But that doesn't always happen. In fact, in the vast majority of cases, project managers don't even report progress directly to the project sponsor but work through an intermediary, says Gopal Kapur, president of the Center for Project Management. The problem has become more acute with globalization. "Customers can be worldwide, in different time zones and speaking different languages," says Kapur. "Project managers are the key to managing all that and so need much more authority than they're ever given."

One solution is to establish a direct line to the CIO to intervene when things are going awry, but that's not particularly effective, says Kapur. "Having authority is not [saying], 'When my customers don't pay attention to me, I'll call my boss,'" he explains.

What's more radical is for the CIO or the sponsor to demonstrably hand over the reins to the project manager by clarifying his authority in the project charter and announcing it at the kickoff meeting. Then, if high-level stakeholders are constantly arriving late for project meetings, for example, the project manager can take charge, lock the door and effectively "close" the meeting five minutes after start time, he says. That will get their attention.

Brandel is a Computerworld contributing writer in Newton, Mass. Contact her at marybrandel@verizon.net.