In a recent GAO report on federal IT acquisition and project management, GAO analyzed major IT acquisitions in select federal agencies. GAO crafted a "Top 9 list" for successful projects. A good report that can be boiled down to these factors:
1. Program officials were actively engaged with stakeholders.
2. Program staff had the necessary knowledge and skills.
3. Senior department and agency executives supported the programs. d users and stakeholders were involved in the development of requirements.
4. End users and stakeholders were involved in the development of requirements.
5. End users participated in testing of system functionality prior to formal end user acceptance testing.
6. Government and contractor staff were stable and consistent.
7. Program staff prioritized requirements.
8. Program officials maintained regular communication with the prime contractor.
9. Programs received sufficient funding.
What would you add as #10? Governance? Government IT project management skills? Agile development methodology? Risk management identification and tracking?
See Information Technology: Critical Factors Underlying Successful Major Acquisitions, GAO-12-7, October 21 (57 pages)
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-7
Highlights - http://www.gao.gov/highlights/d127high.pdf