Project Life Cycle vs Product Life Cycle

June 8, 2021
Fahad Usmani, PMP
Project-VS-Project-life-cycle

您可能会认为项目生命周期和产品生命周期相似。他们不是。作为项目经理,您应该知道这两个概念之间的区别,以使您的业务目标与项目目标保持一致。

Since a project produces a product and then ends and the product stays for a longer time, the product life cycle is bigger than the project life cycle.

在PMP考试中,您可能会看到有关此主题的一些问题,因此请很好地了解。

Project Life Cycle

A project life cycle is the sequence of phases that a project goes through from initiation to closure. Projects are undertaken to produce a product, service, or result, and after delivering the output the project ceases to exist and the project life cycle ends.

A project life cycle has many phases, and each phase consists of activities from these process groups: initiation, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing. The phases are generally sequential and can overlap.

In the initiation phase, you develop theproject charterand identify利益相关者

这project management plan will be developed during the planning phase and you build the actual product in the execution phase.

Monitoring and controlling activities happen throughout the project, although these processes can overlap or repeat.

In closing, you hand over the product to the client and close the project.

项目生命周期是不一定的一部分the product life cycle. If the project’s output is a service or result, it will not be a part of the product life cycle.

manbet最新版defines the project life cycles in four phases:

  1. Starting the project
  2. Organizing and preparing
  3. Carrying out the project work
  4. Closing the project

这following are some characteristics of a project life cycle:

  • Risksare higher when the project starts and decrease as the project progresses.
  • Staff requirements are low at the beginning of the project, maximum during the execution, and afterward, may decrease.
  • 这cost of changes is lowest at the beginning of the project, and it starts increasing as the project moves further.
  • Stakeholder influence is higher at the beginning of the project, and it starts decreasing as the project moves further.
  • Most of the funds and time are spent during the execution phase.

Example

假设您有一个建造新摩托车的项目。

首先,您确定利益相关者并收集要求。收集要求后,您将制定制造摩托车的计划。

然后,您开始建造摩托车的真正工作。

Finally, you will hand over this product to your client, and the project will be closed.

Product Life Cycle

这product life cycle describes the stages a product passes through from conception to retirement.

这stages of the product life cycle are development, introduction, growth, maturity, and retirement. These phases are sequential and do not overlap. The project life cycle can be a part of one or more phases in the product life cycle.

In the development stage, you will generate the idea and create the product.

这introduction stage is for marketing the product and starting to sell the product to customers.

In the growth stage the sales increase.

In the maturity stage, the product is accepted, and sales are at their peak.

这last stage is the retirement stage. At this level, you will try to sell out all of your inventory and move on to the next product. This stage happens due to technical advancement or because your product is not selling enough to support its production cost.

Please note that not all products reach the final stage; some are discarded and others never expire.

Product life cycle phases have no duration limit, one phase can be longer than others. For example, the Toyota Corolla and Camry are old products and are still in the growth or maturity stage, and I do not see them coming under the retirement stage any time soon.

A product life cycle can have many project life cycles. For example, the first project life cycle can be the development of the project, and the other, adding a function to the product.

In most cases, the project life cycle is a subset of the product life cycle because the product life cycle continues even after the project is completed.

Example

Let’s consider the product life cycle for a new motorcycle that your company wants to launch.

这first step is idea generation. This includes a可行性研究, market research, and a business plan. Then you initiate a project to build this bike.

Once the motorcycle is ready, your project is complete and the project life cycle ends. However, the product life cycle continues. Now the next phase of the product life cycle begins, and that is selling and marketing the motorcycle.

You will provide after-sale support after selling, and finally, the retirement phase begins.

退休phase may include selling motorcycles at a discounted price.

During the product life cycle, if you add new functions to the product, you will create a new project for this process: for example, increasing the engine capacity of the motorcycle to support faster pickup.

这Differences Between the Project and Product Life Cycle

这following are a few differences between the project life cycle and the product life cycle:

  • 产品生命周期可以有一个或多个项目。
  • 这product life cycle is longer than the project life cycle.
  • 项目生命周期有明确的结尾,而产品生命周期可能没有。
  • 这map for the product life cycle is conceptual and depends on market conditions while projects have predictive and well-defined roadmaps.
  • 这product life cycle phases do not overlap while the project phases may overlap.
  • 阶段通常在产品生命周期中仅发生一次,而项目生命周期阶段可能会重复。
  • Phases are sequential in the product life cycle, while in the project life cycle phases may or may not be sequential.

Summary

项目生命周期是产品生命周期的一部分。项目生命周期通常是产品生命周期的子集。产品生命周期从想法的成立开始,并在产品退休时结束。该组织的业务模型取决于产品周期。产品生命周期包括产品的整个寿命,包括更新和升级,但是,在项目的帮助下,产品升级。

Please share your role in the project or product life cycle in the comments section.

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Speak Your Mind

  • 当我开始阅读这篇文章时,我有正确的理解,即项目生命周期及其产品及其产品,而产品生命周期则转交给了生产,销售及其产品。阅读后,我认为我一直将两个解释中的“产品”一词合并到同一文章或服务中,直到我阅读以下句子。“有些产品从未达到最后阶段;有些被丢弃,有些则永远不会到期。”

    I thought “Wait! if a product’s production line is ended, the project life cycle goes to the Closing phase of the Project Life Cycles and the inventory is either sold out or dumped thus reaching the final stage of the Product Life Cycle. That is not possible!” Then, while trying to develop my confusion writing this comment, I realized I had started using the word “product” for the same article or service on both concepts. A differentiation needs to be established at the beginning of the article for teaching purpose.

    I suggest, the Corolla example is used at the beginning developed to separate the two “product” ideas. A production line’s construction project and its operational use. The Project Life Cycle’s objective of a production line is to produce a production line for the car, a factory (Toyota). The Product Life Cycle’s objective of a production line is to produce the car (Corolla) for which the factory was constructed during the Growth stage. Two different products; the factory and the car.

  • 这5 process groups form the project management life cycle. Project life cycle is a series of phases, each of which can repeat or overlap the life cycle starting from inception feasibility, design, engineering, development, construction / manufacturing, commissioning to handover to operations or client. Product life cycle is a series of phases from introduction, growth, maturity to decline. Correct and agree?

  • Please correct me if I am wrong, my understanding is most money spent during execution and most time spent during planning.

  • Thank you for the article.
    I am working on an assessment of the Project Life Cycle. After some research I am confused, many resources suggest the Project Life Cycle has 5 phases (Initiate, Plan, Execute, Control and Close) – others define it as 4 phases (not including Control) and worded slightly different. Thoughts?

  • 谢谢Fahad,这是我最喜欢的博客之一。

    阅读此博客后,现在我在项目生命周期和产品生命周期之间有了很好的了解。

    Could you please share me the difference between Continous process improvement and Process improvement plan.

    Thanks for your Help in advance…!

  • 亲爱的法哈德,

    Thanks for posting the article.

    But I have one query, please clarify.

    What I understand is Initiation, Planning, Executing , Monitoring and control and Closing are Project management cycle phases and not project life cycle phases.

    Project life cycle phases (may be as per blog Product life cycle phases) are totally depends on type of industry and can not generalised.
    Mean to say project life cycle phases are one fit one.

    • 这下午BOK Guide defines the project life cycles in four phases:

      1) Starting the project
      2) Organizing and preparing
      3) Carrying out the project work, and
      4) Closing the project

      It is same for all kinds of project regardless of industry.

      • “The Process Groups are not project life cycle phases. In fact, it is possible that all Process Groups could be conducted within a phase.”
        下午BOK 5th ed. page 52

  • Very Clear and understandable blog. Found it very helpful to clear concepts.
    Thanks Mr. Fahad for the great share.

  • 嗨,法哈德,
    寻找样本练习问题W.R.T.2016年增加了8个新任务。
    Any help is highly appreciated.
    问候,
    Rafiq

    • Hello Rafiq,

      I don’t have any set of questions specific to these newly added tasks and I doubt that you will find it elsewhere.

  • Assalam-o-Alaikum

    Why Iterative life cycle and Incremental life cycle have same definition in PMBOK 5 Pg. 543 and 544

    Thanks

  • 亲爱的法哈德,

    Reading your blogs is an education in itself. You bring the complex explanations, translated to layman’s language and make these concepts edible. Always a pleasure to read your posts.

    温暖的问候
    K.N.Jayanth Krishnamoorthy

  • 嗨,法哈德,

    I really thank you for the blog post. Your well articulated examples brought brighter light on these gray areas .

    Okobi,E.S..

  • 尊敬的法哈德根据《 PMBOK指南》 5版Pmanbet最新版g 39,是否正确说:
    Project life cycle has 4 phases:
    1-启动项目(即发起组)
    2- Organizing and preparing (ie. Planning process group)
    3-进行项目工作(即执行,监视和控制过程组)
    4- Closing (ie. Close process group).

    On pg 38 PMBOK guide, it says that the phases of the project life cycle are generally sequential but the blog says that the phases can overlap.

    Also PMBOK guide says that the project life cycle should not be confused with the process groups. Please guide. thanks

    • Let’s say you have a big project and you have divided into phases. You have started working on phase-I, you do the planning, executing, controlling and then closing. This phase is completed and deliverable is handed over to the client. Now you started the phase-II and you again go through the planning phase, executing phase, etc. So you can say that phases can overlap.

      • 5个过程组(启动,计划,执行,监视和控制,关闭)不是阶段,如PMBOK所述,并由Mohammed引用。PMBOK PMBOK在PAG上说的是生命周期项目。38,您也报告了:但是过程组不是阶段,因此它们不能是项目生命周期。这就是PMBOK中写的,请坚持下去。。例如,在通常的汽车项目生命周期模型中,阶段可能是:项目准备,概念细节,产品与过程开发,生产准备,逐渐增加和关闭。它们与过程组不同,即使在某种程度上可以从措辞中看起来像。在不同的项目阶段(例如,监视和控制过程gorup)可能会发生几次相同的过程组,但是过程gorups不是阶段……那是HWAT是贴上的。如果您真正了解管理项目或服务所需的过程所需的过程之间的区别,那就是您所得到的。

  • Thanks for the useful article.
    But you need to check the differences between Project and Product life cycles section as you wrote “The project life cycle is longer than the product life cycle.” which is a mistake, :)

  • Excellent blog. To summarize the product life cycle is the big picture and the project life cycle is a part from that picture.

    谢谢。

  • 亲爱的法哈德,
    感谢您的纯粹澄清,您回答了一些我试图理解的问题,
    现在项目和产品之间的差异完全清晰
    Thanks again

  • 亲爱的法哈德,

    下午BOK says “The Process Groups are not project life cycle phases”. But what I understood from your blog that process gropus are nothing but project life cycle phases. Please clarify.

    • As per the PMBOK Guide fifth edition 2.4 page 38: A project life cycle is the series of phases that a project passes through from its initiation to its closure.

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