Best Books of 2023 - The Financial Times and The Economist Shortlisted for Financial Times
and Schroders Business Book of the Year 2023 'Important timely instructive and
entertaining' - Daniel Kahneman bestselling author of Thinking Fast and Slow World expert
Bent Flyvbjerg and bestselling author Dan Gardner reveal the secrets to successfully planning
and delivering ambitious projects on any scale. Nothing is more inspiring than a big vision
that becomes a triumphant new reality. Think of how Apple's iPod went from a project with a
single employee to an enormously successful product launch in eleven months. But such successes
are the exception. Consider how London's Crossrail project delivered five years late and
billions over budget. More modest endeavours whether launching a small business organizing a
conference or just finishing a work project on time also commonly fail. Why? Understanding
what distinguishes the triumphs from the failures has been the life's work of Oxford professor
Bent Flyvbjerg. In How Big Things Get Done he identifies the errors that lead projects to
fail and the research-based principles that will make yours succeed: Understand your odds. If
you don't know them you won't win. Plan slow act fast. Getting to the action quick feels
right. But it's wrong. Think right to left. Start with your goal then identify the steps to
get there. Find your Lego. Big is best built from small. Master the unknown unknowns. Most
think they can't so they fail. Flyvbjerg shows how you can. Full of vivid examples ranging
from the building of the Sydney Opera House to the making of the latest Pixar blockbusters How
Big Things Get Done reveals how to get any ambitious project done - on time and on budget.
'Entertaining . . . compelling . . . there are lessons here for managers of all stripes' - The
Economist
