Books, papers and writing on D4, business change and the design of futures
Alan’s writing brings together business change, IT, project acceleration, benefits realisation, systems thinking and the management of concurrent events.
His publications sit behind the development of D4: a philosophy, system and method for making change happen by working from the future backwards.
Featured publication
Accelerating Business and IT Change
Alan K Fowler and Dennis Lock
Gower, 2006
Accelerating Business and IT Change explores ideas and methods connected to D4, benefits realisation, and the acceleration of business and IT change.
The book reflects Alan’s long-standing interest in helping organisations connect intended outcomes, practical delivery and business value.
Books and chapters
Managing People in Programmes
Dennis Lock and Alan Fowler, with K. Moebus
In Gower Handbook of Project Management, 2nd edition
Edited by Dennis Lock and Reinhard Wagner
Routledge, 2016
A chapter concerned with people, programmes and the human side of making change happen.
Accelerating Business and IT Change
Alan K Fowler and Dennis Lock
Gower, 2006
A major publication on business and IT change, and a central reference point for Alan’s D4-related work.
Articles
Lock In Tomorrow Today
Alan K Fowler
Business Leadership Review, IX:III
July 2012
An article concerned with future-state thinking and the relationship between tomorrow’s intended state and today’s action.
Cut To The Chase
Alan K Fowler
Conspectus
May 2009
A short article connected to Alan’s practical approach to change, value and delivery.
Academic and professional papers
Alan’s earlier work explored the relationship between time, concurrency and business systems.
The Application of Parallelism in Commercial Dynamic Information Systems
Alan K Fowler, D. J. Franks and K. Currie
Proceedings of the First International Working Conference on Dynamic Modelling of Information Systems
Technical University of Delft, 1990
The Dynamics of Commercial Processes: Concurrency of Events and Episodes
Alan K Fowler, D. J. Franks and K. Currie
Proceedings of the Third International Working Conference on Dynamic Modelling of Information Systems
Technical University of Delft, 1992
D4 referenced in other literature
D4 and Alan’s work have also been referenced in wider project and management literature.
Managing Aviation Projects from Concept to Completion
T. G. Flouris and Dennis Lock
Ashgate, 2009
Project Management
Dennis Lock
9th edition
Gower, 2007
The Project Workout
Robert Buttrick
3rd edition
Pearson Education, 2005
Presentations and lectures
Alan has presented the theory of episodes and concurrent events in business to professional and academic audiences, including:
Institute of Project Management, London
British Computer Society, London
Association of Project Managers, Edinburgh
Quality Assurance Forum, London
IBM Annual Conference, London
International Working Conferences on Dynamic Modelling of Information Systems
Alan has also delivered D4 Method teaching and presentations for organisations including The Challenge Group, KKA Partners, West Mercia Police, Factory GmbH, Balfour Beatty, Serco, Scottish Government, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Northern Ireland Water, British Telecommunications and United Utilities.
Blog
Alan writes about D4, making change happen, working from the future backwards, Recognition Events, value, mentoring and the practical realities of organisational change.
Interested in D4?
Alan is open to conversations with people and organisations interested in D4, mentoring, presentations, training, benefits realisation and making change happen.