PROJECT MANAGEMENT | LARGE PROJECTS | LESSONS LEARNED | MOON

Lunar Chronicles

Project Management Insights from Celestial Endeavors

Huge projects are always a fascinating subject, and the past week brought contrasting news about two monumental projects that shared the same goal: getting a rover to the Moon’s south pole.

Still image from the movie “Le Voyage dans la Lune” by Georges Méliès, 1902 — public domain

Still image from the movie “Le Voyage dans la Lune” by Georges Méliès, 1902 — public domain

What do the outcomes of these projects teach us about project management?

1️⃣ Russia’s lunar mission: Lessons from Failure

An ambitious but failed attempt by Russia to return to the moon after nearly half a century gives us some important insights.

Lost in Time: Knowledge Management and the Half-Century Gap

The extensive gap in lunar research and the loss of experience since the last mission in 1976 were key reasons for the failure. This underscores the value of retaining knowledgeable staff and applying lessons learned from previous projects.

“The valuable experience gained by our predecessors in the 1960s and 70s was essentially lost.”