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When a project is completed, the project manager should provide the team with an opportunity to celebrate this accomplishment. While it’s true that everyone is ready to move on to other work, it's necessary to take the time and relax before another project begins.
Team members might shift to other projects or assignments whenever their individual work is complete, so organizing a team celebration may be difficult. However, it’s still worth the effort because a celebration can be an opportunity for the project manager to provide the following:
If possible, the project sponsor and stakeholders should be included in the celebration, as they are also members of the team. Furthermore, the rest of the team would be pleased to receive the sponsor and stakeholders’ acknowledgment and gratitude for helping to meet their goals.
It's critical that the spirit of teamwork is maintained, even during the end of a project celebration; however, if there are people whose efforts significantly impacted the project in a positive way, this is the time to reward them.
The project manager should be sensitive to the fact that some lessons learned are about the weaknesses of a project, which might damper the celebration. This is a time for enjoyment; gaining knowledge from the project's experience can occur on a different day.
Source: This work adapted from Sophia Author Jeff Carroll.