The "Teapot" Committee is a good example of the sorts of high-impact Research Projects which can be so impactful. They concluded in 7 months that they could and must develop an ICBM program, they knew how far along Russia was, and they determined that the only way to win would be to form a new type of agency without Red Tape.
Systems engineering + systems management seem like crucial techniques to understand if you want to predictably harness Scenius in an organizational, instead of emergent way
In Systems Engineering, you build deeply interconnected networks. Many-to-many communication channels, almost like you're building a little community, a "small-world network". This reduces roadblocks, you don't need to wait on a 3-step approval process.
Configuration management: "you clearly define at each stage what you think the design is going to be within your present ability. Then, let everybody know about changes!"
Normal chain of command (top), Apollo chain of command (bottom)
Researchers were split between 'Operational Research', working on the organizational issues, & 'Developmental Research', working directly on improvements to the tech
The Scenius Research Project itself could be though of as Operational Research for society, ha! How do we get the most fruitful parts of this research into the hands of those who need it?
Ivan Getting defined the system as a single entity ****comprising signals, dynamics, time, and feedback that needed to be defined together in advance
More on systems engineering, about the crucial role of systems design