The Gravity Probe B Launch Decision
The Gravity Probe B Launch Decision – Case Study
Gravity Probe B (GP-B) was a satellite based mission funded by NASA. Efforts were led by the Stanford University physics department and Lockheed Martin, Stanford University being the primary contractor and Lockheed Martin as the subcontractor. Rex Geveden, the Deputy Center Director at Marshall Space Flight Center, was the Program Manager at NASA and the primary leader of the GP-B launch mission. The mission objective was to test two of the predictions of Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity: the geodetic effect and frame dragging. The GP-B experiment was one of the longest-running projects of NASA, with the funding received in 1964 to its final launch on April 20, 2004.
Political pressures, poor risk management and hasty decision making were the primary reasons for the numerous conflicts in the GP-B launch. Fear of cancellation and financial losses influenced the teams at NASA, Stanford University and Lockheed Martin to oversee the intricate technical problems. Each of these organizations consisted of cross-functional teams that made independent decisions under different biases, and no co-ordination. In addition, the task group also experienced several technical anomalies with the Experimental Control Unit (ECU), a box on the spacecraft that housed a number of electronic components. All these reasons led to a build-up of issues till the very end. Proper management and collaborative thinking could have led to timely decisions, avoiding many of the problems that GP-B faced.
Pressures and biases that influenced the stakeholders
The three major stakeholders in this case were NASA, and its two contractor teams from Stanford University and Lockheed Martin. Stanford University physics department, under the leadership of
Program Manager Gaylord Green, was assigned the primary contractor for the spacecraft by NASA. Lockheed Martin, under the leadership of Program Manager Bill Reeve, was the
Gravity Probe B (GP-B) was a satellite based mission funded by NASA. Efforts were led by the Stanford University physics department and Lockheed Martin, Stanford University being the primary contractor and Lockheed Martin as the subcontractor. Rex Geveden, the Deputy Center Director at Marshall Space Flight Center, was the Program Manager at NASA and the primary leader of the GP-B launch mission. The mission objective was to test two of the predictions of Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity: the geodetic effect and frame dragging. The GP-B experiment was one of the longest-running projects of NASA, with the funding received in 1964 to its final launch on April 20, 2004.
Political pressures, poor risk management and hasty decision making were the primary reasons for the numerous conflicts in the GP-B launch. Fear of cancellation and financial losses influenced the teams at NASA, Stanford University and Lockheed Martin to oversee the intricate technical problems. Each of these organizations consisted of cross-functional teams that made independent decisions under different biases, and no co-ordination. In addition, the task group also experienced several technical anomalies with the Experimental Control Unit (ECU), a box on the spacecraft that housed a number of electronic components. All these reasons led to a build-up of issues till the very end. Proper management and collaborative thinking could have led to timely decisions, avoiding many of the problems that GP-B faced.
Pressures and biases that influenced the stakeholders
The three major stakeholders in this case were NASA, and its two contractor teams from Stanford University and Lockheed Martin. Stanford University physics department, under the leadership of
Program Manager Gaylord Green, was assigned the primary contractor for the spacecraft by NASA. Lockheed Martin, under the leadership of Program Manager Bill Reeve, was the
References: [1]. http://www.hse.gov.uk/risk/fivesteps.htm [2]. http://einstein.stanford.edu/content/exec_summary/GP-B_ExecSum-prnt.pdf [3]. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravity_Probe_B [4]. John Stephens, 100812 Functionality in Teams [PowerPoint Slides]