Management qua communication in rocket research and development

Abstract

The author served as consultant in communication at the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center, largest of the National Aeronautic and Space Administration's Field Centers, during the research and development of the Saturn V, or “Moon Rocket.” As a participant‐observer, the author conducted a diagnostic study of MSFC as a communication‐system. In‐depth interviews were conducted with the top fifty managers, including the Center Director, Wernher von Braun, of the organization. The results are considered as: (1) organizational‐communication innovations; (2) systemic problems; and (3) the consultant's recommendations. The results are then placed in a rhetoric‐communication context.