Innovation the NASA Way: Harnessing the Power of Your Organization for Breakthrough Success

CHAPTER 18

COMING HOME: BRINGING NASA’S LESSONS TO YOUR BUSINESS

IN THE WORKPLACE

We have seen many examples of how innovation has worked inside NASA to drive the exploration of space. We have further looked at the new surge of private companies building on NASA’s experience and forging their own pathways to space and NASA’s support of and experience with them. It’s been a wide swath of history, from 1957 through today. But how do we take these lessons and apply them here, on Earth, in our own businesses and workplaces?

NASA remains a government-funded agency. It has historically been centrally controlled and managed, although each field center ...