Introduction

Some IT projects have the same project team from start to finish, while others have changing personnel throughout the various stages of the project. At some point, whether it s at the very inception of the project or somewhere after the project definition and organization, you ll need to put together your project team. While you could theoretically put your team together after you ve planned the whole project, you d be starting it off on the wrong foot. Ideally, the project team should be involved in the defining, organizing, planning, execution, and assessment of the project. While this is not always possible in the real world, it is what you should be aiming for. Here s why: a project team provides subject matter expertise you probably lack, ideas and perspectives different from your own, information and contacts with others in the organization that are relevant to the project, and more heads and hands to help get the project work done.

While all of these are essential for success, there is one additional element that might be the single most important reason to get your project team on board early in the project life cycle: ownership. If you ve ever been handed a complete plan and told to go implement it, you probably know just how your project team would feel if that happened to them. You re less than enthusiastic about the assignment because you had no part in designing, developing, and planning it. In fact, the approach to the project itself might be so...