The Shift Code

What 22,000 Projects Reveal About Success and Failure

In this episode of The Shift Code Podcast, host Pierre Le Manh is joined by Alexander Budzier, Fellow in Management Practice at the University of Oxford's Saïd Business School, to share insights on what project success actually means and why traditional metrics fail to capture it. What You’ll Learn: * What truly separates successful projects from slow-motion failures * Why the best leaders focus on building systems rather than giving firebrand speeches * How projects can succeed spectacularly on one dimension while failing on another * The “uniqueness trap” as the single biggest red flag for cost blowouts * Why investing 20–30% of the total cost in planning dramatically improves outcomes * How AI is already boosting individual productivity by 40%, but only 5% at the corporate level Alexander Budzier is a Fellow in Management Practice at the University of Oxford's Saïd Business School, where he researches and teaches how to set major projects up for success. His dataset of more than 22,000 capital investment projects across 126 countries is the empirical foundation for two books published by Wiley in 2025: How to Measure Anything in Project Management, co-authored with Douglas Hubbard and Andreas Leed, an Amazon number-one bestseller in software and IT project management; and Intelligent Change: The Science Behind Digital Transformations, which draws on Oxford research to establish what actually drives success in digital programs. His research has appeared in the Harvard Business Review, where his article on uniqueness bias, co-authored with Bent Flyvbjerg, was selected for HBR's 10 Must Reads 2026, and in leading journals across management, energy, and transport. He is CEO of Oxford Global Projects, a specialist advisory firm, advising governments and major program teams across transport, infrastructure, IT, and energy. He completed his doctorate at Oxford in 2015, having previously worked at McKinsey's Business Technology Office in Düsseldorf and Chicago. EPISODE RESOURCES: * Alexander Budzier on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/budzier/] * Oxford Global Projects  Website [https://www.oxfordglobalprojects.com/] * Pierre Le Manh on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/pierre-le-manh-3a4158/] * Project Management Institute Website [https://www.pmi.org/] * Project Management Institute LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/projectmanagementinstitute/]

How Leaders Build Organizations That Get Better at Change

In this episode of The Shift Code Podcast, host Pierre Le Manh is joined by Julia Dhar of Boston Consulting Group (BCG) to discuss why most change initiatives stall, how to architect decisions that accelerate adoption, and the human behavioral science principles that separate transformation success from failure. What You’ll Learn: * How to shift from false alignment to true agreement * Why agency matters more than involvement in change initiatives * How to architect choices that accelerate adoption * The critical difference between threat, fitness, and destiny organizational change narratives * Why process excellence is inseparable from human success Julia Dhar is a Harvard-trained behavioral scientist and Managing Director at Boston Consulting Group, where she founded and leads BCG’s Behavioral Science Lab. She has spent more than a decade applying experimental behavioral science—drawing from psychology, economics, and neuroscience—to large-scale organizational change, advising CEOs and leadership teams across industries and countries. Julia’s TED talks on productive disagreement [https://nam11.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ted.com%2Ftalks%2Fjulia_dhar_how_to_disagree_productively_and_find_common_ground&data=05%7C02%7Cjennifer.constantino%40pmi.org%7C3b852282f9a84f0741ab08de594e192a%7Cefa022f42c0246d8b6141b43989d652f%7C0%7C0%7C639046389278949597%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=4Ah5xujyGybnWfWRTW%2FUccTDHXWQE1MY4xfjV5DIvdg%3D&reserved=0] and constructive conversations [https://nam11.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ted.com%2Ftalks%2Fjulia_dhar_how_to_have_constructive_conversations&data=05%7C02%7Cjennifer.constantino%40pmi.org%7C3b852282f9a84f0741ab08de594e192a%7Cefa022f42c0246d8b6141b43989d652f%7C0%7C0%7C639046389278976333%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=AmXZb%2FPrQ0cGQEst0WALBDitJAZOIwRIWfR2%2FMLCa0Q%3D&reserved=0] have been viewed more than 8.5 million times. She is a Forbes columnist who has written for The Financial Times and Harvard Business Review and is a member of the Aspen Institute’s Advisory Board on Social Trust, and the National Advisory Board for Disagree Better. She holds a Master's in Public Policy (MPP) from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government and a Bachelor's degree in Economic and Social Sciences from the University of Sydney. She has worked in more than 25 countries. EPISODE RESOURCES: * Julia Dhar on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliadhar/] * Boston Consulting Group Website [https://www.bcg.com/] * Pierre Le Manh on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/pierre-le-manh-3a4158/] * Project Management Institute Website [https://www.pmi.org/] * Project Management Institute LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/projectmanagementinstitute/]

GE Vernova Teaches Us About Real Energy Transition

In this episode of The Shift Code Podcast, host Pierre Le Manh is joined by Roger Martella of GE Vernova to dive into how a 2023 spinoff from GE transformed a legacy industrial conglomerate into a purpose-built energy technology company. What You’ll Learn: * How to balance short-term nimbleness with long-term strategic conviction * The simplicity principle for transformation * Why service mentality unlocks innovation at scale * How to navigate policy misalignment without compromising purpose * The role of purpose in driving enterprise-wide alignment Roger Martella is Executive Vice President, Chief Corporate Officer, Chief Sustainability Officer, and Head of Government Affairs at GE Vernova, where he leads global efforts to address the energy trilemma: reliability, affordability, and sustainability. Previously, he served as General Counsel of the U.S. EPA, confirmed unanimously by the Senate, and as principal counsel for complex environmental litigation at the DOJ. Episode Resources: * Roger Martella on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/roger-martella/] * GE Vernova Website [https://www.gevernova.com/] * Pierre Le Manh on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/pierre-le-manh-3a4158/] * Project Management Institute Website [https://www.pmi.org/] * Project Management Institute LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/projectmanagementinstitute/]

How Pfizer’s Luisa Barraza Rewrites the Rules of Transformation

In this episode of The Shift Code Podcast, host Pierre Le Manh is joined by Luisa Barraza, Chief Vice President of People Experience, Organizational Development, and Transformation at Pfizer, to discuss why the human element is the foundation of enterprise agility, how to apply human-centered design and agile principles across complex organizations, and the strategic shifts required to thrive in an AI-disrupted world. What You’ll Learn: * Why transformation fails when you lead with technology instead of people * How to apply human-centered design to internal transformation projects * Why AI projects fail at scale and how to reverse course * How to future-proof your workforce amid AI disruption * The critical rebalancing act for global corporations facing deglobalization * Why you should shift from change management to change-making Luisa Barraza is the Vice President of People Experience, Organizational Development, and Transformation at Pfizer and an “intrapreneur” who is passionate about transforming how organizations work. Luisa has over 20 years of experience in roles across global markets and functions, including Technology, Corporate Audit, Global Marketing, Innovation, and People Experience. Her favorite part of these experiences has been leading enterprise-wide transformation initiatives. Episode Resources: * Luisa Barraza on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/luisabarraza/] * Pfizer Website [https://www.pfizer.com/?source=Linkedin] * Pierre Le Manh on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/pierre-le-manh-3a4158/] * Project Management Institute Website [https://www.pmi.org/] * Project Management Institute LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/projectmanagementinstitute/]

Jessica Sibley on Reinventing a 100-Year-Old Icon for the AI Era

In this episode of The Shift Code Podcast, host Pierre Le Manh, live from PMI Global Summit event in Phoenix Arizona is joined by Jessica Sibley, CEO of TIME, to discuss how she transformed one of the world’s most iconic brands from a struggling legacy publisher into a digitally-native powerhouse with record audience reach. What You’ll Learn: * How to diagnose and rebuild an atrophied core business * Why removing paywalls increased value instead of destroying it * How to negotiate AI integration rather than litigate or ignore it * AI as a force multiplier for journalism * How to build followership through radical transparency and decisive leadership Jessica Sibley is the CEO of TIME, one of the world's most iconic media brands with over 100 years of history. With a background in legacy media transformation across venerable publishing companies, including Bloomberg and Forbes, Jessica brings deep expertise in business model diversification, digital transformation, and sustainable growth in legacy industries. Episode Resources: * Jessica Sibley on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicasibley/] * TIME Website [https://time.com/] * Pierre Le Manh on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/pierre-le-manh-3a4158/] * Project Management Institute Website [https://www.pmi.org/] * Project Management Institute LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/projectmanagementinstitute/]