Capital Projects: What Every Executive Needs to Know to Avoid Costly Mistakes and Make Major Investments Pay Off - Hardcover

by Paul Barshop (Author)

A real-world framework for driving capital project success

Capital Projects provides an empirically-based framework for capital project strategy and implementation, based on the histories of over 20,000 capital projects ranging from $50,000 to $40 billion. Derived from the detailed, carefully normalized database at preeminent project consultancy IPA, this solid framework is applicable to all types of capital investment projects large and small, in any sector, including technology, life sciences, petroleum, consumer products, and more. Although grounded in empirical research and rigorous data analysis, this book is not an academic discussion or a conceptual dissertation; it's a practical, actionable, on-the-ground guide to making your project succeed. Clear discussion tackles the challenges that cause capital projects to fail or underperform, and lays out exactly what it takes to successfully manage a project using real-world methods that apply at any level.

Businesses report that 60 percent of their projects fail to meet all business objectives, and IPA's database shows that projects' final average net present value undershoots initial estimates by 28 percent. This book provides concrete, actionable solutions to help you avoid the pitfalls and lead the way toward a more positive outcome.

• Avoid the missteps that make capital projects fail
• Learn the specific practices that drive project success
• Understand what effective capital project management entails
• Discover real-world best practices that generate more value from capital

When capital projects fail, it is almost always preventable. Inefficiency, underestimated timelines, and unforeseen costs are the primary weights that drag a project down--and they are all avoidable with good management. Capital Projects gives you the insight and practical tools you need to drive a successful project.

Front Jacket

When a company invests in a capital project, a lot is at stake--often times, an executive's job. Substantial company resources are on the line to develop, improve, or refurbish an asset so it can generate profit, but the typical odds of success are only slightly better than a coin flip. Capital Projects gives you unprecedented access to one of Independent Project Analysis's (IPA's) leading researchers and his world-class guidance and solutions for achieving every objective of your capital projects.

This comprehensive guidebook is for every executive who doesn't want to rely on chance to accomplish goals. Inside, you'll find concrete methods for reaching your project objectives, ensuring your project portfolio hits its numbers, and avoiding the most common pitfalls and disasters. Culled from IPA's carefully normalized project databases containing 20,000 capital projects ranging in size from $50,000 to $50 billion, this proven toolkit of best practices puts unrivaled industry knowledge at your fingertips, whether you're undertaking incremental expansions, introducing new products or services, or building a brand-new production facility in any part of the world. Take this everyday resource into the boardroom with you for the support and hard evidence you need to effectively organize and manage your team from the planning stages to day one of operating the new facility. Everything you need to make a name for yourself leading capital projects is here, including:

• A road map to using the stage-gate methodology to maximize the value of capital projects, including how to make the best decisions at each gate
• Convenient tools, checklists, and rules of thumb for unlocking the value in capital projects, choosing the best project sponsor, avoiding capital costs surprises, and more
• Dependable, practical techniques for enhancing executive decision-making through the steering committee and developing high-performing project teams

The broad cross-section of capital projects used to illustrate the paths to achievement represents many diverse industry sectors, including petroleum, minerals and metals, and chemicals, as well as life sciences, nutrition, and consumer products. Through this encompassing examination, you will gain a deeper insight into the critical alignment of business and project objectives needed for positive growth.

Take control from the start and deliver the expected value from your projects with Capital Projects, the real-world guide to beating the status quo.

Back Jacket

THE AUTHORITATIVE FRAMEWORK FOR LEADING PROFITABLE CAPITAL PROJECTS

Capital Projects is the A-to-Z guide for directing, supervising, supporting, and ultimately profiting on all types of capital investment projects in any industry.

Senior leadership and project sponsors no longer have to settle for disappointing returns or catastrophic failures. This practical guide from one of the leading minds at Independent Project Analysis, the preeminent consultancy for capital projects excellence, gives you a succinct road map of best practices boiled down from an extensive database of real-world projects. Regardless of the project's size, objectives, or the industry it operated in, the principles and tools inside this book all produced successfully managed projects that resulted in real bottom-line growth.

If you've been burned by poorly operating assets that do not work right, missed market windows due to late projects, or watched as costs ran out of control, this single resource will give you peace of mind by greatly improving the chances of success. It shows you how to take control right away by finding the most value in the capital project, precisely defining the business objectives, and ensuring all potential conflicts between objectives are identified and resolved. Set yourself up for a win by:

• Mastering the real-world best practices empirically proven to deliver project success
• Proactively recruiting and developing the teams who enable you to deliver more value from your projects
• Avoiding the repeated missteps that cause all types of capital projects to fail

Decisions are made in the boardroom but action takes place in the field--Capital Projects is your go-to guide to taking a project from paper to operational and hitting the best real numbers.

This is IPA's second Wiley book on capital projects. It follows the widely influential book Industrial Megaprojects: Concepts, Strategies, and Practices for Success by Edward W. Merrow, IPA's founder, CEO, and President. This book covers all types of capital projects and explains the critical role executives have in making a project a successful business venture and how easily their actions and decisions can lead to a project disaster.

Author Biography

PAUL BARSHOP, Director, IPA Capital Solutions, provides hands-on support to companies who are seeking to realize more value by enhancing their capital project development and delivery systems. Previously, he served as both IPA's chief operating officer and director of its Europe, Middle East, and Africa region. He has authored numerous articles for industry trade journals and IPA subscription newsletters.