Crew Commander: From Appointment to Recognition

I was made commander by order; the crew’s trust I had to earn. During an exam in Houston an argument with the flight engineer reached a dead end, time was running out, and I made the call myself. It was the right one, and the flight engineer clapped me on the back: “It’s great that we have a commander like you.” As long as everything goes to plan, a manager is enough. In a hard moment a team will follow only a leader, and you have to become one in advance. This lecture is about how an appointed commander becomes a recognized leader—for managers, future managers, and anyone who works in a team and wants to understand their own.

Drawing from space history and personal experience, we examine the qualities and actions that transform a formal appointment into real authority. The lecture includes a PowerPoint presentation with integrated photos and videos, along with audience dialogue.

The lecture “Leader – Team. Establishment of a Space Crew” is of interest to:

1. managers who create and develop teams;
2. top managers responsible for the formation of corporate culture;
3. HR directors and heads of training centers;
4. entrepreneurs organizing teamwork;
5. project team leaders.

1. A team begins with the common meaning of activity.
2. Leadership is non-violent influence and responsibility. Its essence lays in creating meanings and values not for oneself, but for other people.
3. Trust is the foundation of effective teamwork.
4. Trust is the basis of effectiveness in complex projects.

INTRODUCTION (offline presentation): a nine-minute video about Alexander’s space flights, with his voice comments, to recreate the image of a manned space flight.

THE LEADER’S ROLE IN TEAM BUILDING:

formation, communication of meaning and values throughout the team structure;

transformation of basic idea into specific goals and solutions. Case study: experience of the chief designer, academician Vladimir Barmin, and Twice Hero of the USSR, pilot-cosmonaut Vladimir Dzhanibekov;

building team spirit and comfortable emotional environment. Case study: analysis of a conflict situation in the Apollo 13 crew.

KEY REQUIREMENTS FOR A LEADER AND HIS MOST IMPORTANT QUALITIES:

readiness to accept risk and responsibility. Case studies: stories of Sergey Korolev and Vladimir Popovkin, head of Roscosmos in 2013;

professional superiority — the leader must be a little better. Case study: spacewalk with Feodor Yurchikhin;

readiness to help. Case study: the crew commander of Alexander’s first flight, Pavel Vinogradov;

readiness to learn and develop the team. Case study: training in caves;

proactive position. Case study: preparation and execution of the first Soyuz flight to the ISS with two space tourists.

TEAM BUILDING PRINCIPLE:

the factor of uniting people into a team is the Idea/Meaning of the activity, important for each of them. Case study: custodian at the Korolev Design Bureau;

besides the involvement in unifying idea, a force must arise that attracts people to each other, and the atmosphere of trust must be formed. The role of trust in teamwork is demonstrated within the analysis of in-flight emergency situation;

fundamental components that influence the formation of an environment of trust are identified: respect, professionalism, honesty, mutual assistance, openness.

ROLE OF TRUST IN COMPLEX PROJECTS (case studies: Alexander’s professional experience and plots of famous space movies):

1. trust determines the quality of communication in the system;
2. trust in the system reduces anxiety and increases the effectiveness of everyone;
3. trust in the system increases motivation;
4. trust helps prevent professional burnout.

1. learn the principles of forming space crews;
2. understand the role of trust in teamwork via analyzing space cases;
3. get a new perspective on leadership through the prism of space experience;
4. hear real stories about team building in extreme conditions.

60–90 minutes