Are there particular aspects of NASA that might make cultural change particularly challenging? Are bureaucracies particularly susceptible to these difficulties of cultural change? Do organizations involved in high-risk tasks face special challenges?

MINI CASE

The first space shuttle flight occurred on February 18, 1977, with the launch of Enterprise. It was a proud day for NASA, and the beginning of a new age in space exploration. Less than 9 years later, on January 28, 1986, the nation was stunned when the space shuttle Challenger disintegrated 73 seconds after launch. All seven crew members perished. The technical explanation for this disaster was the O-ring problem-a crucial shuttle component was compromised by the cold weather on that launch day.