---
reference_type: Performance Domain
reference_id: PD06
name: Delivery
version: "1.0.0"
status: Deprecated
edition: PMBOK7
pmbok8_source: "PMBOK8 Guide §2.6 — Delivery Performance Domain"
authority: PMI-derived
---

# PD06 — Delivery Performance Domain
**Type:** Performance Domain
**PMBOK8 Source:** PMBOK8 Guide §2.6 — Delivery Performance Domain
**Version:** 1.0.0

## Definition
The Delivery Performance Domain addresses activities and functions associated with delivering the scope and quality that the project was undertaken to achieve (PMBOK8 §2.6). This domain is the value realization engine of the project — it ensures that what is produced meets requirements, is accepted by stakeholders, and contributes to intended benefits. PMBOK 8 draws an important distinction between outputs (deliverables produced by the project), outcomes (changes in behavior or situation that result from using the outputs), and benefits (the value realized when outcomes are achieved). Effective delivery management navigates all three levels, not simply producing deliverables but ensuring they lead to meaningful change.

## Desired Outcomes
- Deliverables meet the acceptance criteria defined by the project and satisfy stakeholder requirements
- Project scope is clearly defined, controlled, and traceable from business need through to delivered output
- Quality is built into deliverables through prevention-focused practices rather than late-stage inspection
- Outputs lead to intended outcomes and benefits, not merely technical completion of scope
- Stakeholders accept and can use delivered outputs effectively, enabling value realization

## Key Activities and Considerations
- **Define and manage scope:** Clearly articulate what the project will and will not deliver; maintain a controlled scope baseline that prevents unauthorized expansion while accommodating legitimate change
- **Elicit and analyze requirements:** Engage stakeholders to discover, document, and validate their needs; distinguish between business requirements, solution requirements, and constraints
- **Maintain requirements traceability:** Track each requirement from its source through design, development, testing, and acceptance so that no requirement is lost and all scope can be justified
- **Manage deliverable quality:** Apply quality standards and acceptance criteria from the outset; build verification and validation into delivery processes rather than treating quality as an end-of-project gate
- **Obtain stakeholder acceptance:** Conduct formal and informal acceptance activities that confirm deliverables meet agreed criteria; address deficiencies before treating scope as complete
- **Distinguish outputs, outcomes, and benefits:** Ensure that project success is not defined only as "delivered on time" but includes evidence that outputs are being used and outcomes are being realized
- **Manage transition and closure:** Plan and execute the handover of deliverables to operational teams; ensure benefits tracking mechanisms are in place so that post-project value realization can be monitored

## Relationship to Principles
| Principle | Connection |
|---|---|
| P04 — Value | The Delivery domain is the primary value realization domain; every scope decision, quality standard, and acceptance criterion should be anchored in the value the project is meant to deliver |
| P08 — Quality | Quality is not a final check but a continuous attribute of how deliverables are designed and built; quality criteria must be defined at the same time as scope, not after |
| P03 — Stakeholders | Deliverables are accepted by stakeholders; delivery success requires ongoing stakeholder engagement to validate that evolving requirements are correctly understood and met |

## Artifact Connections
| Artifact | Connection |
|---|---|
| A08 — Scope and Requirements Backlog | Primary delivery artifact — captures the full set of requirements and scope items to be delivered, maintained, and controlled throughout the project |
| A13 — Requirements Traceability Matrix | Ensures end-to-end traceability from business need to delivered output; supports scope control and acceptance verification |
| A09 — Quality Management Plan | Defines quality standards, acceptance criteria, verification methods, and quality assurance activities applicable to all deliverables |
| A04 — Project Charter | Establishes the high-level scope and authorized deliverables that bound the Delivery domain's work |
| A24 — Closure and Benefits Transition Record | Documents the handover of deliverables and the mechanisms for tracking benefits realization after project closure |

## Skill Connections
| Skill ID | Skill Name | Connection |
|---|---|---|
| SKL-03-03 | Define Scope | Establishes the scope baseline that bounds what this domain must deliver |
| SKL-03-04 | Elicit and Analyze Requirements | Core skill for understanding and documenting what stakeholders need from deliverables |
| SKL-04-07 | Manage Quality | Implements quality assurance and quality control activities throughout delivery |
| SKL-05-03 | Control Scope | Monitors scope against baseline, manages change requests, and prevents unauthorized scope additions |
| SKL-05-04 | Control Quality | Monitors deliverable quality against criteria, identifies defects, and manages rework |
| SKL-06-01 | Close Project | Formalizes delivery completion, obtains final acceptance, and transitions outputs to operations |

## Interaction with Other Domains
| Domain | Interaction |
|---|---|
| PD04 — Planning | Delivery scope and quality standards are defined and baselined during Planning; plan changes driven by scope evolution feed back into re-planning |
| PD07 — Measurement | Delivery performance — scope completion, defect rates, acceptance rates, and benefits indicators — is tracked and reported through the Measurement domain |
| PD01 — Stakeholders | Deliverables are ultimately accepted and used by stakeholders; ongoing engagement ensures requirements remain valid and acceptance is genuine |

## Questions to Ask in Practice
1. Have we defined what "done" means for each deliverable, including acceptance criteria that stakeholders have agreed to?
2. Are we tracking requirements end-to-end, so we can demonstrate that every requirement has been addressed and every deliverable can be justified?
3. Are we managing scope to prevent unnecessary expansion, while remaining genuinely open to changes that increase value?
4. Do we have a plan for how delivered outputs will transition to operations, and who will track benefits realization after the project closes?

*Authority: PMBOK8 Guide §2.6 · Source type: PMI-derived*
*Repository: https://github.com/fakhruldeen/PMOSkills*
