| (1) Program Manager
Rules! -- The Skunk Works program manager must be delegated
practically complete control of his program in all aspects.
He should have the authority to make quick decisions regarding
technical, financial, or operational matters.
(2) Minimize Management -- Strong
but small project offices must be provided both by the military
and the industry.
(3) Exclude Almost Everyone --
The number of people having any connection with the project
must be restricted in an almost vicious manner. Use a small
number of good people.
(4) Use Drawings Practically --
Very simple drawing and drawing release system with great
flexibility for making changes must be provided in order to
make schedule recovery in the face of failures.
(5) Streamline Reporting -- There
must be a minimum number of reports required, but important
work must be recorded thoroughly.
(6) No Surprises -- There must
be a monthly cost review covering not only what has been spent
and committed but also projected costs to the conclusion of
the program. Don't have the books ninety days late and don't
surprise the customer with sudden overruns.
(7) Competitive Bid Everything
-- The contractor must be delegated and must assume more than
normal responsibility to get good vendor bids for subcontract
on the project. Commercial bid procedures are often better
than military ones.
(8) Inspect at Source -- The inspection
system as currently used by the Skunk Works, which has been
approved by both the Air Force and the Navy, meets the intent
of existing military requirements and should be used on new
projects. Push basic inspection responsibility back to the
subcontractors and vendors. Don't duplicate so much inspection.
(9) Builder Flight-Tests -- The
contractor must be delegated the authority to test his final
product in flight. He can and must test it in the initial
stages.
(10) No Fuzzy Specs -- The specifications
applying to the hardware must be agreed to in advance of contracting.
(11) No Slow Pays -- Funding
a program must be timely so that the contractor doesn't have
to keep running to the bank to support government projects.
(12) No Gameplaying -- There
must be absolute trust between the military project organization
and the contractor with very close cooperation and liaison
on a day-to-day basis. This cuts down misunderstanding and
correspondence to an absolute minimum.
(13) No Outsiders -- Access by
outsiders to the project and its personnel must be strictly
controlled.
(14) Pay for Results -- Because
only a few people will be used in engineering and most other
areas, ways must be provided to reward good performance by
pay not based on the number of personnel supervised.
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