I remember my first major matrix management project. In 1993, still a Lieutenant in the US Navy, I found myself leading a volunteer effort to design and build a catapult to launch a 450 lb pumpkin. Sponsored by a local radio station in Los Angeles, it really started out as a joke. Listening to the morning show (Kevin & Bean), Scott Wilson & I heard a caller suggest that he could build a catapult to replace the crane that they had used at the annual Oingo Boingo Halloween Concert pumpkin drop. This launched a slew of rebuttals from so-called experts claiming that a pumpkin of that size could not handle the forces required to launch it. Naturally, Scott and I had to perform a couple of quick calculations on our own and decided that it could be done. Not expecting to get through, I picked up the phone to call the radio station - when an intern actually answered the phone, I was shocked..and felt somewhat obligated to go through with it...
The video above includes dubs of some of the radio conversations over the one month period before the event. The video below is a highlight reel just showing the three launches of the catapult:
About Me
- Tom Dendy
- Passion, Innovation and Creativity best describe my approach to life. Over twenty years of rich experiences have given me quite a broad perspective of the world. I have led engineering teams on Nuclear Submarines as well as creative teams in small start-up companies. One constant throughout my professional life has been the study of individuals and the complexities of human motivation and relationships. Individual excellence is easy - Team excellence is an accomplishment.
1 comment:
Lol! You've put Letterman to shame.
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