•Investigates a large-scale information system implementation project in a US-based firm.•Offers insights into the role and practices of project memory in overcoming challenges inherent in large-scale projects.•Presents an inductively developed framework of project memory constituting three mnemonic co-orchestration practices: situated focusing, synchronizing discourse, and converging boundaries.•Enhances the current understanding of the dynamic nature of large-scale projects by providing managerial practices with an alternative perspective on large-scale projects. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted in a US-based firm engaged in a large-scale information system implementation project, this study presents an inductively developed framework of project memory incorporating three mnemonic co-orchestration practices: situated focusing, synchronizing discourse, and converging boundaries. Project memory is proposed to help manage challenges posed by large-scale projects as we observed in this study. This study offers insights into the role and practices of project memory and provides recommendations for managerial practice related to developing narrative and storytelling skills, strategically using meetings, and fostering a culture of cross-functional collaboration in large-scale projects. Display omitted