How NASA Builds Teams
Mission Critical Soft Skills for Scientists, Engineers, and Project Teams
By: Charles J. Pellerin
Published: July 7, 2009
Format: Hardcover, 288 pages
ISBN-10: 0470456485
ISBN-13: 978-0470456484
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
"Unfortunately, many technical people do not see teambuilding as essential to their success", writes former Director of NASA'a Astrophysics Division, Charles J. Pellerin in his outstanding and organization transforming book How NASA Builds Teams: Mission Critical Soft Skills for Scientists, Engineers, and Project Teams. The author describes the proven teambuilding concepts, that worked so well in the pressure cooker world of NASA, and how those methods will create efficient and effective teams of technical people in any organization.
Charles Pellerin recognizes the critical importance of superior teams to compete successfully in today's highly competitive business and technical environment. He also understands that many highly productive engineers, IT specialists, and technologists are not receptive to the traditional "touchy-feely" techniques for building teams. Instead, the author presents the no nonsense concepts used so successfully with some of the world's foremost technical people at NASA. Charles Pellerin developed the teambuilding system utilized so effectively at NASA to improve communication, performance, and morale among NASA's technical people. The author calls this system the 4-D process, and the informative book demonstrates how to incorporate it into any high performance organization.
Charles J. Pellerin (photo left) describes his 4-D system as one that assesses leadership skills on four different dimensions. Plotting the different types of people -intuited, emotional, sensed, logical - on a color coded four way chart, the teams innate personality traits can be identified. Once identified, the team culture can be compared and contrasted with that of the target customer both inside and outside of the organization. After that, the project's logic and plan must be designed and articulated correctly, as failure could derail careers and even organizations. When completed, all of the team members should receive authentic appreciation to further build loyalty and mutual respect for the entire team. The 4-D principle is logical, follows an ordered process, creates a predetermined and measurable outcome, and strengthens team cohesion and morale.
For me, the power of the book is how Charles Pellerin describes his proven 4-D system of team building by combining the theory of the process with real world examples of its effectiveness at NASA. Not only does the author present the concepts in a logical and readily applicable format, but he also emphasizes the critical importance of context for their design and implementation. At the same time, Charles Pellerin points out why it is essential to project success to understand the customer's mindset and how it aligns or diverges from that of the team. Without these outlooks of the project's goals, process, and implementation as part of the consideration, the project will very often fail.
As a NASA manager experienced in working with highly skilled technical people, Charles Pellerin understands their difficulties in working in team environments. He also knows that those same individuals do not respond well to the usual teambuilding exercises that offer esoteric theory but no practical methods of putting them into action. This book and the 4-D process bridge that knowledge gap very effectively. Charles Pellerin speaks the language of scientists, engineers, IT personnel, and technologists, and has put that familiarity to good use in establishing high performance teams.
I highly recommend the extraordinary, must read guide to building teams and leadership How NASA Builds Teams: Mission Critical Soft Skills for Scientists, Engineers, and Project Teams by Charles Pellerin, to anyone seeking a workable and proven process for building teams within a technology culture., The book is also a tremendous road map for transforming that culture to one of creating working teams that match the requirements of the project and the needs of the customer.
Read the insightful and very practical book How NASA Builds Teams: Mission Critical Soft Skills for Scientists, Engineers, and Project Teams by Charles Pellerin, and change the culture of your teambuilding efforts with soft skills that don't offend the sensibilities of the technical people essential for the project. This book will lower costs, cut time requirements for project completion, provide better results, and build morale among the team.
No comments:
Post a Comment