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The Smart Mission: NASA’s Lessons for Managing Knowledge, People, and Projects
Why human skills and expertise, not technical tools, are what make projects succeed.
The project is the basic unit of work in many industries. Software applications, antiviral vaccines, launch-ready spacecraft: all were produced by a team and managed as a project. Project management emphasizes control, processes, and tools--but, according to The Smart Mission, that is not the right way to run a project. Human skills and expertise, not technical tools, are what make projects successful. Projects run on knowledge. This paradigm-shifting book--by three project management experts, all of whom have decades of experience at NASA and elsewhere--challenges the conventional wisdom on project management, focusing on the human dimension: learning, collaboration, teaming, communication, and culture.
The authors emphasize three themes: projects are fundamentally about how teams work and learn together to get things done; the local level--not an organization's upper levels--is where the action happens; and projects don't operate in a vacuum but exist within organizations that are responsible to stakeholders. Drawing on examples and case studies from NASA and other organizations, the authors identify three project models--micro, macro, and global--and their different knowledge needs. Successful organizations have a knowledge-based culture. Successful project management guides the interplay of knowledge, projects, and people.
The project is the basic unit of work in many industries. Software applications, antiviral vaccines, launch-ready spacecraft: all were produced by a team and managed as a project. Project management emphasizes control, processes, and tools--but, according to The Smart Mission, that is not the right way to run a project. Human skills and expertise, not technical tools, are what make projects successful. Projects run on knowledge. This paradigm-shifting book--by three project management experts, all of whom have decades of experience at NASA and elsewhere--challenges the conventional wisdom on project management, focusing on the human dimension: learning, collaboration, teaming, communication, and culture.
The authors emphasize three themes: projects are fundamentally about how teams work and learn together to get things done; the local level--not an organization's upper levels--is where the action happens; and projects don't operate in a vacuum but exist within organizations that are responsible to stakeholders. Drawing on examples and case studies from NASA and other organizations, the authors identify three project models--micro, macro, and global--and their different knowledge needs. Successful organizations have a knowledge-based culture. Successful project management guides the interplay of knowledge, projects, and people.
- GenresBusinessNonfiction
165 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 16, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
August 27, 2022
I have a Masters Degree in Organizational and Industrial Psychology; and have much work experience participating in and running projects, and I LOVE this book. Yes! It’s people who are needed to meet the project’s mission - not tools - people! The Smart Mission delivers realistic advice on knowledge, learning, teams, and culture for organizational leaders and anyone managing or associated with projects. Drawing on their vast experience working for NASA, the authors, in a very organized manner, layout how to successfully work and learn together.
I enjoyed the stories and appreciated the conversational tone throughout the book. I found myself being thoughtful of and inspired by the themes shared by the authors. This isn’t a book you read and just put on a shelf. There are discussions and deliberations to be had on how you can successfully deliver projects in your own organization.
I also appreciated the chapter on the International Space Station, not only for its guidance on extremely complex projects; but its relevance considering it is now in a transition phase. Imagine the challenging complexity of a project to retire and decommission a space station….
I enjoyed the stories and appreciated the conversational tone throughout the book. I found myself being thoughtful of and inspired by the themes shared by the authors. This isn’t a book you read and just put on a shelf. There are discussions and deliberations to be had on how you can successfully deliver projects in your own organization.
I also appreciated the chapter on the International Space Station, not only for its guidance on extremely complex projects; but its relevance considering it is now in a transition phase. Imagine the challenging complexity of a project to retire and decommission a space station….
May 3, 2026
NASA does complex projects that rely on people and information to be successful, so it’s not surprising that there might be lessons to learn about project management from NASA. What might be surprising is that many key lessons in The Smart Mission are not about planning techniques, schedule optimization, or project management processes. The key to project success is people and teams collaborating well, focusing on a mission, and sharing knowledge. The Smart mission is a brief, information-dense, yet easy-to-read book about what makes projects work. While the context is NASA projects, which tend to be larger and distributed, the lessons are relevant to any non-trivial project.
Hoffman, Kohut, and Prusak describe different kinds of projects (they discuss three types: Micro, Macro, and Global), knowledge management and learning, and people, which includes cultures and team dynamics. Perhaps surprising to some — though not to those who’ve worked on agile teams — is the importance the authors place on people and human interaction. We learn that most knowledge initiatives fail by focusing on individual learning while ignoring collaboration and teamwork. This makes sense: even in projects with complex databases and dashboards, most knowledge starts with (and sometimes remains with) people doing the work, and you need to work with those people to capture the important elements of what they know. Doing this requires psychological safety, storytelling, and a healthy approach to failure that focuses on recovery and not blame.
The Smart Mission is a relatively quick read, with short chapters, each covering one element of what makes teams effective. Whether you are in a large international organization or a small, but growing, startup. This book will inspire you to consider what might be holding your teams back and how to improve them.
Hoffman, Kohut, and Prusak describe different kinds of projects (they discuss three types: Micro, Macro, and Global), knowledge management and learning, and people, which includes cultures and team dynamics. Perhaps surprising to some — though not to those who’ve worked on agile teams — is the importance the authors place on people and human interaction. We learn that most knowledge initiatives fail by focusing on individual learning while ignoring collaboration and teamwork. This makes sense: even in projects with complex databases and dashboards, most knowledge starts with (and sometimes remains with) people doing the work, and you need to work with those people to capture the important elements of what they know. Doing this requires psychological safety, storytelling, and a healthy approach to failure that focuses on recovery and not blame.
The Smart Mission is a relatively quick read, with short chapters, each covering one element of what makes teams effective. Whether you are in a large international organization or a small, but growing, startup. This book will inspire you to consider what might be holding your teams back and how to improve them.
July 11, 2026
FWPMI Book Club selection for July 2026. This book was already on my to-read list after hearing Ed Hoffman speak at PMI Global Summit in 2025, so I was delighted to see it show up on the book club's list as well. The book had lots of practical tips for project management organizations, though it wasn't exactly linear. And I may not have enjoyed it as much had it not been for the stories about NASA; I'm a sucker for anything about space. I particularly liked the discussions around knowledge and learning in organizations and how to build and foster effective teams.
November 27, 2024
Knowledge Management in a Nutshell
It's definitely a good read for people associated with software development and business that mostly rely on knowledge mining or its management.
The book goes through the topic smoothly with visibly experienced authors' stories in between. I love it. I plan to get back to it once I will need to refresh my memory, especially in knowledge sharing topics.
It's definitely a good read for people associated with software development and business that mostly rely on knowledge mining or its management.
The book goes through the topic smoothly with visibly experienced authors' stories in between. I love it. I plan to get back to it once I will need to refresh my memory, especially in knowledge sharing topics.
February 14, 2023
#goodreadsgiveaway
Unsure how to rate this book. It was a easy to understand read, however it took some time for me to get through it. The overall content was informative and well written and the case study at the conclusion was interesting.
Unsure how to rate this book. It was a easy to understand read, however it took some time for me to get through it. The overall content was informative and well written and the case study at the conclusion was interesting.
August 11, 2024
Ce livre est complètement inutile. Les auteurs expliquent que faire des projets, c'est apprendre. Et que pour mieux apprendre, il faut utiliser le storytelling. Vraiment inutile.
September 20, 2022
What can I say, I co-authored it (with Larry and Matt) and continue to read and reference it in our work. One of my favorites. 😀
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews