Mr. Podesta has been mapping out the transition so systematically that he has already written a draft Inaugural Address for Mr. Obama, which he published this summer in a book called “The Power of Progress.” The speech calls for rebuilding a “grand alliance” with the rest of the world, bringing troops home from Iraq, recommitting to the war in Afghanistan, cutting poverty in half in 10 years and reducing greenhouse gases 80 percent by 2050.

The Obama team has four groups, which in turn are divided into roughly a dozen subgroups, according to Democrats informed about the effort. At first, they said, there were three main groups  for personnel, executive actions and legislative strategy  but the team recently added a fourth reflecting the imperatives of the economic crisis and known as lame duck.

As he sets about trying to build a team, Mr. Obama has several possibilities for White House chief of staff, most notably Mr. Daschle, his close adviser, although that could be complicated because Mr. Daschle’s wife is a lobbyist. Other possibilities mentioned by Democrats include Representative Rahm Emanuel of Illinois, former Commerce Secretary William M. Daley and Mr. Obama’s Senate chief of staff, Pete Rouse. Mr. Podesta, who held the job under President Bill Clinton, could also be recruited for another tour of duty.

Besides Mr. Gates, some Obama advisers favor keeping Dr. James B. Peake, the veterans affairs secretary. But Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. has made clear to colleagues that he has no desire to stay on no matter who wins, and neither nominee is inclined to ask him, associates say. Instead, Obama advisers are weighing a short-term appointment of an elder statesman to get through the current crisis and help instill confidence in global markets. The names being mentioned include the former Federal Reserve chief Paul A. Volcker and former Treasury Secretaries Robert E. Rubin and Lawrence H. Summers.

But one senior adviser said it would be important to send a message of change at a time of economic crisis. “You can expect a fresh face instead of a recycled face” at the Treasury, the adviser said. He said that would include the boyish-looking Mr. Geithner, 47, who worked at the Treasury under Mr. Clinton and his Republican predecessors and has generally gotten high marks for his role in shaping the government response to the current crisis.

To run his transition effort, Mr. McCain tapped Mr. Lehman, the former Navy secretary who served on the commission that investigated the Sept. 11 attacks. Two other advisers, William E. Timmons, a Washington lobbyist, and William Ball, another former Navy secretary, are assisting.

Like other 9/11 commissioners, Mr. Lehman has expressed strong concern over slow transitions that leave a new administration short-handed to deal with an early crisis. But Mr. McCain has been leery about being too forward-leaning. Many Republicans who would normally be consulted about plans and personnel said they had detected little preparation  perhaps, they said, out of a sense that it would only be an exercise in “going through the motions,” as one put it.