Grand Challenges and Projects: Facilitating Knowledge, Learning and Innovation

The development of sustainable sources of energy is the grand challenge of the early 21st century, much as the moon landing was the first grand challenge of the Space Age. The organizational approach to these challenges, which require significant knowledge, learning, and innovation, is project-based: project management teams coordinate diverse discipline experts, scientists, engineers, business professionals, suppliers, and other partners in the design, development, and implementation of one-of-a-kind solutions to highly complex problems. The NASA Academy of Program/Project & Engineering Leadership helps build NASA's capability to tackle grand challenges by facilitating learning at the individual, team, and organizational levels. Through strategies that emphasize technology-enabled learning, direct support to project teams, and knowledge sharing, the Academy creates multiple "touch points" for professional development. In the process, individuals build their competencies and skills, teams get the support they need in the field, and the agency matures as a learning organization. It is a flexible model that is highly adaptable to project-based organizations pursing the grand challenge of our time.