INSIGHTS

Click the topics below to see posts.

FACILITATION • ASSET MANAGEMENT
PROJECT DEVELOPMENT • ENVIRONMENTAL

FACILITATION

In every setting, rules of order are the quiet force that turns a collection of individuals into a functioning decision‑making body. JD Solomon Inc. provides practical solutions.

Why Most Board Chairs and Facilitators Fail: The Rules of Order They Never Learn

When leaders know the rules—whether self‑created or formally adopted—they create an environment where people can contribute without worrying about being cut off, ignored, or steamrolled. The rules serve as the neutral referee, keeping the work moving.

Staying sharp depends on consistently doing the fundamentals well.

From Little League to Board Meetings: Staying Sharp Means Doing the Fundamentals Well

Experience may create the illusion that we’ve moved beyond the fundamentals, but in my work with organizations of all sizes, I see that these basics remain the foundation for effectiveness. They’re easy to overlook, but always essential.

Ethics are the practical foundation for how we make decisions and communicate them to others.

How to Use Ethics to Communicate with the FINESSE Fishbone Diagram

One of the most common pitfalls in technical communication is sliding, often unintentionally, from informing to advocating.

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ASSET MANAGEMENT

A two‑tiered approach is the most practical and defensible method for assessing linear assets

Best Practice for Asset Condition Assessment of Water and Wastewater Utility Pipes

GIS screening provides a broad, systemwide view. Field assessment provides detailed, segment‑specific insight. Together, they support better decisions, more predictable budgets, and clearer communication with governing boards.

When It Comes to Systems Thinking, Don’t Leave the Human Reliability Analysis Out

A Powerful Approach to System Failure and Human Reliability Analysis

People make errors. Those errors are predictable, measurable, and manageable when approached systematically. Ignoring the human element produces misleading risk estimates and unreliable mitigation strategies.

The two‑thirds rule provides a clear, defensible starting point for planning and forecasting long-term needs. JD Solomon Inc. provides practical solutions.

Mean Life, Service Life, and the Two-Thirds Rule of Thumb

The two thirds rule of thumb emerges from typical Weibull behavior. Mechanical assets often have shape parameters (β) between 2 and 4. When service life is defined at a high reliability threshold—say, the point where 90% or 95% of units are still surviving—the ratio of mean life to service life tends to fall in a narrow band.

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PROJECT DEVELOPMENT

The difference in NPV and NPC impacts project selection, capital program development, and affordability.

NPV versus NPC: The Small Distinction That Flips Big Project Decisions

This difference leads to different behaviors. In NPV, a higher discount rate reduces the value of future benefits, often favoring projects with earlier returns. In NPC, a higher discount rate reduces the weight of future costs, which can make large, long‑duration, back‑loaded projects appear more attractive. This is why discount‑rate selection is a policy decision that shapes which alternatives rise to the top.

Trusted Advisors Create Trust By Asking Better Questions

Trusted advisors ask questions that encourage deep reflection and critical thinking in situations of complexity and uncertainty. They help decision makers explore different perspectives and consider various scenarios, enabling them to make more informed decisions.

Business leaders who understand NPV’s limitations use it to illuminate decisions, not to oversimplify them. JD Solomon Inc. provides practical solutions.

Six Pitfalls of Net Present Value

If the discount rate is set too high, long‑term or multi‑phase projects are distorted. In NPV analysis, a high discount rate suppresses future benefits, making long‑horizon projects appear unattractive. In NPC analysis (common in public‑sector evaluations), a high rate can have the opposite effect: it heavily discounts high costs in the outer years and can make multi‑phase, back‑loaded projects appear artificially inexpensive.

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ENVIRONMENTAL

Leaders need to know whether uncertainty is a knowledge gap (fixable) or a natural variability (not fixable). JD Solomon Inc. provides practical solutions for addressing environmental risk and uncertainty.

Environmental Risk and Uncertainty: Eliminating Uncertainty

The distinctions between epistemic and aleatoric uncertainty continue because they clarify what can be reduced versus what must be managed.

Probability is based on our current knowledge of future uncertain events, which always makes probability subjective. JD Solomon Inc. provides practical solutions for environmental risk and uncertainty.

Environmental Risk and Uncertainty: The Role of Subjective Probability

Beware of those who say we should eliminate all subjectivity by using mathematical/quantitative models. At best, the insights from models help reduce some of the subjectivity but will never eliminate it altogether. All models include the subjectivity of the modeler, and even our cherished Monte Carlo simulations require subjective evaluations of the input probability distributions.