The Great Project Definition
A Great Project is defined by five key attributes.
1. They are at the upper end of the organization's ability.
2. They overcome a seemingly impossible problem.
3. They have no existing recipe for success.
4. They consume a large percentage of the organization's resources.
5. They will have a lasting positive impact on an industry or the world.
If you are working on a project that has these attributes, you are working on a great project, a truly noble cause.
Research Process
A five-year study, to identify the repeatable habits of successful Great Projects. The study was inspired by Jim Collins's research methodology that he used to create 'Built to Last.’
The projects represented over $200 billion in allocated capital (in 2024 dollars).
Research Process
Step 1: Identify
Identify the most ambitious projects in the last 120 years
Step 2: Code
Coded each project using a version of Jerry I. Porras’, stream analysis technique.
Step 3: Compare
Cross-analyzed the great and failed projects to identify the unique technique used by the Great Project.
Step 4: Framework
Distilled the common behaviors into a teachable and implementable framework.
The Project List
Successful Great Projects
Race to the South Pole (Amundsen)
The 19th Amendment to United States Construction
Empire State Building
Manhattan Project
IBM System/360
US Moon Landing
Boeing 747
Windows 95
Boeing 777
Toy Story: First Computer-Animated Feature-Length Film
Toyota Prius
Saving Ford from Bankruptcy
Failures
Race to the South Pole (Scott)
Equal Rights Amendment
Uranium Club (Germany's Manhattan Project)
Soviet Moon Landing
Copland Operating System
Boeing 737 MAX
Saving GM from Bankruptcy
Other Projects
These projects defy simple classification as successes or failures, representing ambitious endeavors with complex outcomes:
Sydney Opera House
Saturn The Car Company
Boston Big Dig
Projects Not Included
While undeniably impressive, these projects were excluded from the study due to unique factors.
Hoover Dam: Leadership showed constant disregard for human life.
Great Wall of China: No first-hand accounts, and relied heavily on forced labor.
Pyramids: No first-hand accounts are available.
Great Project Framework
A preview of the great project Framework. A simple recipe the great project’s used to beat the odds and succeed.
Five Meeting Myths
Running an effective heartbeat meeting begins with grabbing a sledgehammer to smash a few widely held meeting myths. In the vast majority of organizations, meetings act as sand in the gears of productive work.
The 'Great Projects,' shattered these myths and transformed meetings into the lubricant for peak performance.
Myth 1: Meetings must have an agenda.
Reality: Great meetings start with what they hope to achieve in the meeting. Then decide if an agenda will help achieve that goal. Agendas lead to structured conversations. This can be either good or bad.
Myth 2: Meetings should be fun and enjoyable.
Reality: Meetings can be fun and enjoyable, but that’s not the point. Great meetings are often like a hard workout. The results are rewarding, but the process can be painful. The point is to achieve the goal.
Myth 3: Meetings should motivate people.
Reality: Progress toward a clear and compelling goal motivates the right people. Meetings that focus on motivation skip over problems and avoid holding people accountable—ironically, this demotivates motivated people.
Myth 4: There is one right length for a meeting.
Reality: Changing your meeting from 30 minutes to 25 minutes will not fix your bad meetings. Great meetings start with what needs to be accomplished and then set the time frame.
Myth 5: Great project teams spend more time in meetings.
Reality: Poorly run meetings generate more meetings, increasing the total meeting time. Despite spending four hours a week in the BPR meetings, the total time executives and employees spent in meetings was reduced by 40% in some cases.