[KenWittlief]

One of the great things about engineering is you have specific requirements and functions that need to be performed, you can document these, and then compare the results of any work against those requirements.

If someones efforts do not fullfill the requirements they were given, its easy to approach things on that level. Talk about the project, talk about the work. Point out all the things that went well, the things that worked, and point out the things that didnt turn out as expected. (for example, getting a URL name, a web hosting site, and getting one page up that says nothing but "OUR WEB PAGE" takes a great deal of time and effort, esp if this is all new to you).

You can even go over what it would take to bring the project in line with where it needs to be, and if it takes too much time and resources then it becomes obvious that you (sometimes) have to pull the plug.

Every engineer I know has been on a project that was cancelled for one reason or another. We take it in stride, and as long as the discussion stays on the project (and not on the people who were working on it) nobodys ego takes a pounding.