and procurement requirements and follow sponsor-approved budget
• Create procurement documents and authorize project purchases
• Maintain procurement records for inventory
• Review and authorize personnel forms (e.g., UH PNF, RCUH Attachment B)
• Ensure availability of project funds
• Ensure that project expenditures are recorded in the university financial system in a timely manner
• Review monthly Pcard logs and reconcile monthly ledgers to make sure expenses are allowable, and that there are sufficient funds in the account
• Approve Pcard expenditures
• Monitor continuation accounts and move expenses out in a timely manner
• Review information received from subrecipients for completeness and accuracy
• Review substantive changes to the subaward and advise PI of any problematic financial issues
• Process encumbrances and payments to subrecipients

Chancellor / Dean / Director/ Chairperson

• Ensure PI’s compliance with all applicable regulations, policies, procedures, and award terms and conditions
• Ensure PI’s compliance with and timely response to external audits and periodic internal compliance reviews

Office of Research Services

• Provide technical advice regarding applicable UH policies & procedures, governmental rules and regulations, and sponsor requirements
• As the UH authorized organizational representative, act as institutional liaison for post-award changes requiring sponsor approval or modification
• Issue sponsor invoices on a monthly basis, or per sponsor requirements
• Request payment in sponsor electronic systems, as applicable
• Coordinate external compliance audits and perform periodic internal compliance reviews
• Coordinate special reporting requirements of federal agencies (e.g., ARRA, CARES)
• Perform risk assessment on subrecipient
• Prepare subaward and attachments once all required documents have been received
• Negotiate subaward terms and conditions with subrecipient, if necessary
• Formally acknowledge and accept UH-issued subawards
• Distribute copies of fully executed subawards to the subrecipient, PI and FA, as appropriate

Conflicts of interest

Conflicts of interest (COI) refer to situations in which a PI’s financial, professional or other personal interest may influence, or appear to influence, the PI’s judgment in fulfilling their responsibility to UH. UH has a responsibility to ensure that all extramurally-funded activities do not threaten the integrity of the university and its faculty’s activities.

PIs are responsible to file a COI disclosure at least annually. Any changes to previously made disclosures must be made within 30 days of the change.

For more information, see AP 12.304 or the ORC web page here .

Conflict of interest (COI) training must be completed at least once every four (4) years and immediately when:

• UH COI policies and procedures are revised;
• An investigator is new to UH or newly added to an ongoing United States Department of Health and Human Services Public Health Service (PHS)-funded research project; or
• An investigator is not in compliance with UH COI policies and procedures, or a COI management plan.

COI training is available through the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) COI module . Site access is provided with your UH username and password. If you do not have a CITI account, you may create one by affiliating with UH as your institution.

If you have any questions regarding COI disclosures or training, please email [email protected] .

Financial compliance / audits

PIs are responsible to inform ORS Financial Compliance at [email protected] of any significant problems which have the potential to impede attaining the goals of an award. Types of significant problems include adverse events, budgetary concerns, or unanticipated problems with facilities, personnel or laboratory resources. Information that ORS reports to the sponsor may include a description of the problem and any proposed solutions which may have received appropriate concurrence or approval from the provost, chancellor and/or Vice President for Research and Innovation.

Single Audit

As an entity that expends more than $750,000 in federal funds, UH is required to receive an annual Single Audit. The purpose of this audit is to provide assurance to the federal government that UH is capable of managing its federal awards in accordance with laws, regulations, policies and procedures, and award terms and conditions. ORS is responsible for coordinating audit requests between the external auditors and applicable UH staff. UH staff is responsible for fulfilling audit requests as soon as possible after receipt to ensure timely completion of the audit.

Sponsor Audits

All extramural awards are subject to audit by sponsors upon request. Any request for sponsor audit or visit should be emailed to ORS Financial Compliance at [email protected] . As the authorized organizational representative for UH, ORS will be the primary contact to the auditors. ORS will work with the PI if a PI’s input or response is required by the sponsor.

Financial management

Account reconciliation.

PIs should work with their FAs to conduct a reconciliation of project accounts at least every month with the following in mind:

• All expenditures must support the purpose of the award, and be allowable, reasonable and allocable.
• All outstanding charges and committed expenses should be reviewed to ensure there are sufficient account funds and to avoid overcommitment of funds (i.e., expenditures exceed the total award amount).
• Payroll and other expenses should be appropriately charged.
• Missing expenses or discrepancies should be resolved in a timely manner so the project account always reflects the most current transactions.

If there are any budget changes that require sponsor approval, the PI should contact their assigned ORS Pre-Award Specialist .

Continuation accounts

All project accounts with end dates require a continuation account. All expenditures charged to a project account beyond 30 days after the end date will be automatically booked to the continuation account.

Continuation accounts should be set up as clearing accounts. FAs are responsible to monitor them regularly and transfer expenditures to the appropriate project or other operating account in a timely manner. Use the General Error Correction (GEC) document to transfer non-labor transactions, and the Salary Transfer (ST) document to transfer labor transactions.

Cost sharing

If an award requires cost sharing, a cost sharing subaccount will be set up in the university financial system and cost sharing reporting done through a Distribution of Income and Expense (DI) eDoc. PIs should work with their FA to ensure cost sharing is properly recorded.

Treatment of Costs

Direct Costs

• Cost sharing for direct costs should be recorded when the direct expenses are recorded in the source account.

Salary and Fringe

• Cost sharing for UH personnel salaries and fringe should be based on the pay period or service date, and must be recorded in the proper fiscal year in order for the year-end cost sharing certification report to generate properly.

Unrecovered Indirect Costs, External Support and Tuition Waivers

• Unrecovered indirect costs, external support and tuition waivers will be recorded to the cost sharing subaccount via DI, regardless of the period. Best efforts should be made to record the applicable cost sharing in the period when the expense is occurred.

See Cost Sharing for more information.

Procurement

PIs should familiarize themselves with UH and RCUH procurement policies and procedures, and any applicable federal regulations governing their award, including the Uniform Guidance ( 2 CFR 200 ). PIs should also work with their FAs to ensure that proper campus procedures are followed, and that all procurement expenditures are allowable, reasonable and allocable.

Types of Procurement

• Competitive procurement: For federal awards, unless otherwise authorized, procurement is to be done on a competitive basis. Depending on the dollar amount, verbal or written quotations are required to support Cost or Price Reasonableness, and should be recorded and retained as support for the procurement action. (See AP 8.285 , and applicable RCUH policies, including 2.103 , 2.104 and 2.110 .)
• Sole source procurement: When there is only one source available from which particular goods or services may be obtained, purchases from qualified vendors may be made without soliciting competitive quotations if certain criteria are met and proper justification provided. (See AP 8.255 and applicable RCUH policies, including 2.106 and 2.110 .)
• Professional services: Professional services generally include services within the practices of architecture, professional engineering, land surveying, real property appraisal, law, medicine, accounting, and other areas defined as “professional” by Hawaiʻi law, or included in the “professional and scientific” occupation series in the United States Office of Personnel Management’s Qualification Standards Handbook. Professional services must be procured as set forth in AP 8.245 , and applicable RCUH policies, including 2.105 , 2.110 , 2.209 , and 2.210 .
• Emergency procurement: Normal procurement procedures may be suspended for the purchase of goods or services in emergency situations as defined in and subject to the provisions of AP 8.260 and applicable RCUH policies, including 2.108 and 2.110 .
• Exempt procurement: Certain procurements are exempt from source selection. Cost or price reasonableness analysis still applies to exempt procurements. (See AP 8.220 , Item 9 and RCUH policies 2.107 and 2.110 .)

Human resources

Uh office of human resources (ohr) positions.

Staff who will work directly on the project may be hired through OHR using project funds provided they were included in the project budget. Hiring must be conducted in accordance with all applicable employment laws, policies and procedures. PIs should contact their unit’s personnel officer for applicable hiring policies and procedures.

Types of Appointments

Researchers and program administrators who work directly on the project may be classified as Faculty; Graduate Assistants; or Administrative, Professional and Technical (APT). These individuals may already be working on campus in some capacity. As a general rule, staff who provide general administrative services to an entire department may not be hired using project funds as they are considered indirect costs.

General Guidelines

• Existing employees: To place an existing employee on a project as part of their regular workload, PIs should have their personnel officer generate a Payroll Notification Form (PNF). The existing employee may also be placed on an overload appointment if work is being performed in addition to their regular duties. Make sure to obtain prior approval from the employee’s supervisor and convert the time to be spent on the project to full-time equivalent (FTE) format. PIs should consult with their personnel officer for further information.
• New employees: To hire new staff through the UH Office of Human Resources, PIs may have to establish a new position and include information such as duties, educational requirements, and skills. PIs should work with their personnel officer to determine the appropriate career group, pay and level. Once the new position is established and approved, it must be advertised for at least ten (10) business days. It could take more than a month from establishing the position to getting someone on board, so it is best to start early.
• Graduate assistants: PIs should consult with their personnel officer regarding the recruitment and hiring of graduate assistants (GAs). After a candidate has been selected, a PNF must be processed through the appropriate college and forwarded to the Graduate Division for approval.
• Casual hire: If project staff is needed on an intermittent or short-term basis, a person who is not currently employed by UH may be hired into a limited term, casual appointment. In general, a casual hire will work 20-40 hours per week for 89 calendar days, or less than 20 hours per week for up to 12 months. A casual hire is not entitled to any fringe benefits, e.g., sick or vacation leave, holidays or health coverage.

Research Corporation of the University of Hawaiʻi (RCUH) positions

RCUH has recruited and non-recruited hires. Most regular status positions, including visiting appointments, must be openly recruited. Non-recruited hires are generally short-term hires. They do not require a recruitment process, so a contingent job offer may be made without RCUH approval. All hiring must be conducted in accordance with all applicable employment laws, policies and procedures. PIs should contact their unit’s personnel officer for applicable hiring policies and procedures.

Types of Non-Recruited Hires

• Intermittent hire: An hourly-paid employee hired to work on an on-call, as needed basis.
• Student assistant: An employee who is enrolled as a student in a school, college or university in a degree program, and generally works 20 hours or less per week [50% full-time equivalent (FTE)] while school is in session.
• Temporary hire: An employee hired at an FTE for a period not to exceed 20 weeks within a one-year period, irrespective of the number of temporary positions hired.

PIs should review their award terms and conditions to ensure that all sponsor reporting requirements are complied with. In general, PIs are responsible to submit progress, performance, scientific and technical reports to the sponsor, and for retaining documentation of timely report submission (e.g., print screen from the sponsor’s system or email from the sponsor confirming submission). For other types of reports, the PI should coordinate with the following offices:

Research compliance

PIs are responsible for fulfilling all research compliance requirements relating to their extramurally-funded project, including requirements related to research involving human participants, human subjects, or biomaterials. PIs must also ensure that all required approvals and related documentation have been obtained from the subrecipient prior to commencement of any these activities, and such documentation provided with the applicable program committees for human subjects , animal subjects and biosafety .

Request process

New Subawards

• The PI should review, complete and obtain all items listed in the UH-Issued Subaward Checklist .
• The complete packet should be emailed to [email protected] , one email per subaward requested.
• ORS will perform the risk assessment of the subrecipient (required by 2 CFR 200.331 ), then prepare the subaward once all required documents are received, and send it to the PI for approval, with a copy to the FA.
• Any desired changes must be identified to ORS within five (5) business days of receipt by the PI and FA.
• Once agreement is reached with the subrecipient and all compliance issues are resolved (e.g., subrecipient tax clearance), ORS will sign the subaward and email the fully-executed copy to the PI, FA and subrecipient.

Subaward Amendments

• The PI should review, complete and obtain any required items listed in the Subaward Amendment Request form.
• The complete packet should be emailed to [email protected] , one email per amendment requested.
• ORS will prepare the amendment once all required documents are received, and send it to the PI for approval, with a copy to the FA.
• Once agreement is reached with the subrecipient and any compliance issues are resolved (e.g., subrecipient tax clearance), ORS will sign the amendment and email the fully-executed copy to the PI, FA and subrecipient.

An infographic of the subaward process flow is posted here , and more details are posted here .

The status of subawards and amendments may be checked at any time using the Subaward Status Log .

Subrecipient monitoring

As a pass-through entity, UH must monitor the activities of its subrecipients to ensure that subawards are being used for authorized purposes ( see 2 CFR 200.331 ). ORS is responsible for general oversight of UH’s subrecipient monitoring program and performing additional monitoring activities as deemed necessary. ORS is also responsible for issuing a management decision for audit findings provided to the subrecipient from UH and verifying that every subrecipient is audited as required by federal law (see 2 CFR Subpart F ).

The PI, with their FA’s assistance, has the primary responsibility for performing subrecipient monitoring, including:

• Reviewing subrecipient invoices and validating or denying questionable expenditures;
• Reviewing financial reports from the subrecipient to ensure that funds are being used for their authorized purposes;
• Reviewing performance reports from the subrecipient to ensure that performance goals are being achieved;
• Following up and ensuring that the subrecipient takes timely and appropriate action on all deficiencies identified through audits, on-site reviews or other means;.

Any deficiencies or instances of noncompliance should be reported to ORS immediately at [email protected] .

Based upon the level of risk posted by the subrecipient, to ensure proper accountability and proper compliance with program requirements, UH may also use monitoring tools such as:

• Providing subrecipients with training and technical assistance on program-related matters;
• Performing on-site reviews of the subrecipient’s program operations or “during the award monitoring” reviews; and/or
• Arranging for agreed-upon procedures engagements under 2 CFR 200.425(c) .

For new awards or increments meeting specific criteria* issued on or after December 26, 2014:

• “Uniform Guidance” ( 2 CFR 200 ) – Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards

For all other awards and increments – Office of Management and Budget Circulars:

• A-21 ( 2 CFR Part 220) – Cost Principles for Educational Institutions
• A-110 ( 2 CFR Part 215 ) – Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Other Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals and Other Non-Profit Organizations
• Single Audit – Audits of States, Local Governments and Non-Profit Organizations

* The Uniform Guidance applies to increments to existing awards issued on or after December 26, 2014 if the federal sponsor modified the terms and conditions of the incremental award, or did not specifically reference the above OMB Circulars in the existing award.

Fiscal Accounting / Procurement

Fiscal accounting.

• Account Setup
• Account & Budget Maintenance
• Allowable, Allocable, & Reasonable Costs
• Account Monitoring
• Invoices, LOC Drawdowns, & Financial Reports
• Procurement Overview (Office of Procurement)
• Procurement Information (Office of Export Controls)
• Foreign Influence in University Research
• International Travel Information
• University of Hawai‘i Global Sponsored Activities Guide

Request Forms

• Initial Subaward – complete UH-issued Subaward Checklist
• Subaward Amendment Request

Status Inquiries

• Subaward Status Search (log in with UH username)
• Assigned ORS Contract Specialist

Process & Procedure

• Responsibility Matrix
• Subaward Initiation Process Flow
• Subrecipient vs. Contractor/Vendor Determination Checklist
• Subrecipient Checklist

Commitment Forms

• FDP Expanded Clearinghouse Participant

All other forms may be found in the “Subrecipient Forms” section on the ORS web page here .

RCUH (Research Corporation of the University of Hawaiʻi)

• Human Resources
• Project Administration
• Procurement and Disbursing

Policies & Procedures

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The Research Lifecycle is a heuristic model for understanding the steps of the process of scientific discovery (research), often represented in a wheel to emphasize the continuous nature of research with one project leading into the next. The research data lifecycle includes everything from planning how data will be collected, to publication, to long term data preservation, to possible reuses of data. Steps of the lifecycle include: Plan, Acquire, Process, Analyze, Preserve, Share Results, and Reuse, but terms may differ based on institution, field of research, or model author.

Planning:A researcher designs a study model and identifies the data they need to collect for the study. Acquire: The researcher finds an authoritative resource with the collected data points they need. Process: They clean and organize the data and prep for analysis. Analyze: The researcher runs various models and tests to study the data. Preserve: They backup their data and prepare it for long term preservation. Share Results: The researcher publishes an article on their findings and shares their data on a subject specific repository. Reuse: Other researchers find the data and use it for their own research, or the original researcher continues to use the data for other studies. 

Further Resources

Harvard Medical School’s Data Lifecycle: https://datamanagement.hms.harvard.edu/about/what-research-data-management/biomedical-data-lifecycle

Princeton Research Lifecycle Guide: https://researchdata.princeton.edu/research-lifecycle-guide/research-lifecycle-guide  

Send us your feedback or suggestions for new terms

• Research Data Lifecycle Guide

Developing a Data Management Plan

This section breaks down different topics required for the planning and preparation of data used in research at Case Western Reserve University. In this phase you should understand the research being conducted, the type and methods used for collecting data, the methods used to prepare and analyze the data, addressing budgets and resources required, and have a sound understanding of how you will manage data activities during your research project.

Many federal sponsors of Case Western Reserve funded research have required data sharing plans in research proposals since 2003. As of Jan. 25, 2023, the National Institutes of Health has revised its data management and sharing requirements. 

This website is designed to provide basic information and best practices to seasoned and new investigators as well as detailed guidance for adhering to the revised NIH policy.  

Basics of Research Data Management

What is research data management?

Research data management (RDM) comprises a set of best practices that include file organization, documentation, storage, backup, security, preservation, and sharing, which affords researchers the ability to more quickly, efficiently, and accurately find, access, and understand their own or others' research data.

Why should you care about research data management?

RDM practices, if applied consistently and as early in a project as possible, can save you considerable time and effort later, when specific data are needed, when others need to make sense of your data, or when you decide to share or otherwise upload your data to a digital repository. Adopting RDM practices will also help you more easily comply with the data management plan (DMP) required for obtaining grants from many funding agencies and institutions.

Does data need to be retained after a project is completed?

Research data must be retained in sufficient detail and for an adequate period of time to enable appropriate responses to questions about accuracy, authenticity, primacy and compliance with laws and regulations governing the conduct of the research. External funding agencies will each have different requirements regarding storage, retention, and availability of research data. Please carefully review your award or agreement for the disposition of data requirements and data retention policies.

A good data management plan begins by understanding the sponsor requirements funding your research. As a principal investigator (PI) it is your responsibility to be knowledgeable of sponsors requirements. The Data Management Plan Tool (DMPTool) has been designed to help PIs adhere to sponsor requirements efficiently and effectively. It is strongly recommended that you take advantage of the DMPTool.  

CWRU has an institutional account with DMPTool that enables users to access all of its resources via your Single Sign On credentials. CWRU's DMPTool account is supported by members of the Digital Scholarship team with the Freedman Center for Digital Scholarship. Please use the RDM Intake Request form to schedule a consultation if you would like support or guidance regarding developing a Data Management Plan.

Some basic steps to get started:

• Sign into the  DMPTool site  to start creating a DMP for managing and sharing your data. 
• On the DMPTool site, you can find the most up to date templates for creating a DMP for a long list of funders, including the NIH, NEH, NSF, and more. 
• Explore sample DMPs to see examples of successful plans .

Be sure that your DMP is addressing any and all federal and/or funder requirements and associated DMP templates that may apply to your project. It is strongly recommended that investigators submitting proposals to the NIH utilize this tool. 

The NIH is mandating Data Management and Sharing Plans for all proposals submitted after Jan. 25, 2023.  Guidance for completing a NIH Data Management Plan has its own dedicated content to provide investigators detailed guidance on development of these plans for inclusion in proposals. 

A Data Management Plan can help create and maintain reliable data and promote project success. DMPs, when carefully constructed and reliably adhered to, help guide elements of your research and data organization.

A DMP can help you:

Document your process and data.

• Maintain a file with information on researchers and collaborators and their roles, sponsors/funding sources, methods/techniques/protocols/standards used, instrumentation, software (w/versions), references used, any applicable restrictions on its distribution or use.
• Establish how you will document file changes, name changes, dates of changes, etc. Where will you record of these changes? Try to keep this sort of information in a plain text file located in the same folder as the files to which it pertains.
• How are derived data products created? A DMP encourages consistent description of data processing performed, software (including version number) used, and analyses applied to data.
• Establish regular forms or templates for data collection. This helps reduce gaps in your data, promotes consistency throughout the project.

Explain your data

• From the outset, consider why your data were collected, what the known and expected conditions may be for collection, and information such as time and place, resolution, and standards of data collected.
• What attributes, fields, or parameters will be studied and included in your data files? Identify and describe these in each file that employs them.
• For an overview of data dictionaries, see the USGS page here: https://www.usgs.gov/products/data-and-tools/data-management/data-dictionaries

DMP Requirements

Why are you being asked to include a data management plan (DMP) in your grant application? For grants awarded by US governmental agencies, two federal memos from the US Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), issued in 2013 and 2015 , respectively, have prompted this requirement. These memos mandate public access to federally- (and, thus, taxpayer-) funded research results, reflecting a commitment by the government to greater accountability and transparency. While "results" generally refers to the publications and reports produced from a research project, it is increasingly used to refer to the resulting data as well.

Federal research-funding agencies  have responded to the OSTP memos by issuing their own guidelines and requirements for grant applicants (see below), specifying whether and how research data in particular are to be managed in order to be publicly and properly accessible.

• NSF—National Science Foundation "Proposals submitted or due on or after January 18, 2011, must include a supplementary document of no more than two pages labeled 'Data Management Plan'. This supplementary document should describe how the proposal will conform to NSF policy on the dissemination and sharing of research results." Note: Additional requirements may apply per Directorate, Office, Division, Program, or other NSF unit.
• NIH—National Institutes of Health "To facilitate data sharing, investigators submitting a research application requesting $500,000 or more of direct costs in any single year to NIH on or after October 1, 2003 are expected to include a plan for sharing final research data for research purposes, or state why data sharing is not possible."
• NASA—National Aeronautics and Space Administration "The purpose of a Data Management Plan (DMP) is to address the management of data from Earth science missions, from the time of their data collection/observation, to their entry into permanent archives."
• DOD—Department of Defense "A Data Management Plan (DMP) describing the scientific data expected to be created or gathered in the course of a research project must be submitted to DTIC at the start of each research effort. It is important that DoD researchers document plans for preserving data at the outset, keeping in mind the potential utility of the data for future research or to support transition to operational or other environments. Otherwise, the data is lost as researchers move on to other efforts. The essential descriptive elements of the DMP are listed in section 3 of DoDI 3200.12, although the format of the plan may be adjusted to conform to standards established by the relevant scientific discipline or one that meets the requirements of the responsible Component"
• Department of Education "The purpose of this document is to describe the implementation of this policy on public access to data and to provide guidance to applicants for preparing the Data Management Plan (DMP) that must outline data sharing and be submitted with the grant application. The DMP should describe a plan to provide discoverable and citable dataset(s) with sufficient documentation to support responsible use by other researchers, and should address four interrelated concerns—access, permissions, documentation, and resources—which must be considered in the earliest stages of planning for the grant."
• " Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) Provides access to free, publicly-available research sponsored by the Department of Energy (DOE), including technical reports, bibliographic citations, journal articles, conference papers, books, multimedia, software, and data.

Data Management Best Practices

As you plan to collect data for research, keep in mind the following best practices. 

Keep Your Data Accessible to You

• Store your temporary working files somewhere easily accessible, like on a local hard drive or shared server.
• While cloud storage is a convenient solution for storage and sharing, there are often concerns about data privacy and preservation. Be sure to only put data in the cloud that you are comfortable with and that your funding and/or departmental requirements allow.
• For long-term storage, data should be put into preservation systems that are well-managed. [U]Tech provides several long-term data storage options for cloud and campus. 
• Don't keep your original data on a thumb drive or portable hard drive, as it can be easily lost or stolen.
• Think about file formats that have a long life and that are readable by many programs. Formats like ascii, .txt, .csv, .pdf are great for long term  preservation.
• A DMP is not a replacement for good data management practices, but it can set you on the right path if it is consistently followed. Consistently revisit your plan to ensure you are following it and adhering to funder requirements.

Preservation

• Know the difference between storing and preserving your data. True preservation is the ongoing process of making sure your data are secure and accessible for future generations. Many sponsors have preferred or recommended data repositories. The DMP tool can help you identify these preferred repositories. 
• Identify data with long-term value. Preserve the raw data and any intermediate/derived products that are expensive to reproduce or can be directly used for analysis. Preserve any scripted code that was used to clean and transform the data.
• Whenever converting your data from one format to another, keep a copy of the original file and format to avoid loss or corruption of your important files.
• Leverage online platforms like OSF can help your group organize, version, share, and preserve your data, if the sponsor hasn’t specified a specific platform.
• Adhere to federal sponsor requirements on utilizing accepted data repositories (NIH dbGaP, NIH SRA, NIH CRDC, etc.) for preservation. 

Backup, Backup, Backup

• The general rule is to keep 3 copies of your data: 2 copies onsite, 1 offsite.
• Backup your data regularly and frequently - automate the process if possible. This may mean weekly duplication of your working files to a separate drive, syncing your folders to a cloud service like Box, or dedicating a block of time every week to ensure you've copied everything to another location.

Organization

• Establish a consistent, descriptive filing system that is intelligible to future researchers and does not rely on your own inside knowledge of your research.
• A descriptive directory and file-naming structure should guide users through the contents to help them find whatever they are looking for.

Naming Conventions

• Use consistent, descriptive filenames that reliably indicate the contents of the file.
• If your discipline requires or recommends particular naming conventions, use them!
• Do not use spaces between words. Use either camelcase or underscores to separate words
• Include LastnameFirstname descriptors where appropriate.
• Avoid using MM-DD-YYYY formats
• Do not append vague descriptors like "latest" or "final" to your file versions. Instead, append the version's date or a consistently iterated version number.

Clean Your Data

• Mistakes happen, and often researchers don't notice at first. If you are manually entering data, be sure to double-check the entries for consistency and duplication. Often having a fresh set of eyes will help to catch errors before they become problems.
• Tabular data can often be error checked by sorting the fields alphanumerically to catch simple typos, extra spaces, or otherwise extreme outliers. Be sure to save your data before sorting it to ensure you do not disrupt the records!
• Programs like OpenRefine  are useful for checking for consistency in coding for records and variables, catching missing values, transforming data, and much more.

What should you do if you need assistance implementing RDM practices?

Whether it's because you need discipline-specific metadata standards for your data, help with securing sensitive data, or assistance writing a data management plan for a grant, help is available to you at CWRU. In addition to consulting the resources featured in this guide, you are encouraged to contact your department's liaison librarian.

If you are planning to submit a research proposal and need assistance with budgeting for data storage and or applications used to capture, manage, and or process data UTech provides information and assistance including resource boilerplates that list what centralized resources are available. 

More specific guidance for including a budget for Data Management and Sharing is included on this document: Budgeting for Data Management and Sharing . 

Custody of Research Data

The PI is the custodian of research data, unless agreed on in writing otherwise and the agreement is on file with the University, and is responsible for the collection, management, and retention of research data. The PI should adopt an orderly system of data organization and should communicate the chosen system to all members of a research group and to the appropriate administrative personnel, where applicable. Particularly for long-term research projects, the PI should establish and maintain procedures for the protection and management of essential records.

CWRU Custody of Research Data Policy  

Data Sharing

Many funding agencies require data to be shared for the purposes of reproducibility and other important scientific goals. It is important to plan for the timely release and sharing of final research data for use by other researchers.  The final release of data should be included as a key deliverable of the DMP. Knowledge of the discipline-specific database, data repository, data enclave, or archive store used to disseminate the data should also be documented as needed. 

The NIH is mandating Data Management and Sharing Plans for all proposals submitted after Jan. 25, 2023. Guidance for completing a NIH Data Management and Sharing Plan  has its own dedicated content to provide investigators detailed guidance on development of these plans for inclusion in proposals.

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A guide to the Agile development lifecycle

Think of Agile development like a baker preparing a cake for a client: First, you’d gather details about the event, and create some designs. Next, you’d work on flavors, and do a tasting. Once the client approves, you’re on to creating the final product. 

The beauty of Agile development it’s both structured and adaptable, and enables you to integrate feedback every step of the way so that you can deliver something that may be even better than what you had imagined at the outset.

And, just as there are consistent ceremonies in Agile, so too is there a predictable lifecycle for Agile development. 

Before we dive into the Agile development lifecycle, however, let’s quickly cover the basics of Agile project management. 

What is Agile methodology?

Agile methodology is an approach to project management that focuses on flexibility, collaboration, and continuous improvement. It first took off in software development — but has since been adopted by various industries and teams because of how adaptable and responsive it is to change and feedback. 

As the old saying goes, ‘the journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step.’ The main principle of Agile project management is to break down projects into smaller, manageable tasks, prioritize them, and deliver them in short iterations. Agile practices allow for constant adaptation and response to changing requirements, ultimately leading to faster and more efficient project delivery. 

Agile methodology also emphasizes open communication, frequent feedback, and close collaboration among team members to ensure the project meets the needs of all stakeholders.

What is a lifecycle in Agile?

In Agile development, the concept of a lifecycle refers to the structured sequence of phases through which a project progresses, from its inception to its completion and ongoing maintenance. This lifecycle is iterative, meaning it repeats certain stages multiple times to refine and enhance the product based on continuous feedback and learning. 

Unlike traditional linear development models like Waterfall, which proceed through a fixed sequence of stages, the Agile lifecycle is flexible and adaptive, allowing teams to respond to changes and new insights as they arise during the project. 

The Agile lifecycle typically involves multiple cycles of planning, executing, and evaluating, which helps teams to incrementally build and improve the product. 

Each cycle, or sprint, results in a potentially shippable product increment, ensuring that the development process is aligned with user needs and business goals throughout. This iterative approach not only facilitates flexibility and adaptability but also promotes a high level of customer involvement and satisfaction by integrating feedback at every stage.

The six phases of Agile project management

In Agile development, specific rituals or ceremonies are integral to each phase, facilitating collaboration, continuous improvement, and ensuring alignment with project goals. Here’s a detailed breakdown of each phase, along with the associated ceremonies that characterize the Agile process.

1. Planning

Like most project management methods, Agile starts with planning. However, this phase doesn’t require an overly-detailed roadmap through the project. It only needs three things:

• A project vision statement that outlines the scope, milestones, and deliverables.
• A rough timeline for each deliverable.
• A backlog of items you want to change in later iterations.

The rituals or ceremonies that are typically associated with this phase are sprint planning and backlog grooming. The team, including the product owner, Scrum master, and development team, gathers to define what can be delivered in the sprint and how you’ll accomplish your sprint goals . The product owner discusses the priority items from the product backlog to consider for the sprint, and the team collectively decides on the scope of work. This meeting sets the objectives and outlines the sprint backlog.

2. Designing

The initial design phase in software development is when developers create a user interface (UI) and build the software’s architecture. For other projects, this is the period in which project managers build their teams, let them organize, and begin delegating tasks.

Now that the sprint goals are known and the team is getting to work, Agile ceremonies like daily standups (Scrum meetings) and backlog refinement play a critical role — these help by providing ongoing feedback and transparency, and also may involve re-prioritizing items, splitting user stories , and ensuring estimates are up to date. This ritual helps in keeping the backlog manageable and ready for upcoming sprints.

3. Developing

This is the meat of Agile project management: the period of development and adaptation. During this time, managers should communicate regularly with the client and adjust priorities or change the roadmap and timelines as necessary.

The testing phase is when the client gets their first deliverables. This is a time to make sure that the team is on the right track and meeting the customer’s needs. If they are, they can move on to the following deliverables. If not, it’s time to adapt and redo steps three and four.

5. Deploying

Delivering (or deploying) the software to your customer is the final step. Your team should have met all their requirements and submitted their deliverables, leaving your client happy with the outcome.

6. Reviewing

As discussed in Agile principle 12 , there's always room to review and improve. So, the final step for an Agile team is to debrief after completing a project and find ways to become more efficient or successful with the next job.

More specifically, there are two ceremonies that help with the review and refinement process for software development teams. The first is the sprint review.  

Conducted at the end of each sprint, the sprint review meeting is for the team to demonstrate what they have accomplished during the sprint. Stakeholders, including the product owner and (possibly even) customers, review the increment to provide feedback that could influence the next sprint. This ritual is crucial for making sure that the developed product meets the business needs and user expectations.

Following the sprint review, the sprint retrospective (or retro) ceremony allows the team to reflect on the sprint process. The team discusses what went well, what could be improved, and what'll be committed to in the next sprint in terms of process improvements. This is a key ritual for continuous improvement and team dynamics.

Related: How to run efficient Agile meetings [+ templates]

Why Mural’s visual work platform is a natural fit for Agile teams

Mural is a visual work platform that provides a digital canvas for teams to collaborate and organize their work in a visual and interactive manner. It's a natural fit for Agile teams due to its features and functionalities that align with the principles and values of Agile methodology.

Better collaboration

Firstly, Mural allows teams to work in a highly collaborative and transparent manner. In Agile, collaboration and communication are key components for the success of a project. Mural's digital canvas allows team members to work together in real-time, regardless of their location. This enables team members to have a shared understanding of the project and its progress, promoting transparency and open communication.

Visual communication

Secondly, Mural's visual nature makes it an ideal platform for Agile teams. Agile methodology emphasizes the use of visual aids such as charts, diagrams, and other visual tools to facilitate understanding and communication. Mural provides a free library of visual Agile templates and tools that can be used to create user stories, roadmaps, sprint boards, and other project artifacts. These visual aids make it easier for team members to understand and contribute to the project, leading to better collaboration and decision-making.

Related: Visual collaboration: What it is & how to get started

Ultimate flexibility

Additionally, Mural offers a flexible and customizable workspace, which is essential for Agile teams. In Agile, teams are constantly adapting and responding to changes in the project. Mural's digital canvas allows teams to easily reorganize and update their workspace according to their evolving needs. This flexibility enables teams to be more responsive and adaptable to changes, a core principle of Agile methodology.

Useful integrations

But wait, there’s more! (No, really.) Mural's integrations with other Agile tools and platforms makes it a natural fit for Agile teams. Mural can easily integrate with popular Agile tools such as Jira, Trello, and Microsoft Teams , allowing teams to seamlessly transfer their work and data between platforms. This integration streamlines the Agile workflow and reduces the need for manual updates, saving time and effort for team members.

With Mural, Agile teams can enhance their collaboration, communication, and adaptability, ultimately leading to more efficient and successful project delivery.

‍ Get started for free today and see how visual collaboration makes your Agile ceremonies more effective — and… more fun.

About the authors

Bryan Kitch

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• SOAP Web Services for Project Management

Award Version 2

A financial instrument granted by the sponsor to the grantee for conducting research. For example, funding a university department to study cell biology or funding a hospital to research cancer.

Life Cycle Status: Active

QName: {http://xmlns.oracle.com/apps/projects/grantsManagement/award/service/awardServiceV2/}AwardService

Service WSDL URL: https://servername/fscmService/AwardServiceV2?WSDL

Logical Business Objects

Projects : Grants Management : Award

Relationships

The following table describes how this service data object is related to other service data objects or business object services.

createAward

Updateaward, deleteawardorganizationcredit, deleteawardreference, deleteawardcertification, deleteawardbudgetperiod, deleteawardkeyword, deleteawardpersonnel, deleteawardterms, getawardattachments, deleteawardattachment, deleteawardcfda, deleteawardfundingsource, validateaward, getdfltobjattrhints, getservicelastupdatetime, getentitylist.

Operation to create an award and its details.

Request Payload

Response Payload

Operation to update an award and its details.

Operation to update an award and its details. If the award does not exist, a new one is created.

Operation to delete an organization credit for the award or award project.

Operation to delete a reference type for the award or award project.

Operation to delete a certification for the award or award project.

Operation to delete a budget period for the award.

Operation to delete a keyword for the award or award project.

Operation to delete a person for the award or award project.

Operation to delete terms and conditions for the award.

Operation to retrieve a specific award attachment.

Operation to delete an attachment for the award.

Operation to delete a federal domestic assistance program for the award.

Deletes the funding source associated with the award.

Operation to validate an award.

Operation to retrieve a specific award and its details.

Operation to find awards.

An operation to retrieve user interface hints, such as the service data object label and object attribute labels, for the specified service data object and locale. As a prerequisite, invoke the getEntityList operation defined on this service to get the list of possible values for the viewName request payload element.

An operation that returns the date and time when the schema files referenced in the service definition last changed.

An operation to get the list of service data objects defined on this service.

The following tables list the privileges required to perform the service operations, and the duty roles that each privilege is granted to.

Service Operations to Privileges Mapping

Privileges to Duty Roles Mapping

Duty Roles to Duty or Job Roles Mapping