Perception

Infrastructure Investment Will Be a Slow Economic Stimulus Path

i agree with many of the points made, particularly regarding timeframes, etc.. however, i strongly disagee with the assertion that ultra-large scale project experience, and the personnel to manage such projects, is unavailable domestically. see, e.g., the development of deepwater GOM fields, tension-leg platforms and subsea wells, wellheads, pipelines, etc. by Shell, XOM, and others. These are massive, integrated, cross-discipline projects, drawing on virtually every engineering discipline. projects with price tags > 1 trillion.

The fundamental dilemma is that the talented engineers and project managers who realize these amazingly complex and difficult projects will find ZERO incentive to work for the government at 1/2 the wages, with 10x the red tape and bureaucracy. Talent goes where the money is. Talent also flees idiocy (i.e., anything even tangentially related to the U.S. government).

Lamenting the lack of highly skilled, innovative personnel to handle these projects is simply incorrect. The talent is there. This is analogous to lamenting the lack of highly motivated, qualified teaches. Those folks are out there in abundance. But, in similar fiashion, they go where they will be paid commensurate with their skill and intelligence.

Change the metrics, change the management from government-style waste and bureaucracy to industrial methods (goal and performance oriented), change the rewards to be competitive with industry, and you will recruit and retain the best and brightest.