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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.gov

NASA’s Academy for Program & Project Leadership

Denise Lee & Therese SalmonNASA Academy for Program & Project Leadership

Project Management Institute - DCNovember 16, 2004

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.gov

NASA TodayNASA Today• More projects…fewer people• Fewer experienced practitioners and potential

mentors• Fewer expert project managers• Greater project complexity• Demand for speed and low cost• Added responsibility for strategies, business

success and more

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.gov

External factors include:– A shrinking S&E pipeline– Increased competition for technical skills– Lack of diversity in the applicant pool

 • Contributing to this challenge are

demographics and trends within NASA – Skills imbalances and lack of depth in

critical competencies– Significant loss of knowledge due to

projected retirements

• The CAIB Report specifies cultural issues that must be addressed

NASA’s Human Capital ChallengesNASA’s Human Capital Challenges

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.gov

Retirement EligibilityRetirement Eligibility• 15-40% are currently eligible to retire. APPL is

connecting with those PM’s entering retirement and developing case studies (labor and time intensive – requiring about 2 years to complete).

• 20-55% will be eligible to retire by FY06. APPL will need to focus energy over the next 5 years to capture the knowledge of this workforce.

• The agency has already lost a great deal of skills, knowledge, and experience in PM. APPL is slowly pulling some of that human capital back to share knowledge.

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.gov

• Level of KnowledgeLevel of Knowledge• Phase in the ProjectPhase in the Project• Amount of Time to CommitAmount of Time to Commit

The APPL The APPL Blended Blended Learning Learning ProcessProcess

KnowledgeKnowledgeSharingSharing

CareerCareerDevelopmentDevelopment

Performance Performance Enhancement Enhancement

Applied Applied ResearchResearch

Develop Project Leadership

Maturity

Serve as a clearinghouse of

world-class expertise

Center for Program/Project Management Research (CPMR)

Creates opportunities for project management collaboration through

research and exchange

Communication and transfer of

knowledge

The APPL Blended Learning Process allows NASA project practitioners and teams to request and acquire professional development products and services according to their:

““ProvidingProviding for Project Practitioners to Excel” for Project Practitioners to Excel”

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.gov

APPL Strategies and GoalsAPPL Strategies and Goals• Ensure development programs that build needed competencies,

including more effective knowledge sharing and mentoring.

• Enhance project leadership through knowledge sharing and mentoring activities, utilizing an identified set of Agency leaders and experts.

• Evaluate the effectiveness of development, knowledge sharing and mentoring programs to validate that strategic needs are being met.

• Continuously improve the caliber of APPL-provided support through research and exchange with universities, industry and other government agencies to ensure the professional needs of the people are served.

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.gov

Goals of APPL Knowledge Sharing Goals of APPL Knowledge Sharing (KS)(KS)

Improve performance by: • Sharing, capturing and transferring knowledge and

best practices• Providing mentoring services• Sharing project stories• Teaching • Enhancing blended learning• Aligning with Agency initiatives:

President’s Management Agenda (PMA)NASA Human Capital PlanNASA 2004 Strategic Plan

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.gov

• Capture tacit knowledge, convert it to explicit knowledge and disseminate across the Agency using storytelling

• Develop cross Center relationships between project managers

• Inspire and energize project managers to emulate successful practitioners and become leaders

• Develop people to become reflective practitioners

Expected Benefits of Knowledge Expected Benefits of Knowledge SharingSharing

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• Create mentoring opportunities between ‘best of the best’ practitioners and emerging project managers

• Share best practices and capture lessons learned using storytelling

Expected Benefits of Knowledge Expected Benefits of Knowledge SharingSharing

• Positively impact Agency culture, e.g., enhance networking and collaboration; create a desire for knowledge

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Knowledge Knowledge SharingSharing

•Masters Forum of Project Managers

•Transfer Wisdom and Knowledge Sharing Workshops

•Leaders As Teachers and Mentors

•ASK Magazine•Program Manager Challenge Program

•Web-based content delivery

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.govMasters Forum of Project Masters Forum of Project ManagersManagers•Face-to-Face Dialog

•Presentations by NASA Project Managers use storytelling to share best practices and lessons learned

•Small & Large Group Discussions•Presentations by Experts from other Federal Agencies, Academia, & Industry Practitioners

•Opportunity to Network•Recognition•Held Twice a Year•Participants from All Centers

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.govTransfer Wisdom Transfer Wisdom WorkshopsWorkshops

•Face-to-Face Dialog •Stories by NASA Project Managers From ASK

•Small & Large Group Discussions

•Presentations by the KSI Team•Storytelling – What is your story?

•Opportunity to Network •Held annually at each Center•Seek Local Champions•Kick off local Knowledge Sharing Community of Practice

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.govKnowledge Sharing Knowledge Sharing WorkshopsWorkshops

•Develop Community of Practice

•Face-to-Face Dialog sharing experiences

•Guest Storytellers - Stories From ASK sharing best practices and lessons learned

•Small & Large Group Discussions

•Opportunity to Network

•Customized to each NASA Center

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.gov

Leaders As Teachers & Leaders As Teachers & MentorsMentors•Teach APPL Courses

•Mentor through APPL Programs•Present at APPL Conferences and External Conferences such as PMI•Participate in Knowledge Sharing Workshops and Forums•Support efforts at the Centers•Participate in Performance Enhancement•Publish stories in ASK Magazine after presenting at the Masters Forum

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.gov

• APPL’s bi-monthly journal, ASK Magazine shares knowledge with present and future project managers through storytelling.

• The reader can enjoy back issues, have full search capability, receive ASK updates, as well as send in feedback through the web.

ASK Magazine:ASK Magazine:Academy Sharing Academy Sharing

KnowledgeKnowledge

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Knowledge Sharing ResultsKnowledge Sharing Results

A Senior NASA Project Manager shared a story regarding her own experiences with Project Reviews in an issue of ASK Magazine. She was contacted by another NASA Project Manager who read the article to discuss the story. That PM applied the lessons learned from the story and saved approximately $500,000 on the project’s next review process.

A Project Manager presented a story about down-sizing and cost-cutting at an APPL Master’s Forum. A participating PM at the Forum applied the principles and strategies learned from the story to his project which resulted in less budget cuts allowing the project team to remain productive.

ASK Magazine currently reaches a distribution of approximately 6,000 people globally in print and currently averages about 2200 hits per day with the online version. In addition to NASA employees, those benefiting from the shared knowledge include various universities, other government agencies and viewers from currently 60 other countries.

The Leaders as Teachers and Mentors (LT&M) Program leverages the knowledge and experience of an identified set of current and retired Agency leaders and experts. Currently these 61 participants span APPL’s business units by teaching courses, writing papers, giving presentations, mentoring project teams, and assisting in knowledge-sharing efforts. LT&M has engaged both industry and the university community in benchmarking LT&M activities .

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NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership www.appl.nasa.gov

For information on the products and

services of APPLplease visit:

www.APPL.NASA.gov

APPL VISION:APPL VISION:

Providing for Project Practitioners to ExcelProviding for Project Practitioners to Excel

Get to Know NASAGet to Know NASA APPL APPL

Dr. Edward J. Hoffman, Director of APPL

Mr. Anthony J. Maturo, Deputy Director of APPL

Denise LeeProject Manager, APPL Knowledge Sharing

(301) 585-1030dlee@edutechltd.com