For anyone working on technology projects, you know how it goes: It’s an exciting time to do business, but you’re also working in an industry that has a history of risk, cost overruns and deadline busts.

According to a Standish Report, 52 percent of software projects in the U.S. will cost 189 percent of their original estimates. In the IT world, projects are getting larger, touching more parts of the organization, and posing a risk to the company if something goes wrong. And the longer a project is scheduled to last, the more likely it is that it will run over time and budget.

These types of figures have been so pervasive that many teams and organizations just consider this part and parcel of doing business. But wait a minute—really? Do you want to cost your organization and customers more money, time and emotional duress because you’re willing to be of these statistics?

Don’t give in! Instead, be on the positive side of technology projects. Be part of the solution to delivering impeccable projects on budget and on time, making customers happy and thriving in your job.  To help you get there, we’ve put together a handbook of best practices for technology teams working on projects.