Solutioncase

1. How would you characterize the broader context surrounding the January 1986 teleconference? What impact might that have on the group’s decision making process? The teleconference was held a night prior to the launch of Challenger space shuttle between NASA and Morton Thiokol Inc. Officials at Thiokol raised concerns regarding the performance of O-Rings used in SRB at low temperature. At the low temperatures O-Rings were suspected to harden and lead to slower sealing, subsequently causing hot leakage beyond the primary seal which could eventually lead to increased danger of backup O-Rings being eroded. Although there were 8 members in the meeting yet primary participation were from Roger Boisjoly(Booster Seal Expert) and Bob Lund(Senior Vice President) of Thiokol and LaryMulloy(SRB Maager)of NASA. Since there was insufficient data to support Thiokol's recommendations, there were apprehensions regarding the implications. Hence the team of Thiokol was indecisive on whether to give a go ahead to the launch. As an impact of this ambiguity surrounding the launch, Thiokol, gave a go ahead despite being warned about the risks by Roger. The pressure on the senior management to make a managerial decision was much higher than to make an ethical decision owing to the pressure created by NASA officials. This is a typical case of lack of group interaction.

2. How would you characterize group processes in the teleconference? What lead to ineffective handling of the situation? The group processes in the teleconference can be characterized based on the following:

• The team at Thiokol was suffering from 'group think' - a phenomenon in which the norm for consensus overrides the realistic appraisal of alternating courses. The consensus at Thiokol was overriding the appraisal of the correct course. • Roger felt the pressure to be accepted by the group as his views were conflicting with the senior management