Success criteria and critical success factors in project success: a literature review

Abstract

Project success criteria are dependent variables that measure the successful outcome of a project, while project success factors are the independent elements of a project that can increase the likelihood of success. In other words, success criteria are used to measure success whilst success factors facilitate the achievement of success. The purpose of this paper is to systematically record and identify project success criteria as well as critical success factors found in the literature and published in academic journals in order to form an effective and widely accessible framework to measure project success. Time - schedule, cost - budget, user satisfaction, quality-performance, business and commercial performance are the most frequently used success criteria, followed by technical specifications and requirements, stakeholders’ satisfaction, strategic goals/objectives and competitiveness, functionality, project team satisfaction and safety. Some researchers also refer to contractor satisfaction, future perspective and environmental impact, while handful are those that support that effectiveness and suppliers’ satisfaction can influence project success. The critical factors influencing the success of projects are identified and commonly related to the following areas: project (e.g. clear goal, realistic schedule, adequate funds, resources, size, complexity), project manager and leadership (e.g. leadership, management of changes, effective conflict resolution, communication), project team members (e.g. communication, technical background, qualified team), organization (e.g. top management support, responsibility and authority chart) and external environment (client, technological environment, political environment, social environment, physical environment).