Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir of My Years at Lockheed

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Culver's use of "Skonk Works" caught on with his colleagues on the team and eventually morphed into Skunk Works.As such, skunkworks projects focus on disruptive innovation versus incremental improvements to an organization's existing product line or processes. Each member of Johnson’s team was cautioned that design and production of the new XP-80 fighter jet must be carried out in strict secrecy. No one was to discuss the project outside the small organization, and team members were warned to be careful of how they answered the phones. Seecompletedefinition project post-mortem A project post-mortem is a business process that lets the project team, project management, and other stakeholders review and ... Therefore, I found these four items from the book, (which I hadn't known or fully appreciated before reading the book,)particularly striking:

Skunk Works allows creative people to try their crazy ideas—which can lead to groundbreaking results. Johnson encapsulated the strategic management approach he used on the secret project in his 14 Rules (see sidebar below). There must be a monthly cost review covering not only what has been spent and committed but also projected costs to the conclusion of the program. The early part of the book is the most interesting- about how they came up with stealth technology and the testing around it. But I could have done without the last part of the book which is mostly whining about the state of the aerospace industry and ramblings about politics. That part felt way too long and did not really fit with the rest of the book.

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Further, Rich covers many of the technical details and challenges that the Skunk Works team faced overcoming engineering problems, along with the more straightforward difficulties with funding and politics. He litters the story with personal details, sometimes discussing pilots who were injured, captured or killed. He also tells part of his own personal story, including the death of his wife and his second marriage. He even delves into the life of his boss, Kelly Johnson, with whom he eventually became very close, following years of being intimidated by him. The team should be able to collocate in a small, yet well-equipped office. Co-location reinforces strong and productive team dynamics. People feel more comfortable when working close and face to face. Also, they can argue better, focusing more on creativity and results than on playing by the rules of the parent organization. #4 Stay away from outsiders

A good look at the military aviation industry in the US from the end of the World War II, with the first jet aircraft, until the end of the 20th century.

The contractor must be delegated and must assume more than normal responsibility to get good vendor bids for subcontract on the project. Commercial bid procedures are very often better than military ones. Military aircraft were so expensive and complex and represented such a sizable investment of taxpayers’ money that no manufacturer expected to win a contract without first jumping through an endless series of procurement hoops, culminating in the flight-testing phase, that under normal circumstances stretched nearly ten or more years. From start to finish, a new airplane could take as long as twelve years before taking its place in the inventory and become operational on a flight line long after it was already obsolete. But that was how the bureaucracy did business."

Walking through an underground tunnel to one of the dozens of buildings on campus, guests surface in another facility. This is where NASA’s X-59 supersonic flight demonstrator is being assembled. It’s one of the few unclassified programs at Skunk Works. Isolated, a Skunk Works team is protected from the corporate bureaucracy that often freezes innovation. Aside from that, this book appeals to the avio-geek in me and provide loads of interesting information on the how and why of exotic airplane development. The Skunk Works manager must be delegated practically complete control of his program in all aspects. He should report to a division president or higher.

Why The Skunk Works Model Works

Related Terms enterprise risk management (ERM) Enterprise risk management (ERM) is the process of planning, organizing, directing and controlling the activities of an ...