Project Development 2/3

Five Essentials for A Viable Water Utility (even when the money is free)

J.D. Solomon

Jan 24, 2023

Five Essentials for A Viable Water Utility (even when the money is free)

In 2023, some things remain the same when it comes to owning and operating a viable water utility. Other things have significantly and...

Less than Obvious Tips That Will Boost Your Project Milestone Reviews

J.D. Solomon

Dec 21, 2022

Less than Obvious Tips That Will Boost Your Project Milestone Reviews

Four basic things to improve project milestone reviews Autopsies and Improving the Dreaded Project Milestone Review provides insights and...

Master Plans Are More Important with Persistent Inflation and Looming Recession

J.D. Solomon

Nov 18, 2022

Master Plans Are More Important with Persistent Inflation and Looming Recession

Two years ago, updating your master plan was a good idea because the world was getting back to normal and to position your organization...

How Regionalization & Consolidation of Water Utilities Creates New Projects

J.D. Solomon

Oct 31, 2022

How Regionalization & Consolidation of Water Utilities Creates New Projects

The main benefit of regionalization is that it better leverages the resources of two or more water systems. Water utilities can use five...

Can Understanding Risk Appetite Help a Project Manager's Career?

J.D. Solomon

Oct 25, 2022

Can Understanding Risk Appetite Help a Project Manager's Career?

New project managers and young professionals often struggle with the concept of risk appetite and how it impacts decision making. The...

Understanding Inflation and Escalation Will Make (or Break) Your Career

J.D. Solomon

Aug 26, 2022

Understanding Inflation and Escalation Will Make (or Break) Your Career

Current project managers and decision makers have not grown up in an era of rising construction escalation and economic inflation. The...

How Much Money Is Needed to Deliver a Capital Project Program?

J.D. Solomon

Jun 27, 2022

How Much Money Is Needed to Deliver a Capital Project Program?

The answer is somewhere between 5 to 18 percent of constructed project costs. And it is more complicated than simply the percentages. If...

Three Things You Need to Know About Capital Project Prioritization

J.D. Solomon

Jun 13, 2022

Three Things You Need to Know About Capital Project Prioritization

Three of the essential things to know about capital project prioritization are: The selected approach should consistent with the maturity...

J.D. Solomon

May 13, 2022

Seven Helpful Tips About Project Risk

These are seven helpful tips about project risk from the Day 2 presenters at the online 2022 Safran Project Risk Conference. From Samuel...

Do You Share the Same Concerns about the American Rescue Plan Act as Water Utility Leaders?

J.D. Solomon

Mar 4, 2022

Do You Share the Same Concerns about the American Rescue Plan Act as Water Utility Leaders?

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) is now in full swing as states start to divide the monies to their units of local government. Two...

Observed in Practice: 5 Reasons to Prioritize Projects by Ranking Rather Than Multiple Criteria

J.D. Solomon

Feb 10, 2022

Observed in Practice: 5 Reasons to Prioritize Projects by Ranking Rather Than Multiple Criteria

Multiple criteria approaches for prioritization are based on problem disaggregation. The approach focuses on structured analysis by...

Ask the Experts Revisited: Prioritization from A to Z

JD Solomon

Feb 1, 2022

Ask the Experts Revisited: Prioritization from A to Z

Tim Adams and John Rider provided some great insights for prioritization for capital improvements, operations & maintenance, and business...

Observed in Practice: 5 Reasons for Not Doing Written Business Cases

J.D. Solomon

Jan 27, 2022

Observed in Practice: 5 Reasons for Not Doing Written Business Cases

Organizations are constantly frustrated in the capital projects planning process and developing appropriate Operations and Maintenance...

Ask the Experts Replay: Building Better Business Cases

JD Solomon

Jan 18, 2022

Ask the Experts Replay: Building Better Business Cases

Get more of what you want by doing business cases. Better yet, you will not get out-positioned competing department managers who are...

Projects Beware: Environmental Regulations Not Aligned with New Federal Funding

J.D. Solomon

Dec 14, 2021

Projects Beware: Environmental Regulations Not Aligned with New Federal Funding

The recently passed infrastructure bill provides billions of dollars for progressive infrastructure aimed at beneficial reuse, energy...

Tips For Including Rare Event Risks Into New Project Development

J.D. Solomon

Nov 15, 2021

Tips For Including Rare Event Risks Into New Project Development

Rare event risks make or break any capital project because we handle them poorly. By contrast, traditional project risks are handled...

Success Or Failure Determined by Addressing Rare Events

J.D. Solomon

Nov 8, 2021

Success Or Failure Determined by Addressing Rare Events

Rare events produce the greatest risk to facility and infrastructure projects. Traditional risks, often called project risks, are...

J.D. Solomon

Nov 6, 2021

WOTUS and Why It Matters

Waters of the United States (WOTUS) are based on the federal Clean Water Act. The goal of the Clean Water Act is to restore and maintain...

Drinking Water Contaminants Impact Project Development

J.D. Solomon

Nov 5, 2021

Drinking Water Contaminants Impact Project Development

USEPA’s draft Contaminant Candidate List (CCL 5) includes 66 chemicals, three chemical groups (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances...

Risks, Forecasting, And Lessons From Predicting The Weather

JD Solomon

Aug 27, 2020

Risks, Forecasting, And Lessons From Predicting The Weather

Three lessons for forecasting an uncertain future from Levi Cowan analysis of Hurricane Laura.

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