The Major Project Podcast

Most major projects manage risk in Excel. Matt Mitchell spent a decade managing it differently - including as risk lead on a $3.9 billion offshore gas platform in the Mediterranean.
In this episode, Orion sits down with Matt Mitchell — a certified risk management professional with over a decade of experience across energy and industrial megaprojects — to go deep on one of the most underinvested disciplines in capital project delivery: risk management. Drawing on his time as risk lead for the Leviathan Project, a $3.9 billion offshore gas platform off the coast of Israel, Matt explains how risk management actually works at scale — from structuring workshops to running Monte Carlo simulations to navigating the political dynamics that keep real risks hidden. Whether you're a risk professional, a project manager, or an executive who's wondered what risk management is actually supposed to deliver, this is the most practical conversation on the subject we've had on the show.
Matt Mitchell is a certified risk management professional with over a decade of experience in risk and project controls across energy and industrial sectors. He served as risk lead at Noble Energy on the Leviathan Project — a $3.9 billion offshore gas platform in the Mediterranean — managing risk from FID through execution. He is currently building Electrical Grid Monitoring, a venture focused on innovative power line sensors, and is a member of Mints International. 🔗
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What You'll Learn
1. Split risk registers aren't a workaround — they're best practice On Leviathan, Matt maintained separate registers for different project levels and stakeholder groups. A single monolithic register collapses under the weight of a megaproject. Splitting by owner, contractor, and discipline keeps risk ownership clear and review meetings productive.
2. Risk workshops only work if contractors feel safe to speak The most dangerous risks on a megaproject live inside your contractors' heads — and they won't share them in a room full of owners unless you create the right conditions. Matt's approach: structured workshops with pre-work, clear ground rules, and a facilitator who knows when to push and when to hold back.
3. Monte Carlo isn't just for statisticians P50 means you have a 50% chance of finishing on time or on budget. P75 means 75%. Matt explains how to have that conversation with an executive who's never seen a probability distribution — and why choosing the wrong confidence level can sink your contingency strategy before the project starts.
4. Risk culture is built one conversation at a time
"One is greater than zero" — Matt's philosophy for getting risk identification started when a team is stuck. The risk champions program he describes is a practical model for distributing risk ownership across a large, multi-contractor project without creating bureaucracy.
Episode Timestamps
00:00 — Introduction 03:00 — Matt's background and path to megaproject risk management 07:00 — The Leviathan Project: $3.9B offshore gas platform overview 10:00 — Risk fundamentals: definitions, COSO framework, and black swans 18:00 — Designing and running effective risk workshops 22:00 — The valve example: one conversation that revealed a systemic risk27:00 — Getting contractors to surface the risks they're hiding 30:00 — Monte Carlo simulation explained in plain language 34:00 — P50 vs. P75: choosing your confidence level and defending it 39:00 — Ancient artifacts on the seafloor: when risk becomes archaeology 40:00 — Risk champions program and building a risk culture across contractors
Resources Mentioned:
ISO 31000 — International risk management framework
COSO ERM — Enterprise Risk Management framework
PMI (Project Management Institute) — project risk guidance
PERT — Program Evaluation Review Technique (for smaller projects)
Monte Carlo simulation — quantitative risk analysis methodology
Noble Energy / Leviathan Project
Electrical Grid Monitoring — Matt's current venture
Mints International
If this episode gave you new frameworks for managing risk on complex projects, subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And if you're building a risk culture in your organization, we'd love to hear what's working — drop a comment below or connect with Matt directly.

Before the panel started, the moderator was warned: "Good luck controlling this bunch." Four AACE presidents. 150+ combined years. They lived up to it. Recorded live at the 2026 AACE Houston Gulf Coast Symposium, host Orion Matthews sits down with four current and former AACE International Presidents for an unfiltered conversation on leadership, AI, remote work, and the future of project controls - drawing on decades of experience across megaproject delivery, cost engineering, claims, and global capital programs.
The megaproject industry hits cost, schedule, and production targets just 1% of the time. Martin Darley dropped this number mid-conversation and the panel barely flinched - because they've all seen it. The question isn't whether there's a problem. It's why, after 150+ combined years of experience, the same mistakes keep repeating. The panel's answer points to a gap that has nothing to do with technical skill.
The gap between a strong technical contributor and a trusted advisor isn't technical - it's soft skills. Martin put it directly: "The differentiator between doing the work and advising a GM at Chevron is soft skills. Cost engineers aren't wired that way." Chris Caddell echoed it with a paper he wrote on the "so what?" problem: too many project controls reports lay out numbers without making a recommendation. Learning to influence, communicate, and own a call is the career unlock most technical professionals never fully make.
Remote work works better for experienced practitioners than for people just starting out. The panel wasn't anti-remote, but the sharpest line came from Martin, quoting IPA's Ed Mirro: "If you're in your bedroom on a laptop, how do you manage your career?" Michael Bennick added a specific concern: new professionals starting out fully remote miss the informal learning, mentorship, and calibration that only comes from proximity to experienced practitioners. The consensus was clear - site presence builds instincts that can't be replicated through a screen.
AI won't replace project controls professionals - but it will change what the job looks like. As sitting AACE president overseeing 6,000+ members, Michael Bennick framed it as an opportunity, not a threat - and argued the association has an obligation to help members get out front on it. Martin's enthusiasm was the strongest in the room: "I've been waiting all my career for an enabler like this." Mike Nosbisch held the line on what won't change: someone still has to interpret the output, make the recommendation, and own the decision. The judgment-makers aren't going anywhere.
Timestamps
00:00 – Intro & Welcome to the LIVE AACE Panel
01:30 – How the Panelists Found Their Way into Project Controls
05:00 – Early Career Lessons & Megaproject Experiences
08:30 – Technical Skills vs Leadership Skills
12:00 – Why Communication Is Critical in Project Controls
16:00 – AI in Project Controls: Opportunity vs Hype
22:00 – How AI Could Change Reporting & Decision-Making
26:30 – Remote Work vs In-Person Collaboration
31:30 – International Projects & Cultural Differences
35:00 – Why Megaprojects Keep Repeating the Same Mistakes
38:30 – Advice for Young Professionals Entering the Industry
41:30 – Final Leadership Lessons & Closing Thoughts
Featured Guests
Michael Bennick — Current President of AACE International, Managing Director at J.S. Held
Chris Caddell — Former AACE President, Director at Spire Consulting Group
Martin Darley — Former AACE President, Former Senior Advisor at Chevron
Michael Nosbisch — Former AACE President, Visiting Professor at Texas A&M University

The project controls industry has a looming problem—and it's not technical.
In this episode, Orion sits down with Christina Robinson — founder of Henry Porter LLC and project controls advisor with 14 years across energy, utilities, and infrastructure — to diagnose a crisis that most industry leaders are misreading. The problem isn't a skills shortage: it's a culture and systems problem that's causing younger professionals to actively choose other paths. Christina makes the case that if organizations don't redesign how they work, how they lead, and how they treat people, no amount of recruiting will fix the pipeline.
Christina Robinson is a project controls advisor and founder of Henry Porter LLC, a consultancy helping organizations build stronger project controls functions across energy, utilities, and infrastructure. With 14 years of industry experience, Christina is a vocal advocate for modernizing workplace culture and building more inclusive, human-centered project environments — and she brings both the professional track record and the personal candor to make this conversation one of the most honest in the series. https://www.linkedin.com/in/christina-robinson-128960383/
Key Takeaways:
The talent pipeline problem is structural, not generational. Christina pushes back on the idea that younger professionals simply don't want to work hard. The real issue is that project controls is asking people to accept rigid systems, limited autonomy, and slow career progression at the exact moment that entrepreneurship, digital platforms, and the creator economy are offering faster rewards and greater flexibility. It's not a values gap — it's a rational calculation.
Outdated workflows are your biggest retention risk. When new hires encounter legacy systems and manual processes that haven't evolved in decades, it doesn't just frustrate them — it signals something about the organization. That signal says: we don't change. And that's what triggers early exits before the organization even realizes it has a retention problem.
Culture and inclusion aren't soft issues — they're project delivery issues. Christina draws directly on personal experience to connect how bias and exclusion affect retention, particularly for underrepresented groups. Teams where people don't feel valued or supported underperform on projects. The link between psychological safety and project outcomes is direct, not theoretical.
You don't have to overhaul everything to start competing for talent. Christina's practical advice: identify one or two visible friction points — a rigid attendance policy, a broken workflow, a missing flexibility — and change them deliberately. Early, visible wins build organizational trust and send a signal to both candidates and current employees that the culture is actually moving.
 
⏱️ Timestamps
00:00 – Intro & Episode Setup01:00 – Christina’s Career Journey into Project Controls04:45 – Why Early Site Experience Matters06:15 – Is There a Youth Engagement Crisis?08:45 – Social Media, Expectations & Changing Motivations10:15 – What Younger Professionals Actually Want (4 Key Drivers)12:15 – Fixing Broken Workflows & Investing in Technology13:45 – Flexibility, Remote Work & Mental Health16:15 – Generational Shifts & Workplace Evolution20:45 – Pay, Autonomy & the Breakdown of the Corporate Ladder23:45 – ROI of a Happier Workforce27:00 – How Leaders Can Attract & Retain Talent34:30 – Workplace Culture, Discrimination & Retention Risks49:15 – Remote vs. Onsite: Finding the Right Balance57:30 – Advice for Young Professionals Entering the Industry1:02:00 – Books, Resources & Final Takeaways
 
Resources Mentioned:
Henry Porter LLC — Christina's consultancy
Package Your Genius by Amanda Miller Littlejohn
Good American / Emma Grede — entrepreneurship and leadership insights
Texas Southern University — early pipeline partnership example

Most project failures aren’t caused by a single issue - they’re the result of broken integration.
In this episode, Orion sits down with Ellie Moradinezhad, founder of tactHive Consulting and former Global Discipline Director at Hatch, where she oversaw project management development across 4,000+ projects in 70 countries - to unpack the most misunderstood concept in major project delivery: integration. Ellie introduces a practical three-part framework that separates vertical, horizontal, and cross-functional integration across three domains - systems, procedures, and people - and explains why organizations consistently misread integration failures as personality conflicts. If you've ever watched a project fall apart despite having all the right tools and talent in the room, this episode explains what was actually missing.
Ellie Moradinezhad is the President and Founder of tactHive Consulting, a Canadian advisory firm focused on business-driven PMOs, project governance, and performance improvement for complex capital programs. With 24 years of experience across infrastructure, energy, transportation, and industrial sectors — including Canada's Eglinton Crosstown LRT and GO Expansion — she most recently served as Global Discipline Director for Project Management Development at Hatch (70 offices, 150 countries). 🔗 LinkedIn | tactHive Consulting
Key Takeaways
Integration is three things, not one. Ellie's framework distinguishes vertical integration (strategy connecting to field execution), horizontal integration (disciplines and functions aligned across the same organization), and cross-functional integration (separate organizations operating as one in JV or collaborative models). Most project teams are actively managing only one of these while the other two quietly break down.
Your integration problem is being called a people problem. When cross-functional coordination fails, leaders default to blaming personalities. Ellie argues the root cause is almost always structural: role ambiguity, procedures designed for one team that everyone else is forced to use, and tools implemented without cross-discipline training.
Change management failure starts at bid phase. By the time you're trying to align teams during execution, the structural misalignment is already baked in. Embedding change management from the earliest stages — when roles, norms, and working relationships are first being established — is the highest-leverage intervention available.
In joint ventures, RACI isn't admin overhead — it's risk management. Ellie walks through how the absence of role clarity in collaborative delivery models creates the ambiguity that causes integration to collapse under schedule pressure and stakeholder conflict.
Timestamps:
00:00 — Introduction: Ellie's path from chemical engineering to systems thinking
08:15 — What "integration" really means beyond IT and systems
16:40 — The three-type, three-domain integration framework explained
24:30 — Why organizations misdiagnose integration failures as people problems
35:10 — Lessons from joint ventures and collaborative delivery models
44:20 — Role clarity and RACI as active risk management tools
55:00 — PMO design at scale: Hatch across 4,000 projects and 70 offices
1:05:30 — Why change management must start at bid phase
1:14:00 — AI's emerging role in planning, reporting, and risk analysis
1:22:00 — How systems thinking shapes the next generation of project leaders
Resources Mentioned:
tactHive Consulting — Ellie's advisory firm
PMI OPM3 — Organizational Project Management Maturity Model
PRINCE2 / P3M3 — Project maturity frameworks
Key concepts: Vertical/Horizontal/Cross-functional Integration, RACI, Systems Thinking, Change Management

Most project teams don’t fail because they lack a plan, they fail because they believe it.
In this episode, Orion sits down with Travis Arlitt, Senior Planning & Field Execution Specialist and co-founder of Day One Model, to unpack a fundamental gap in capital project delivery: the disconnect between planned schedules and field reality.
With over 25 years of experience across global megaprojects, from LNG facilities in Angola and Australia to refinery rebuilds and offshore platforms - Travis shares how traditional planning approaches often mask real risk instead of revealing it.
The conversation centers on two powerful ideas: execution realism and progress truth, a way of measuring performance based on actual production rates rather than static plans. Travis explains how focusing on real pace, rather than variance to plan, enables earlier decisions, clearer accountability, and dramatically better outcomes.
Through real-world examples, including decisions that saved hundreds of millions of dollars, Travis introduces the concept of “bow waves” (hidden schedule compression) and how his Day One Model reframes project forecasting into a forward-looking, action-driven system.
They also explore why incentives drive misalignment across projects, how reporting structures distort reality, and where AI is beginning to genuinely help project teams, particularly in reducing manual workload and improving planning speed.
If you’ve ever felt that schedules don’t reflect what’s actually happening in the field, this episode will fundamentally change how you think about progress, forecasting, and decision-making.
📚 Mentioned in This Episode
Day One Model (Travis Arlitt) – Progress-based planning approach 👉 https://goforward.dayonemodel.com
The Alchemist – Paulo Coelho
The Fountainhead – Ayn Rand
Reality Transurfing – Vadim Zeland
The Alter Ego Effect – Todd Herman
Freakonomics – Steven Levitt & Stephen Dubner
AACE International – Project controls resources and recommended practices

Capital projects generate enormous amounts of data, yet many important project decisions are still made without timely access to the information teams need. When plans inevitably break and conditions change, leaders often lack the transparency required to respond quickly and confidently. The issue is not a lack of data, but a gap between the systems collecting information and the tools teams use to make decisions. This presentation explores why traditional reporting approaches fail to support real-time decision-making and how organizations can close the gap by building stronger data foundations, clearer reporting layers, and AI-driven insights that deliver the right information to the right people at the moment decisions happen.

What does it really take to staff, structure, and control multi-billion-dollar programs?
Ahmed AbdelSalam shares hard-earned lessons on resource planning, building high-impact PMOs, and how AI is reshaping project controls.
In this episode of The Major Project Podcast, Orion sits down with Ahmed AbdelSalam, a senior PMO and project controls leader who has delivered multi-billion-dollar programs across life sciences, healthcare, and technology sectors. With experience spanning CBRE, Turner & Townsend, and Fortune 500 portfolios, Ahmed shares practical insights from both the owner-rep and program leadership perspective.
The conversation begins with resource planning - why the right people determine project success, and how owners should think about insourcing vs. outsourcing, career paths, visa constraints, compensation strategy, and long-term retention. Ahmed outlines a structured approach to building a resource plan, from defining project complexity to aligning with client culture and long-term portfolio needs.
They then dive deep into PMO strategy, breaking down the difference between advisory, supporting, and controlling PMO models. Ahmed explains how modern PMOs create visibility, standardization, and accountability across large programs - covering cost, schedule, risk, procurement, finance, data analytics, document control, and communications.
The episode closes with a forward-looking discussion on AI in project controls. While AI is already transforming reporting, dashboards, and communication, Ahmed argues it’s not a replacement for human judgment - rather, it’s a productivity amplifier for teams navigating today’s tight talent market.
If you’re building or staffing billion-dollar programs, this episode is packed with practical frameworks and leadership lessons.
🎧 You’ll Learn
How to build a structured resource plan for complex programs
When to insource vs. outsource project controls functions
The real differences between advisory, supporting, and controlling PMOs
Why standardization (WBS, reporting, governance) is critical at scale
How AI is impacting reporting, estimating, scheduling, and communication
Why career growth - not compensation - is the #1 driver of employee engagement

Risk isn’t a scary “extra” - it’s the reason projects succeed or spiral. ⚠️
Kim Essendrup, co-host of Project Management Happy Hour and founder of RAIDLOG.com, joins Orion for a practical Risk 101 breakdown - and how RAID logs help teams stay proactive instead of reactive.
In this episode of The Major Project Podcast, Orion sits down with Kim Essendrup - co-host of the widely followed Project Management Happy Hour podcast and founder of RAIDLOG.com, a platform built around one of the most useful tools in practical project delivery: the RAID log. 
Kim brings the conversation back to fundamentals with a full Risk 101 walkthrough: what risk actually is, why projects are statistically more likely to struggle than succeed, and why risk management isn’t about pessimism - it’s about being honest and prepared. He shares research and real-world context showing how frequently projects face major overruns and failures, reinforcing why project leaders have to pause and ask: “Where can this go off the rails - and what can we do now to prevent it?” 
Kim explains that effective risk management starts at the source of the project itself - the charter, contract, statement of work, or initiation document - where assumptions, dependencies, and blind spots often begin. From there, teams should expand the conversation through workshops, lessons learned, and similar historical projects to build a realistic picture of threats and opportunities. 
He also digs into the culture challenge: why many organizations avoid risk conversations entirely, and how strong project leaders create psychological safety so teams can speak candidly about what might go wrong. One of Kim’s most practical tactics is a subtle language shift - using the word “obstacles” instead of “risks” -to help teams move from avoidance to action. 
A major highlight of the episode is Kim’s breakdown of what a RAID log really is: an integrated way to track Risks, Actions, Issues, and Decisions (and historically: Risks, Assumptions, Issues, Dependencies). He describes the RAID log as the “run tool” of project delivery -the place where project leaders monitor reality, spot drift, and course-correct early. 
Finally, Kim shares how AI is already changing the space. He describes how his team built an AI-based risk identification feature that can generate meaningful risk registers from a project description - sometimes matching 75% of what experienced teams create manually. He closes with a simple but powerful truth: the best RAID log tip isn’t complicated… it’s use it consistently, because the moment teams stop tracking risk, risk starts tracking them. 
🎧 You’ll Learn
The true definition of project risk -and why most projects need risk management from day one
How to start identifying risks using the contract/charter as the “source of truth”
Why teams avoid risk discussions -and how leaders build a healthy risk culture
The difference between mitigate, avoid, transfer, and accept risk responses
Why “risk” also includes opportunity -and how to capture upside outcomes
What a RAID log is and why it’s the operational backbone of delivery
How to scale a risk process for small projects vs. billion-dollar programs
Where AI is already helping: risk identification, meta-analysis, and portfolio insights
Kim’s #1 tip: the best RAID log is the one you actually keep up to date
📌 Mentioned in This Episode
RAIDLOG.com
Podcast: Project Management Happy Hour 

What if your 3D model could predict schedule risk, expose cost blind spots, and align everyone—from the field to the boardroom? 🧩
BIM and digital-delivery expert Omar Habib joins Orion to break down how 4D, 5D, and data-driven storytelling are transforming billion-dollar projects.
🧾 Episode Summary
In this episode of The Major Project Podcast, Orion sits down with Omar Habib - Co-Founder & CTO of The WE Group and a global leader in BIM and digital delivery - to unpack how data, visualization, and technology are reshaping billion-dollar projects.
Omar shares his unconventional path into mega-projects, having worked on multi-billion-dollar programs before graduating and rotating through planning, cost, procurement, and contracts. That early exposure shaped his belief that BIM only delivers value when it connects engineering, schedule, cost, and decision-making - not when it lives in isolation.
A core theme of the episode is redefining BIM as Building Information Management, not just modeling. Omar explains the progression from 3D to 4D (time), 5D (cost), and beyond, and why each added dimension improves clarity, alignment, and risk awareness when applied intentionally.
He shares real-world examples of 4D simulations used to test sequencing, crane placement, logistics, and constructability - allowing teams to “see” problems before they show up on site. Importantly, Omar stresses that BIM maturity isn’t all-or-nothing; many successful transformations start small, solving one painful problem at a time.
The conversation closes with a look at AI in construction, where Omar highlights practical use cases already delivering value - claims analysis, schedule QA, quantity takeoffs, and audits - while reinforcing that AI works best when guided by strong domain expertise.
🎧 You’ll Learn
What BIM really means - and why it’s about information, not just models
How 3D → 4D → 5D → 6D unlocks better cost, schedule, and sustainability decisions
How 4D simulations help teams plan cranes, logistics, methods, and site congestion
Why BIM maturity is not all-or-nothing—and how to start mid-project
How to use BIM and Power BI to create a single source of truth
Why finance and project controls often disagree - and how integrated data resolves it
Practical strategies for communicating risk visually to executives
Real-world AI use cases in claims, scheduling, quantities, and QA/QC
Career advice for BIM professionals: tools, standards, and technical depth
📌 Mentioned in This Episode
📚 Books & References
“How Big Things Get Done” — Bent Flyvbjerg & Dan Gardner
BIM & Digital Delivery
Building Information Management vs. Modeling
2D → 3D → 4D (time) → 5D (cost) → 6D (sustainability)
Revit, Navisworks, Dynamo, ACC (Autodesk Construction Cloud)
BIM uses vs. BIM maturity levels
Federated 4D models and discipline integration
Organizations and Resources
The WE Group - https://thewegroup.com
Autodesk Construction Cloud - https://construction.autodesk.com
Microsoft Power BI - https://powerbi.microsoft.com
ISO 19650 - https://www.iso.org/standard/68078.html

Why do so many billion-dollar projects fail—and how can leaders make better decisions before it’s too late? 🧭
Global mega-project executive Akin Oni joins Orion to unpack decision-making, people, risk, and leadership at the highest stakes.
🧾 Episode Summary
In this episode of The Major Project Podcast, Orion sits down with Akin Oni—global mega-project executive, CEO & Managing Partner of FECs Group, and author of three upcoming books on leadership and capital delivery. With more than three decades of experience leading oil & gas, LNG, mining, refining, infrastructure, and M&A-driven projects across six continents, Akin brings a rare blend of technical rigor and human insight to the conversation.
Akin reframes what a mega-project truly is—not just something over a billion dollars, but a human undertaking so large it shapes economies, communities, and national identity. Drawing on global research and lived experience, he explains why only a tiny fraction of mega-projects succeed and identifies three root causes behind most failures: rushing the beginning, underestimating uncertainty, and forgetting that projects are built by people—not spreadsheets.
From there, the conversation dives deep into decision-making before Final Investment Decision (FID)—the phase where most projects quietly fail long before execution begins. Akin explains why the real question is not “Can we build it?” but “Should we build it now, here, with these assumptions and this risk?” He walks through what rigorous project evaluation really requires: market readiness, supply chains, talent availability, regulatory permission, geopolitics, and the true cost of capital.
Akin also unpacks M&A, A&D, and transactions, clarifying the difference between financial deals and the harder work of integration and separation—where culture, systems, and people ultimately determine success. He shares board-level insights on why independent peer reviews matter, how execution bias creeps into decision-making, and why “too big to start” projects often need to be scaled down before they can succeed.
Leadership is a constant thread throughout the episode. Akin introduces his practical frameworks—like Listen → Learn → Lead, and having the right people, in the right number, at the right time—and challenges traditional project-management thinking that focuses only on scope, schedule, and cost. True project success, he argues, is project management success plus product success.
The discussion closes with forward-looking insights on AI in mega-projects, where Akin outlines three real impacts already underway: speed, insight, and execution. AI won’t replace people, he says—but it will replace teams that refuse to use it. He also shares candid advice on career growth, mentorship, global mobility, family life, and why character must rise above résumé in high-stakes leadership roles.
🎧 You’ll Learn
Why 65–98% of mega-projects miss cost, schedule, or value targets—and how to change that
The three biggest causes of mega-project failure (and how leaders can counter them)
How to evaluate whether a project should proceed—not just whether it can
What boards and executives should ask before approving FID
The difference between M&A, A&D, and transactions—and why integration matters more than spreadsheets
A practical framework for people-first project leadership
Why “license to operate” can stop a project faster than any contractor issue
How AI is reshaping due diligence, planning, and execution
Career advice for project professionals: curiosity, steadiness, relationships, and lifelong learning