NASA - It's Not Rocket Science

A colleague of mine, Brion Hase sent me an article to look at along with an accompanying video. His comment on the article was “from the sounds of this it looks like NASA could use the Measurable Management program”. The article from the National Public Radio website was titled “Astronaut's Video Satirizes NASA Bureaucracy”

Basically the article was referencing a “ video, written and filmed by four-time space flier Andrew Thomas and tells the fictional story of a young engineer at Johnson Space Center in Houston who has a great new concept for a spacecraft design".

The video highlights how bureaucracy within organizations can stifle innovation through focusing too much on the administrative process. It reminded me of how I felt way back in 1980 when I walked away from the teaching profession because in my opinion they were getting too involved in being seen to be caring rather than getting on with caring for the students. We were getting too bogged down in bureaucracy rather than taking action. I think many people who will look at the video will identify their own organizations as having similar issues.

The article references Howard McCurdy, a space policy expert with American University in Washington, D.C., who comments on how too much focus on the administrative process “is not good for rocket science”. He notes that "culture change is hard” and to be honest most people would agree with him.

Anything is hard if you don’t have the correct tools or a crafted solution. If want to loosen a bolt you get a wrench that fits the bolt head and it’s so much easier than trying to loosen it with pliers. The same applies to changing the culture within an organization. It’s not Rocket Science; people are just using inadequate tools. The best consultants an organization can have already work for it so if we can find the correct wrench to loosen the valve and let that innovation run free then change will become very easy.

Developing a listening and involving style of leadership is key . Leaders need to step outside of their comfort zone and stop giving solutions to their teams. Many management teams are walking backwards into the future forever interfering with the jobs they used to have instead of turning around and getting on with the job they have now i.e. getting things done through other people. When we learn as leaders to listen to our teams and to encourage their participation in problem solving we engage people, we motivate them and we overcome resistance to change.

I think that Brion Hase is correct, NASA need to put the Measurable Management wrench into their toolkit and discover it doesn’t take rocket science to innovate rocket science.