| IT project success can be defined by two separate, but interrelated, measures---efficiency and effectiveness. An IT research model is proposed that describes the process by which high levels of IT project success may be achieved. This model draws on the research of Ojiako et al. (2008), which encourages examination of two threads of project outcomes (progress and performance) to measure project success, suggesting that the outcomes are not mutually exclusive. Based on the model, business owners of IT projects were surveyed to determine the effect that his/her participation in the management of an IT project, and of the post-project implementation, had on the project success metrics. For the purpose of the research, the outcomes of progress and performance were renamed efficiency and effectiveness, to align the research with management theory and terminology. Factors used to define the outcomes for measurements purposes were time, cost, and quality for efficiency, and system usage, customer satisfaction, and alignment with corporate goals for effectiveness.;In addition, the study addressed a number of possible external motivators of business owner participation, to identify their effect on participation as well as on the project success metrics. These external motivators were drawn from theories of motivation and organizational behavior/control as explained by Locke and Latham (2002), Drucker (2001), and Ouchi (1980 a, b), and were categorized as accountability, tangible rewards, and clan recognition.;The results of the research support existing practitioner surveys that identify business owner participation as a significant factor in project success, especially effectiveness. In addition, within motivators, accountability for project success is the high-order motivator of participation. Additional areas for further study include the project selection processes and intrinsic motivation as influencers of participation and project success.;Keywords. IT Project; Business Owners; Business Owner Participation; Motivation; IT Project Success; Efficiency; Effectiveness. |
