Andi Garavaglia’s Post

I've joined the Legends team as VP, Hospitality Business Intelligence & Analytics. In this role I'll be combining my recent consulting leadership experience with my roots in the world of spectator sports/events. I'm excited to join a group of strategic decision makers and data nerds that are ready to make an impact on an exciting event portfolio. Thank you to Josh Brickman, Tom Funk, and Josh Kritzler for bringing me onto this dynamic team. Special thank you to Alexander Stoner, Brad Hauser, and the full Legends IQ group for the warm welcome and for supporting me as I find my sea legs. Last but not least, thank you to the Oxford Global Projects team. It is bittersweet to end our journey together but I look forward to cheering on your continued success from the sidelines. Special recognition to Dr. Alexander Budzier and Prof. Bent Flyvbjerg for their mentorship/partnership and to my former operations team (Caitlin Combrinck, Tiffany Handley, Alyssa Danley, and Linda Steel) for being truly outstanding collaborators. I've learned so much from each of you. FOR MY NETWORK: What questions do you have regarding the future of live sports and entertainment? Are there data/topics that would be of interest? #thelegendsway #sportsbusiness #businessintelligence

Find me at the Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America) Conference on Wednesday, 24 April, at 2PM. Accenture's Global Cities, Transportation, and Infrastructure team, Jennifer Holmes and Tammy Chellis, will host a panel discussion on #stakeholdermanagement. I'll be joined by fellow panelists: ♦ Erika K. Kemp, PMP, Strategic Initiatives & Innovation Division Director, Texas Department of Transportation ♦ Mandy K. Bishop, P.E., S.I., Program Manager (former), City of Columbus & Smart Columbus Discussion points to include: - the challenge of communicating digital transformation benefits to key stakeholders (including local communities) - why social science is critical in informing effective stakeholder management as well as delivering on projects big and small - how to make user-centric adoption decisions; to quote the one and only Michael Nolan, "a fool with a tool is still a fool!" -the proven methodologies that can help overcome frequently encountered challenges and pitfalls I'll be contributing an academic perspective as well as global best practices based on the team's work at Oxford Global Projects. If you're in Phoenix for the event, we encourage you to stop by. It should be an actionable and insightful session. #itsa2024

I am deeply saddened by Daniel Kahneman's passing. His brilliance burned brightly in life and his legacy will outlive us all. What a true inspiration. My career would not be what it is without his pioneering influence. He redefined the impact potential for psychology and for social science more broadly. Safe to say he was a personal hero of mine. I hope I can play a small part in carrying forward the insights and learnings from his work. RIP, Daniel Kahneman

I'm looking forward to participating in a discussion on capital projects alongside a panel of transportation leaders from the state of Texas. I'll be sharing: 👉 case studies from Oxford Global Projects work in the USA, 👉 insights from social science that MATTER when delivering capital projects, 👉 and sharing lessons from Prof. Bent Flyvbjerg's book How Big Things Get Done. With this year's Transportation Track, infrastructure is a key topic at #SXSW in 2024. I'm honored to contribute to this important dialogue. Thank you to Accenture #Austin for hosting me and Dr. Alexander Budzier (virtually).

Happy Solstice to my network! As days become increasingly longer and warmer, let's set our sights on brighter tomorrows. While those in full time positions completed annual review cycles, many contractors did not benefit from meaningful career development. I’ve found the Feedback Gap to be one of the greatest challenges when transitioning from salary to contract work. To address this, I developed the "Career Trail Guide" for my colleagues (and fellow contractors) at Oxford Global Projects- it's a planning tool that frames the career journey as a series of hiking considerations. 🗺️ Start Point & Destination - Where are you starting from and where do you want to go next? Could be a career peak or an intermediate milestone, up to you. ⛰️ Trail Grade - How quickly do you want to reach your destination and how much are you willing to sweat along the way? Trails can be flat, foothills, or steep inclines. 🐾 Local Flora and Fauna - Who are the stakeholders in your work life? Are they friendly by nature, manageable when encountered in the right context, or best avoided? 🎒 Backpack - What are you already carrying in your backpack (in terms of knowledge, skills, experience) and what tools do you need to help you reach your destination? The best part? This framework is malleable to your passion and/or hobby. For example, if you're a chef, frame your career planning as a recipe for success. If you're a gardener, reflect on the health of your garden and plant seeds for growth. The point is to identify a framework that is relatable and relevant for you thereby depersonalizing the discussion and allowing creative, abstract thinking to freely flow. I recommend working through the guide with someone you trust on your favorite digital whiteboard. You'll be surprised at how much you learn by simply articulating raw thinking aloud. Career planning can be intimidating, but the hope is that this framing injects some fun into the exercise. Use this year's shortest day to begin planning your brighter future tomorrow! #solopreneur #careerdevelopment #careerplanning #contractors

Dear network, are you curious about contracting? I've been working on contracts since founding Andi Garavaglia Consulting, LLC in 2019 (see https://lnkd.in/gee49kjQ). Examples of works delivered: - Editing a PhD candidate’s thesis - Delivering training to Amtrak - Standing up operations for Oxford Global Projects - Pricing support for an Olympics COVID testing supplier At Oxford Global Projects (OGP) I have helped manage team of contractors across the globe, growing contributor headcount by more than 4x during my tenure. For OGP, contracting is a win-win. There are perks for the workers who own their schedules day-to-day and perks for OGP in that its workforce scales up or scales back as client work demands. I often tell people that OGP “operates in the future” because contracting will be an increasingly attractive model for an increasingly remote, autonomous workforce. While there are many gig economy platforms out there to ease an individual or a firm’s transition to contracting, it can be an intimidating proposition. My ask to you, dear network: What questions do you have about contract work? Some ideas from me: How do I become a contractor? How should we manage a team of contractors? How can we grow our company through a contracting staffing model?  How do teams best integrate remote contractors into their day-to-day processes and operations? How do different geographies regulate contract workers? How do firms align cultures and strategically sync a remote, global team of contractors? Other questions? All of the above? Nothing? I am planning to craft content around my experiences/insights and your feedback will inform my direction. Thank you for your input. Kindly share with the contract-curious in your networks. #futureofwork #contracting #freelance

A few months ago Secretary Pete Buttigieg referenced Prof. Bent Flyvbjerg's work while opening the Kansas City International Airport's new terminal, saying: "There's a new body of research that's come out analyzing billion dollar plus projects. The proportion of them that are completed in a way that meets the promised benefits, happens on time, and arrives at or under budget is less than 1%." Now, Secretary Buttigieg has invited Prof. Flyvbjerg to kick off a webinar series on the importance of infrastructure project delivery. I hope you'll consider registering for this event and for the webinar series that follows: https://lnkd.in/gGn9Ahhf Having worked with Penguin Random House on Prof. Flyvbjerg's latest book, "How Big Things Get Done," and on scaling Oxford Global Projects advisory services around the globe, I am certain the discussion will be informative and insightful for all who attend. On a personal note, it is truly validating to see Prof. Flyvbjerg and Dr. Alexander Budzier’s work discussed at the highest levels. These ideas and methodologies matter. Infrastructure investments - in my home state of Missouri, across the USA, and around the world - are investments in future generations. The better we deliver projects today, the better world we build for tomorrow.

Oxford Global Projects is hiring for an EA to the CEO. The successful candidate will ideally be located in the UK so that they can work synchronously with the CEO, Dr. Alexander Budzier, and with their hiring manager, Caitlin Combrinck. We're so excited to welcome this person aboard. This is a dynamic role occupying an integral position within the day-to-day operations. Please share with your networks. #hiring #jobposting

Some judge books by covers. I judge them by the number of stickies required while reading!   2 weeks to go until Prof. Bent Flyvbjerg and Dan Gardner's book, “How Big Things Get Done”, officially launches in the USA on 7 Feb 🗓. I was lucky to collaborate with the authors and the talented team at Penguin Random House and to review an advance copy.   I'd encourage friends, colleagues, and connections to read this book. The narrative behind some of the world's biggest projects is as entertaining as it is insightful. My reading required more than 40 sticky tabs, at least 1 tab every 5 pages!   Some of my favorite quotes:   🔸 "What you call costs are not the full costs... Yes, the Sydney Opera House cost a large amount of money, far more than it should have. But the full cost of that building includes all the other architectural masterpieces that Jørn Utzon never built. Sydney got its masterpiece but cities around the world were robbed of theirs."   🔸 “To win the fight against climate change, we must build at a scale and speed that put to shame the long, sorry record of the giant projects of the past.”   There’s much more, but I’ll spare you the spoilers and, instead, provide the link to preorder in the USA: https://lnkd.in/gMJW3NUq UK & EU shop linked in the comments.   Congratulations to the team on the upcoming launch! And thank you to Prof. Bent Flyvbjerg, to Alexander Budzier and to the whole Oxford Global Projects for continuing to challenge me professionally and immerse me in great ideas. ((I never would have guessed that my final MBA elective at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford would bring me here, working with the most brilliant team imaginable building a business - and writing the book on! - ways to measurably improve the outcomes of the world's most significant #projects.)) #booklaunching #readinglist

Oxford Global Projects is #hiring. Know anyone who might be interested?