The authors' research suggests that understanding the underlying dynamics of project status reporting can help limit the chances of nasty surprises. In particular, they identify five "inconvenient truths" about project status reporting: 1. Executives can't rely on project staff and other employees to accurately report project status information and to speak up when they see problems. Many employees have a tendency to put a positive spin on anything they report to senior management. When the organizational climate is not receptive to bad news, truthful reporting can be inhibited 2. A variety of reasons can cause people to misreport about project status. Executives tend to attribute misreporting to poor ethical behavior on the employee's part. In fact, employees misreport for a variety of reasons; individual traits, work climate and cultural norms all can play a role. 3. An aggressive audit team can't counter the effects of project status misreporting and withholding of information by project staff. Executives may conclude that the best way to address the problem of misreporting is to rely on auditors to make sure that project status reports are accurate. However, once auditors are added to the mix, negative organizational dynamics can lead to a dysfunctional cycle that results in even less openness. 4. Putting a senior executive in charge of a project may increase misreporting. Although having a senior executive as a project sponsor often proves wise politically and can help in securing resources for a project, the involvement of senior leaders does not make it any easier to track project status.

Information systems projects that experience substantial cost and time overruns are common in organizations today. Given their pervasiveness and significant consequences, it's important to understand how to manage runaway projects effectively. To identify specific actions that should be employed as part of a recovery strategy, this article reports on a survey of seasoned information systems consultants. According to these experts, developing a recovery plan, refining the scope of the troubled project, and re-evaluating the leadership of the project team are the most important actions that must be pursued in a comprehensive recovery effort. These and other recommendations by the experts are framed within a crisis management perspective to highlight their potential relevance and impact.