I once took over a programme that had been delivered well for eleven months and was remembered, by the client, as a shambles. The reason was the last two weeks: a rushed handover, passwords in a spreadsheet, documentation that existed only in the outgoing lead’s head.
The work was good. The memory was bad. And memory is what gets repeated.
Endings have a strange weight in how people judge experiences. Psychologists call it the peak end rule: we remember the most intense moment and the final one. Projects are no different. You can run a flawless delivery and still be remembered for the chaotic Friday afternoon when everyone logged off.
The last chapter
A good handover is not a courtesy; it is the last chapter of the brand experience. It says: we care about what happens after we leave. That single signal does more for referrals than any case study.
My rule is that the close gets planned at the start. Documentation is written as the project runs, not in a panic at the end. Access, credentials and decisions are logged continuously. The final week is a confirmation, not a rescue mission.
Plan the close at the start
If you lead projects, ask yourself one question: if I were hit by a bus tomorrow, could my client carry on by Friday? If the answer is no, the handover, and therefore the brand, is not finished yet.
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