A project life cycle is the chain of stages that a project passes through from its beginning till its end. The IT PMO has defined (6) standard stages for IT projects to follow: 
- Submit Request (Intake/Assessment) - IT receives a submitted IT Project Request and performs an assessment. Members of the IT Project Review Team (IT PRT) determine if the request should be managed as a project by estimating the hours of work needed by each IT division and identifying risks/challenges. Ultimately, if the Project Request is considered a project (over 40 hrs), it is classified by the estimated effort size (Small-Medium-Large-Extra Large).
- Approved (Backlog) - During this stage, the IT PRT approves the Project Request, and it's added the Portfolio Backlog. The Project Request is prioritized and scheduled based on urgency, impact and required resources.
- Initiating - In this stage, a project manager and resources are assigned to project. The project team agrees on the project's scope/charter, budget, and requirements.
- Planning - During this stage, the project team creates the project tasks required to complete the project, identify the critical path, and finalize communication plan. The IT PRT formally approves the project plan and baseline.
- Executing - In this stage the project team works to fulfill the project tasks according to project plan. Furthermore, the project manager coordinates team meetings, validates quality of work, approves change requests, and provides updates to stakeholders.
- Closing - The final stage of the project life cycle involves analyzing the results, documenting lessons learned and transitioning the project deliverables. The project is formally closed after the project manager presents the final documentation to the IT PRT.