Learn from the Lessons

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Project closure is not only the end of a specific initiative, but also an important opportunity for the company to learn valuable lessons. Start by holding a retrospective with key project stakeholders.

At this meeting, discuss successes and failures, creating an atmosphere of openness and trust. It is important to record key findings and recommendations so that they are available for further analysis and use in future projects.

For example, in our company, after closing a number of unprofitable projects, a completely new launch methodology was born, where before starting a project, we carefully analyze the market, test demand without a product, and only then launch an MVP.

Briefly about the methodology, now we set belgium phone number lead aside at least three months for the discovery phase of an idea and build a kind of conveyor belt of ideas - only those ideas that successfully closed the previous stage go to the next stage. There are four such stages before MVP:

Preliminary analysis - we look at how well the idea fits our profile and trends in the IT market.
Full analysis - we study the problem, similar solutions, calculate the market and business model.
Quantitative and qualitative research - we identify potential target audiences, conduct corridor studies, surveys, etc.
Preliminary testing using the Fake Door method - we create a landing page or presentation with a product imitation and calculate the conversion into readiness to buy the solution.
Instead of a conclusion
Closing a project is not the end of the world, although it may sometimes seem that way. It is rather the beginning of a new stage, an opportunity to stop, take a breath and evaluate your strengths and resources. Sometimes it is really better to “get off a dead horse” as quickly as possible and transfer all your forces to a new project.

The key to this process is not only to minimize losses, but also to learn valuable lessons that will help in the future. Careful and honest communication with employees and customers, careful winding down of operations, and reputational risk management are all steps that turn a painful process into a manageable and less dramatic one.