Emily Pemberton is an IS project manager facing a difficult situation.

Emily works for the First Trust Bank, which has recently acquired the City National Bank. Prior to the acquisition, First Trust and City National were bitter rivals, fiercely competing for market share in the region.

Following the acrimonious takeover, numerous staff were laid off in many banking areas, including IS.

Key individuals were retained from both banks' IS areas, however, and were assigned to a new consolidated IS department. Emily has been made project manager for the first significant IS project since the takeover, and she faces the task of integrating staffers from both banks on her team.

The project they are undertaking will be highly visible within the organization, and the timeframe for the project is somewhat demanding.

Emily believes that the team can meet the project goals successfully, but success will require that the team become cohesive quickly and that potential conflicts are avoided.

What strategies do you suggest that Emily implement in order to help ensure a successfully functioning project team?