PricewaterhouseCoopers Endowment Report Finds Leadership Lessons in Administrator Dan Goldin’s Transformation of NASA

A new research
report of The PricewaterhouseCoopers Endowment for the Business of
Government, “Transforming Government: Dan Goldin and the Remaking of
NASA,” identifies lessons for leadership in times of turbulence and
organizational change.
(http://endowment.pwcglobal.com/pdfs/LambrightReport.pdf)

“We trust that this report will be valuable to agency heads as
they undertake the challenge of transforming or revitalizing the
organizations they lead. There is much to learn from the experience of
proven managers who fundamentally transformed their organizations and
delivered improved results to the American people,” said Paul
Lawrence, PricewaterhouseCoopers partner and co-chair of the
Endowment’s Advisory Board.

NASA Administrator Daniel Goldin and report author W. Henry
Lambright will discuss the report at a seminar sponsored by the
Endowment today in Washington, D. C. Grady Means, Managing Partner for
the Washington Consulting Practice of PricewaterhouseCoopers, will
open the seminar, the first in the Endowment’s 2001 “Perspectives on
Management” series.

Lambright, professor of political science and public
administration and director, Center for Environmental Policy and
Administration at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship
and Public Affairs, examines the NASA experience in a case study of
Goldin. The report describes Goldin’s strategic approach to change and
where he succeeded and fell short in his handling of the Space
Station, the Mars programs, and other NASA initiatives.

While Lambright observes there are cautions to be drawn from the
Goldin years at NASA, there are many positive lessons for leadership
in turbulent times. According to the report author, Goldin was able to
accomplish positive legacies in part because of personal qualities and
also because he employed “strategies for change that made a
difference.”

“In the history of NASA, Goldin will likely stand out as a man who
preserved the agency by forcing it to change,” Lambright concluded.

Goldin now has the longest tenure as administrator in NASA’s
history. He was appointed by President George H. W. Bush in 1992 and
continues to serve under President George W. Bush in 2001. One of the
lessons learned from his experience is the importance of turning a
“crisis” into an opportunity for action. Other lessons include that a
leader must adopt a general strategy on what needs to be done at the
outset of tenure, implement a change process quickly, build on
success, be aware of limits of change, and anticipate long-term future
needs of the organization.

Among Goldin’s strategies, according to Lambright, was having a
constant vision of NASA’s future and its priorities. Lambright
described Goldin’s moving quickly and forcefully to reorganize to his
vision of a “new NASA,” using adversity and crisis as opportunities
for change, building external constituencies for the agency at a time
of budget constraint and the troubled Space Station, and looking for
improvement with independent panels to assess NASA problems and
solutions.

The report is the fourth in the Endowment’s case study series of
government leaders and lessons learned from their transformation
initiatives. Previous reports have examined the transformation of the
Federal Emergency Management Agency (“Transforming Government: The
Renewal and Revitalization of the Federal Emergency Management
Agency”), the Veterans Health Administration (“Transforming
Government: The Revitalization of the Veterans Health Administration”)
and the Defense Department’s procurement system (“Transforming
Government: Creating a New Defense Procurement System”). Copies of the
reports are available by calling (703) 741-1077 or visiting the
Endowment’s web site at www.endowment.pwcglobal.com

About The PricewaterhouseCoopers Endowment for the Business of
Government

Founded in 1998, the Endowment is one of the ways
PricewaterhouseCoopers seeks to advance knowledge on how to improve
public sector effectiveness. The Endowment focuses on the future of
the operation and management of the public sector. Through grants for
research and thought leadership forums, the Endowment stimulates
research and facilitates discussion on new approaches to improving the
effectiveness of government at the federal, state, local and
international levels. For additional information on the
PricewaterhouseCoopers Endowment, visit the web site at
www.endowment.pwcglobal.com .

About PricewaterhouseCoopers

The Management Consulting Services practice of
PricewaterhouseCoopers helps clients maximize their business
performance by integrating strategic change, process improvements and
technology solutions. Through a worldwide network of skills and
resources, consultants manage complex projects with global
capabilities and local knowledge, from strategy through
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world’s largest professional services organization. Drawing on the
knowledge and skills of more than 150,000 people in 150 countries, we
help our clients solve complex business problems and measurably
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Contact: PricewaterhouseCoopers, Arlington

Judy Welles, 703/516-8626

judith.welles@us.pwcglobal.com