How to finish a consulting project well

Leonard’s 4 Rs Framework

I was struck by the coincidence of finishing my own major project just as I read Gerald Leonard’s recent piece in Harvard Business Review (“The Right Way to Sunset a Project,” July 2025).

His central point is that endings deserve the same discipline and dignity as beginnings; a lesson that applies just as much to consulting handovers as to corporate projects.

Leonard proposes the 4 Rs framework for closing projects:

Retire: formally close the project, archive documentation, and give teams closure.
Redirect: release resources and reallocate them to higher priorities.
Repackage: salvage useful work such as tools, insights, or processes for reuse.
Reflect: run a structured review to capture learning and create a shared narrative.

Source: Gerald Leonard, “The Right Way to Sunset a Project,” Harvard Business Review, 30 July 2025.

Read more at hbr.org

How to finish a consulting project professionally

As I come to the end of a major two-year consulting project, I’ve been reflecting on what it takes to finish well. For me, that means leaving the client not just with outputs, but with the clarity, confidence and capability to carry the work forward.

Too often, consultancies treat the final phase as a tidy-up exercise. A few documents are shared, there’s a meeting or two – maybe even a long celebratory lunch – and the team moves on. The client is left to make sense of what was delivered, with little support to embed or sustain it.

That’s not good enough.

A professional consulting project handover process should be as carefully planned as any other stage of the work. Done well, it creates lasting value. When done badly, the responsibility sits squarely with the consultancy.

Here’s what you have a right to expect from your consultancy partners.

1. Plan the handover early

Handover isn’t something to sort out in the final week. From the halfway point of a project, consultants should already be thinking ahead and working with clients to:

• Identify who will take ownership of the work
• Involve those individuals in shaping the solution
• Agree how the transition will be communicated

In a recent national transformation programme, we involved future owners very early, giving them the time and space to help us develop the solution. By shaping the tools and training themselves, they were ready to take full ownership. Nothing was imposed. Everything made sense.

2. Provide documentation people can use

Clients need clear, practical documentation, not a folder full of slide decks.
At a minimum, you should expect:

• The project’s objectives and scope
• Key decisions made, with rationale
• Final deliverables
• User guides and walkthroughs
• Open issues and risks
• Lessons learned

Everything should be written in everyday language, logically structured, and easy to navigate. If someone new picked it up next week, would they know what to do? That’s the real test.

3. Transfer knowledge, not just files

Documentation is important, but people don’t learn by reading alone. They learn by seeing, doing and asking questions. Good consultants create simple, practical ways for teams to get comfortable with what’s being handed over.

That might include:

• Live training or knowledge transfer sessions
• Step-by-step walkthroughs of dashboards or tools
• Recorded demos for future use
• A clearly signposted repository
• A short FAQ for day-to-day queries

In one recent project, we invited the client’s team to lead parts of the training themselves. That helped reinforce ownership and showed their colleagues this was now part of business as usual.

4. Involve the right people and communicate clearly

Handover depends on identifying the right people early and engaging them in the process. These are the individuals who will carry the work forward once the consultants have left.

They need to understand what they’re inheriting, have a say in how it works, and feel confident about next steps. Ensure their names are included in the transition plan, and that time is allocated to prepare.

Alongside this, expect a basic communication plan so the wider team understands what’s changing, who’s responsible, and what support is in place.

5. Provide a clear transition plan

Handover is a process, not an event. You should receive a written plan covering:

• What’s been delivered and what remains in progress
• Who owns what, ideally with a clear RACI
• Key milestones and a handover timeline
• A checklist that includes both technical and change management tasks

Without this, things slip. With it, everything has a home and everyone is clear what to do.

6. Clarify what happens next

Even the most thorough handover can leave questions. Good consultancies offer light-touch support after the project ends.

That might be an occasional follow-up call, a short coaching session, or simply being available to troubleshoot. Whatever the arrangement, it should be agreed up front so the client knows what to expect.

7. Close with structure

A proper finish includes a formal handover session. This should:

• Walk through all documentation and deliverables
• Confirm roles and responsibilities
• Capture lessons learned

It’s a chance to review what’s been achieved, set expectations for the future, and ensure nothing is left hanging.

You can also expect any consultancy to ask for testimonials and a case study sign-off. It’s a fair request if the project has gone well.

And if it hasn’t, this may be your last chance to say something.

Why this matters

When handover is designed well, clients are left equipped and confident. In our work with a major retailer, tools and ways of working remained in place long after the project closed. Teams didn’t need external support. They owned it, and the positive results kept coming.

That doesn’t happen by chance. It happens because handover was built in from the start.

A strong consulting project handover process isn’t a luxury. It’s a professional standard. It ensures the project ends well and that the work continues to deliver value long after the consultants have moved on.

Main image (c) Shutterstock | fizkes. Sunset image: Midjourney.