That's a Wrap!

The day you landed this gig, it was proof you could do the job. You outdid the competition by presenting your expertise and building a mutually beneficial and trusting relationship with the client.

Now be sure to apply that same logic to your completion of the project. The number one complaint I hear from managers about consulting project managers is that they tend not to properly communicate how they will wrap up a project and what to do in terms of resources after they have left. That being the case, you should review some of the basics of wrapping up successfully, to ensure that everyone involved feels as though you left the partnership as professionally as you entered into it.

Start this process by realizing what customers want from you is assurance—assurance not only that you finished the project successfully, but also that they will be able to carry on without you. To do this, they need to have resources and expertise. It is your job as the consulting project manager to make your customers experts and to offer your continued services in some capacity or another. Doing this will ensure a lasting positive professional relationship and have an immeasurably positive effect on your reputation.

Step 1: Understanding Who Your Customers Are
Yes, I know, they’re the people who pay the bills and probably the individuals with whom you have been …