Concept: Milestones
The point at which a phase formally ends, thus providing a check-point for whether the project is ready to move to the next phase.
Relationships
Related Elements
Main Description

Milestones provide evaluation criteria at the end of phase. From a management perspective, the software lifecycle is decomposed over time into four sequential phases, each concluded by a major milestone [BOE95].

The phases and milestones of a project

Each phase is essentially a span of time between two major milestones. At each phase-end an assessment is performed to determine whether the objectives of the phase have been met. A satisfactory assessment allows the project to move to the next phase. See Task: Assess Results for more information.

At the end of the Inception phase is the first major project milestone or Lifecycle Objectives Milestone. At this point, you examine the lifecycle objectives of the project, and decide either to proceed with the project or to cancel it.

At the end of the Elaboration phase is the second important project milestone, the Lifecycle Architecture Milestone. At this point, you examine the detailed system objectives and scope, the choice of architecture, and the resolution of the major risks.

At the end of the Construction phase is the third important project milestone, the Initial Operational Capability Milestone. At this point, the product is ready to be handed over to the transition team. All functionality has been developed and all alpha testing (if any) has been completed. In addition to the software, a user manual has been developed, and there is a description of the current release.

At the end of the Transition phase is the fourth important project milestone, the Product Release Milestone. At this point, you decide if the objectives were met, and if you should start another development cycle. The Product Release Milestone is the result of the customer reviewing and accepting the project deliverables.

See Delivery Process: OpenUP/Basic Lifecycle for more information on phases and milestones.