What are the Factors that Influence the Application of Lessons Learned, and how does this Impact on Project Success or Failure?

2014 dissertation for MSc in Project Management. Selected by academic staff as a good example of a masters level dissertation. The concept of lessons learned is an idea that is used in all areas of life. Within project management it is presumed to be a useful tool to make sure that knowledge and ideas are utilised effectively. By doing this we hope to guarantee the most successful project outcomes and from each successive project, the knowledge of the individual and the organisation should expand. However, it seems that actually fully utilising lessons learned is an inexact science. So much so in project management, that the likelihood of failure is twice as high as success for project outcomes. Identifying and dealing with all those potential pitfalls that keep on recurring, doesn't happen quite as smoothly as anticipated, if at all. Perhaps the measuring mechanisms are wrong or perhaps we do just keep "re-inventing the wheel" but not with any great improvements. Trying to determine what the factors are that influence the application of lessons learned, to see what stops them being utilised in project management, is an area that could provide some new insights as to what goes wrong or why the learning doesn't happen. This research aims to identify why lessons learned get "lost" and provides a original perspective to the lessons learned journey. It identifies what the key influencing factors are for the application of lessons learned and contributes significantly to the debate around why lessons seem to have to be learned again and again and again