So why is there so much interest in the human resource side of IS projects? We increasingly are coming to the realization (after a few bruising projects) that better technology does not guarantee success. We also come to conclude that it is people who perform project work that is often the weakest link in the pursuit of project success. This leads to insightful project practitioners to ask if our teams have the right competencies, and indeed, if we have the right mix of project participant competencies. The central question of this research is "what are the competencies that lead to project success?" A secondary research question is "what are those characteristics of team members that would get that person removed from the team?" Greg will share with you the results this pragmatic and timely research, and we will discuss how these results reflect our own experiences and observations. Greg interviewed and surveyed almost three hundred experienced project participants, many of which are internationally recognized experts in their respective fields. Some of the findings will confirm your ideas of which competencies are desirable for successful projects. However, some of the findings uncover new insights, and perhaps a few surprises. And thus, together we will discuss the good, the bad and the ugly of project participant competence.