Continuous Improvement of NASA's Innovation Ecosystem Proceedings of a Workshop (2019) / Chapter Skim
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4 The Challenges
4 The Challenges
Pages 20-26
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From page 20... ...
Speaking in the plenary session on the workshop's second day, when the results of the Leadership Diagnostics session were summarized, she said that the first purpose was to introduce the session's participants to an approach to innovation called design thinking, which she described as "a really transformational capability that has changed our company." To this end the participants went through an exercise in which they were given two very similar design tasks phrased in different ways, one of which specified a particular product while the other specified only a function. The second design challenge resulted in much 1 Ms.
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From page 21... ...
Indeed, another participant commented, many in the public seem to believe that companies like SpaceX have taken over activities in space and wonder what exactly NASA's role is these days. A number of commenters throughout the workshop identified this as a particular challenge for NASA -- getting its story out to the public in a way that increases understanding and appreciation of what the agency does, thus enhancing public support of the agency and perhaps even improving the broader public under standing of science.
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From page 22... ...
In her years at NASA, she said, she found that the technical problems were solvable, but the people problems were almost impossible. Fear of Failure A frequent theme throughout the workshop was the image of NASA as an organization where "failure is not an option," which was both a famous line in the movie Apollo 13 and the title of an autobiographical book by Gene Kranz, the former flight director and, later, director of mission operations at NASA.
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From page 23... ...
talking about exactly this: I might not get fired, but I'm probably not going to be picked for that project or that role, and I was too afraid to bring that up in the room. It's very, very real." ORGANIZATIONAL ISSUES The most detailed discussion of the challenges facing NASA in its quest to remain a top-tier innovation organization was provided in the Program Leadership and Management session on the morning of the second day by Michael Gazarik, vice president of engineering at Ball Aerospace and previously the associate administrator for NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD, also known as Space Tech)
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From page 24... ...
companies to develop future space exploration technologies, including a lunar lander and deep space rocket engine technologies. There has also been increasing engagement with research universities.
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From page 25... ...
Space‐qualified New Camera QWIPs Prototype NRA Contacts Pre/ 9a 6 CalledSBIR P1 Technical New technical ROSES Phase problems on A concept project Concepts 7 SBIR P2 9 0 8 Congress: Pathfinder fly IR Flight IRAD Readiness must RTOP Communicated missionscamera! First 1 DDF 3 detector Scientist arrays MPTO recruited 4 Office of ESTO Commercialization Legend New capability Chance Event Collaboration Shelved 2 Shelved encounter Shelved 5 Action policy concepts capabilities capabilities Decision Contract 1 FIGURE 4.1 The actual path of one project at NASA.
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From page 26... ...
All of these things I think are true, and I think they are the supporting mechanisms for the important mission."
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