Small Steps, Giant Leaps - Engineering Lessons from Apollo

Explore the engineering marvels and project management innovations behind the Apollo moon landing program in this captivating conference talk. Delve into the revolutionary approaches to quality control, testing strategies, and communications that made the historic achievement possible. Learn about 'all-up testing' and its relevance to modern software development, the role of CAPCOM in product ownership, and techniques for managing a distributed team of nearly half a million people. Discover how the Apollo program handled scope creep under intense global scrutiny and tight deadlines. Gain insights into flying to the moon with less computing power than an Apple II, and uncover valuable lessons in standardization, dealing with unexpected challenges, and designing user journeys. Draw parallels between the groundbreaking methods used in the Apollo program and contemporary engineering practices, offering inspiration for tackling complex projects in today's technological landscape.

Introduction
Small Steps Giant Leaps
Strategy Vision Roadmap
The People
The Programs
Naming
Margaret Hamilton
Apollo 13 Ron Howard
Carbon Dioxide
Standardization
Lunar Gravity
Testing Requires Creativity
The 1202 Error
Lightning Strike
Dealing with the Unexpected
Caps Your Communicator
The User Journey