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Daniel Kahneman, the author of Thinking, Fast and Slow, did an experiment. ​ He gave two options: ​ Would you accept a gamble that offers a 10% chance to win $95 and a 90% chance to lose $5? Or. Would you pay $5 to participate in a lottery that offers a 10% chance to win $100 and a 90% chance to win nothing? ​ Well… if you studied engineering, you have convinced yourself that the two problems are identical. ​ In both, you are either richer by $95 or poorer by $5. ​ But that’s engineering mindset… ​ No question why we take so long to find someone that can endure us. ​ The reality is that the second option attracts more people. ​ A bad outcome is much more acceptable if it is framed as the cost of a lottery ticket that did not win than if it is simply described as losing a gamble. ​ We should not be surprised: losses evoke stronger negative feelings than costs. ​ If you have no idea what I’m talking about, you should take a look to the book below. It will teach you to avoid gambles and call some costs, investments. ​
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Many people challenge my preferred RFP strategy for PPPs: “Pre-qualify strong consortia, set a minimum technical pass/fail, and award to the best NPV bidder? They’ll just bid low and renegotiate later!” I get it. That tactic has been abused in Latin America for years. But we need to ask: Why has +20% (often +50%, +100%, +200%) become almost inevitable there? Let’s look at the real causes: Why PPP prices skyrocket after award 1) Renegotiation is systemic. In transport PPPs, up to 78% of...
Africa. Mid-2010s. You’re in the middle of a multibillion-dollar PPP. Your consortium is assembled. Your lenders are mobilized. Your bid team is burning cash like Tesla compensating executives… The agency launches the RFP. Everyone is excited. A fair, competitive process… in theory. And then it starts: Deadline extended. “More time to refine proposals,” they say. Another extension. Silence. And then another. “These guys don’t seem ready” Drop a new batch of documents in the data room. (Oh,...
January 5th. In Spain and many parts of the world, kids go to sleep excited because the Three Wise Men are coming with toys. Meanwhile… in Australia… a mega-project disaster. Hobart, 1975 – 9:27 PM The Tasman Bridge. A massive concrete jewel connecting both sides of the Derwent River. Strong. Modern. Safe. Until a bulk carrier called Lake Illawarra hit one of its piers. Concrete collapsed. Cars fell into the void without even seeing it. Twelve lives lost. A city cut in half for more than two...