Many IT project managers believe they have the ideas and the tools in place to complete a task. Some of the obvious keys to success include good communication, support from management, and availability of the right resources. Certain keys tend to go unnoticed a lot of times though because they are just not as apparent.

Recently, 83 members of the CIO Forum on LinkedIn essentially developed a comprehensive guide to project success factors while participating in a discussion on ways to ensure the successful delivery of an IT project. CIO.com contributor Meredith Levinson decided to list some of the less obvious success factors the group came up with based on discussions and phone interviews with other project management experts. In her article, “IT Project Management: 10 Less-Considered Keys to Success,” she points out that while these factors may be less obvious, they are certainly no less important.

Here are some of the overlooked success factors:

• A Clear Definition of Success

Some IT professionals automatically think of a successful project as being one that is on time and on budget. This is not always the case. The completed project needs to deliver on its expected value for it to be a success. To ensure this happens, project managers need to focus their efforts on making that value attainable and not necessarily concern themselves with only time and money.

• A Willingness to Make Unpopular Decisions

Everybody wants to be liked. However, there is a saying that rings so very true and it goes like this: “You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time.” Making tough, unpopular decisions is tough but necessary when trying to accomplish an IT task. Some people may not like the verdict but when the project is completed they will realize that choice was made with the greater good in mind.

• Clearly Defined Roles and Responsibilities

Lack of defining roles usually results in mass confusion on an IT project. If team members do not know what their responsibilities are they could end up barging in on someone else’s job. Not only is that person doing somebody else’s job, their job is not getting done. This can consequently alter the course of a project because people have no idea what they are supposed to contribute.

You can read Meredith’s piece and view the entire list of less-considered keys to success HERE. IMF members who are interested in learning more about project management skills and techniques should register for our Project Management and Outsourcing Forum taking place in Atlanta in just 3 weeks.