What it is: Celebrate!

Description
This activity acknowledges the work and contributions of the team to the project. Following the completion and wrap-up of the project, a social event held during or after work hours is an effective method of thanking and recognizing team effort. Special recognition for extraordinary individual effort may be appropriate.

Rationale/Purpose
A post-project team celebration boosts morale and contributes to a motivated staff for future projects. Special individual recognition spotlights an individual’s exceptional project contributions.

Who is involved
Project Manager
Project Sponsor
Project Stakeholders
Project Team

Result
Celebration activity
Special Individual acknowledgement
Unequivocally appreciated project team

 

How to: Celebrate!

Recommended actions and strategies
The table below describes actions you can perform to hold a celebration and, if appropriate, offer individual acknowledgement.

	What to do	How to do it
1	Identify type of celebration	Types of celebrations depend on size and complexity of the project. Examples are: Lunch, dinner, coffee and donuts, team outing, gift certificates
2	Thank each team member personally	Take each team member aside and individually thank him or her. Remind the sponsor and other executive stakeholders of individual team members’ contributions. A personal thank-you is invaluable for morale and job satisfaction.
3	Make a public announcement	Create an announcement to the organization to highlight the success of the project and its benefits to the organization. A good announcement will recognize the team’s effort. Some ideas are: Executive sponsor sends email emphasizing team’s efforts Published article in organization’s newsletter promoting the project’s success

 

Templates/Examples: Celebrate!

The table below provides several templates you can use to help manage the project scope and requirements for your project.

Template	Example
Public Announcement	Public Announcement