Critical Knowledge inSight: Collaborating Across Cultures

October 14, 2021

Working on international programs and projects makes good collaboration essential.

During Masters with Masters 34, Joyce Wanhainan, who served as the Bilateral Exchanges and Delivery Manager for the Orion Program’s European Service Module Integration Office, and Ann Over, who held the role of NASA Deputy Manager, European Service Module, shared stories and lessons from their program and project management experiences. The clip talks about ideas to help with good collaboration.

Video key learning points:

1. 1.
  Managing team conflict within international programs and projects requires maintaining lines of communication, listening to various points of view, and being polite.
2. 2.
  Program and project managers should be working to eliminate barriers and obstacles for their project team and provide support to work through conflict.
3. 3.
  When faced with challenges, it’s important to clarify tenets and constraints with external partners.
4. 4.
  When constraints are clear, technical teams can often innovate with new solutions that can save money and keep the project moving toward success.