WASHINGTON, DC –
Communicating well, connecting with mentors, and saying yes to new challenges are some of the keys to unlocking success in leadership, NRO Director Dr. Chris Scolese told an audience of aspiring managers gathered at NASA headquarters.
“I think it's really valuable to share,” Scolese said. “I had many people that helped me out.”
Scolese shared his experiences at NASA’s Project Management Success Lab, a workshop for two dozen mid-career NASA employees seeking to build their skills in project and program management. Before his role leading the NRO, Scolese spent more than three decades at NASA, serving a variety of roles including chief engineer, acting administrator, and director of the Goddard Space Flight Center. He said that one of the hardest things for him to do as he advanced in his career was learning how to communicate effectively – with staff, with peers, and with superiors.
“You have to learn how to listen and understand what your team is telling you. You have to be able to communicate to your team and be able to motivate them, particularly when things get difficult,” he said. “Our job is to keep people focused on the mission.”
Scolese said when communicating “up,” as with one’s boss or with members of Congress during budget hearings, it’s critical to be concise, even with topics that are extremely complicated.
“When I was defending the NASA budget, and when I'm defending the NRO budget, you know how much time I have to defend it? Five minutes,” he said. “They get two hours to ask you questions after that, but you have five minutes to motivate them.”
During the hourlong conversation, Scolese reflected on his experiences making tough decisions, balancing risks, and learning from experiences that didn’t go as planned. He also spoke about mentors who changed the course of his life, including his 6th grade teacher, a superior from his early days in the Navy, and a leader at Goddard.
“They spent the time to help mentor others and to share their experiences and to help other people move up. And I think that's a responsibility that we all have, particularly as we move up, to help others and to impart knowledge.”
One of those mentors instilled in him the importance of being open to new opportunities – a skill he advised the audience of aspiring leaders to develop on their own paths to success.
“When someone asks you to do something, to take on a challenge, be very cautious about saying no,” Scolese said. “The reason they’re asking you is because they believe you have the capability to do it. You may not have all the skills yet, but they see the capability there. And they're also saying, in a way, we'll help you to be successful.”
Scolese noted that when he was tapped to be NASA’s deputy associate administrator for space science, he initially hesitated because he already had a job he enjoyed with colleagues he respected. He wasn’t sure he wanted to leave his engineering work to do something so different, but eventually decided to accept the new role.
“And who knows, if I wouldn't have taken it, I might not be here.”