Technical failures are often in the spotlight when critical missions fail, but insiders like NASA’s Nobel Laureate John Mather and Director Stephen Johnson maintain that up to 95% of project failures can be attributed to human factors, such as miscommunication, leadership and team dynamics.

In high-pressure, high-stakes environments, traditional teamwork models can fail to operate or fall apart fast. Which is why NASA’s Director of Astrophysics, Charlie Pellerin, formulated the 4-D System used by 1,500+ NASA teams and over 100,000 professionals globally.

What makes it different?

1. It rewrites the unwritten rules, not leaving team trust and cohesion to chance.

2. It builds human dynamics at four levels: People, Team, Systems, and Mission.

3. It uses simulations and neuroscience from the current space program to make learning immersive.

Whether you’re launching rockets or rolling out critical infrastructure, this program creates the foundations for high-performance under pressure.

🧠 Backed by neuroscience
📊 Proven across every industry and sector imaginable
🏆 Recognised globally, including as Workforce Initiative of the Year in Australia (2025)

👉 Read the full article to learn how your team can survive and thrive when the pressure’s on.

Face to Face Over 2 Full Days (AUD$3,000 per participant)

Tuesday, 18 November and Wednesday, 19 November in Sydney CBD. Register here.

This is a risk-free opportunity to transform your team with a money-back guarantee for teams that implement the program with no improvement in performance within two months.

Register by 30 September 2025 and get a 10% discount using the discount code EARLY10 

Virtual NASA 4D – Eight online sessions over 8 weeks (AUD$1,999 per participant)

1. Starts on 30 October 2025 and runs through to 18 December 2025, from 12:00pm to 2:00pm AEST (on consecutive Thursdays).  Register here.

2. Starts on 3 November 2025 and runs through to 22 December 2025 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm AEST (on consecutive Mondays) Register here.

Prefer to Run the 4-D Program In-House?

The NASA 4-D Program can be run in-house in face-to-face, virtual or hybrid formats to suit your geographical footprint and operating cadence. This option enables you to benchmark your team against the 1,500 NASA teams that have voluntarily completed the program and use the NASA Playbook to improve team performance exponentially. The ‘team’ can be a leadership group, or leaders working with their own direct reports. Contact us about internalising a program here: info@crazymightwork.com.

Adam Thorn interviews award-winner Paul Hawkins on the Secret Sauce of High Performance, according to NASA

This conversation between Adam and Paul explores why the 4-D program is so effective at creating high-performing teams. There is also a juicy serving of neuroscience and how leaders can optimise human and artificial intelligence in creative problem-solving at a strategic or organisational level. Paul discusses the skills required by leaders in 2030 and how these are sequenced in Crazy Might Work’s Leading4Breakthrough® program. Leaders combine critical thinking and creative problem-solving with artificial intelligence to achieve extraordinary outcomes, like the one described in the Merger case study below. Listen on your preferred podcast platform below:

When Silverchain acquired KinCare, it saw more than just the opportunity to expand services; it saw a chance to build something greater by bringing two cultures together. Rather than imposing one identity over another, the organisation embarked on a journey of strategic i.ntegration, rooted in mutual respect, co-design, and inclusive leadership. In the words of integration leader, Carolyn Bell, “We recognised that the best way to preserve value across both organisations was to listen to learn and then design the integration collaboratively. It would be an exchange of values and best practices to create a third combined culture in a ‘Best of Both’ approach.”…Read case study.