So who's fault is it...?

At the end of a project it's always a good idea to have a Project Review Meeting. This is sometimes called a post mortem for obvious reasons and should be used to identify what went wrong with a project and what were the reasons behind it going wrong. This is particularly appreciated by Senior management who like to demonstrate that no stone has gone unturned. Of course it is also an opportunity to identify what went right and why. Project managers should always take the opportunity to accept credit for what went right and to shower praise on members of the team who exceeded expectations. Things which went wrong, of course, are rarely any individuals responsibility and tend to be systematic or process errors for which the team have identified a solution. Even the worst situations can have a positive outcome.