Teamistry

Latest Episodes:

Teamistry Season 2: The Team of Teams Sep 07, 2020

Show notes

In season one of Teamistry, we put the spotlight on teams behind the scenes, the people responsible for some of the greatest achievements of our times. Like the team of astronomers who gave us the first-ever photograph of a black hole, and the team that averted a nuclear meltdown at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. In season two, host Gabriela Cowperthwaite takes us beyond the heroics of a single team and expands the focus to the power of multiple teams working together. How groups of teams – with different sets of skills, experiences, and even personalities – can embrace uncertainty, innovate, and tackle massive challenges. In this new season, we examine the story of Japanese watchmaker Seiko and how the company used internal competition to ultimately leapfrog the mighty Swiss. We follow the frantic moments where teams of teams, including international cave divers, doctors, engineers, government officials, and more, used communication to save a teenage soccer team from deep within a cave in Thailand. And you'll hear directly from the "Trinity" – Iceland’s chief epidemiologist, the Director of Health, and the superintendent of police – who worked in harmony to contain the spread of COVID-19 when it threatened to become an outbreak.

Episode one of season two launches on September 21st. Teamistry is an original podcast from Atlassian. To listen to stories from Season 1 and for bonus material, visit www.atlassian.com/podcast.

The Team that Fashioned Apollo 11 Jun 22, 2020

Show notes

When Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon for the first time, we don't actually see his face. We see his moonsuit. That moonsuit — in effect — is Neil Armstrong; an inseparable part of this historic moment. While the spacesuit kept him alive to tell that story in his own words, what went unnoticed is the extraordinary team that stitched it together. In the final episode of Season 1 of Teamistry, host Gabriela Cowperthwaite shines a light on the team of seamstresses and engineers whose meticulous craftwork, creativity, and dedication helped us realize the dream of putting a man on the moon. In this episode, Joanne Thompson and Jean Wilson — two of last surviving seamstresses who worked on the Apollo 11 moonsuits — talk about the intricate seams, needlework, and personal sacrifices that went into outfitting Neil Armstrong. We hear from Homer Reihm, one of the engineers who worked with the seamstresses, and Bill Ayrey, former historian at ILC Dover and Nicholas de Monchaux, author of 'Spacesuit: Fashioning Apollo', who take us through the pivotal moments of this monumental task. Also, Janet Ferl, the current design engineering manager at ILC Dover, tells us how the legacy of dedication and teamwork on the Apollo 11 moonsuit continues to inspire the company today.
Teamistry is an original podcast from Atlassian. For more on the series, go to www.atlassian.com/podcast.

The United States of Compromise Jun 08, 2020

Show notes

The great American experiment was about to fail. On the eve of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 – where the U.S. Constitution began – the French minister to America wrote home to his superiors in Paris, "What part of the United States would you like to take when it falls apart?" Disunity between states, a faltering economy, active rebellions, the threat of European interference – all were contributing factors. The Articles of Confederation — the original post-independence document – weren't working. The fledgling country needed an overhaul of its core principles. In this episode of Teamistry, host Gabriela Cowperthwaite revisits that summer of 1787 when a monumental collaboration ultimately delivered the U.S. Constitution. Within the muggy chambers of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, some of the country's brightest lawmakers and thought-leading eccentrics came together to hash out a new government system unlike any other in the world. Carol Berkin, presidential professor of American history at The City University of New York and Constitutional author Jeff Broadwater describe the action: state delegates debating and bickering about topics that would chart the course of the country's future. Learn the real story of an unlikely team of delegates forced to give up their personal egos and the interests of their individual states to build a collective – The United States of America – through compromise.

Teamistry is an original podcast from Atlassian. For more on the series, go to www.atlassian.com/podcast.

Finding the Way to Google Maps May 25, 2020

Show notes

It's hard to remember what it took to get around before the invention of Google Maps. But the technology has changed everything from daily routes to road trips to navigating unknown territory. Because of Google Maps, the entire globe seems reachable. But the road to inventing Google Maps? That's another story. In this episode of Teamistry, host Gabriela Cowperthwaite uncovers the tale of this indispensable technology and the team that built it. In 2001, Lars Rasmussen, Jens Rasmussen, Noel Gordon, and Stephen Ma are developing a product they believe will change the mapping landscape. But like so many great inventions before it, "Where 2 Technologies" – not yet Google Maps – is just a fledgling startup run from a small room in Sydney, and constantly one wrong turn away from a dead end. Rent checks bounce, savings accounts evaporate. The dream could be only a mirage on the distant horizon. But the team discovers a way to keep going, to find new pathways, until they reach their final destination. Hear from Google Maps co-inventors Lars Rasmussen and Noel Gordon as they take us back through the detours and U-turns of the journey, including working alongside competitors, that eventually leads to a creation that changed the world as we know it.

Teamistry is an original podcast from Atlassian. For more on the series, go to www.atlassian.com/podcast.

The Brilliant Success of Shackleton’s Failure May 11, 2020

Show notes

Sir Ernest Shackleton wanted to be the first man to walk across the Antarctic continent. In 1914, with a crew of 28 men, he set sail on the Endurance to complete the first “Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition." But harsh winds and frigid temperatures threatened the voyage from the start, and in short order the ship was marooned thousands of miles away from civilization. Shackleton suddenly realized a different task was at hand – keeping his crew alive. A team of restless seamen who quickly run out of food, patience, and hope. In this episode of Teamistry, host Gabriela Cowperthwaite travels back in time to discover the surprisingly modern leadership skills of Shackleton, like emotional intelligence and empathy. Hear from the diary of one of the crew to get a sense of the uncertainty and fear the seamen grappled with, and listen as Nancy Koehn, a historian and professor at the Harvard Business School, walks you through the pivotal moments when Shackleton's superior decision-making helped him salvage the expedition and hold the hearts of his men. Also, Tim Jarvis, an explorer who recreated some of Shackleton's journey, discusses how Shackleton's strategies can help us face climate change, and Thomas H. Zurbuchen talks about how he applies Shackleton's leadership lessons at NASA's Science Mission Directorate.

Teamistry is an original podcast from Atlassian. For more on the series, go to www.atlassian.com/podcast.

Saving Fukushima Apr 27, 2020

Show notes

On March 11, 2011 Japan was struck by a 9.1-magnitude earthquake, the most powerful in the country's recorded history. But the real horror had only just begun. A 14-meter-high tsunami created by the seismic event followed, sending giant waves of seawater crashing into the the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, triggering a nuclear disaster. While the world watched in horror, the responsibility of containing the disaster fell on workers who had to risk their lives to salvage the plant -- and protect the planet. In this episode of Teamistry, host Gabriela Cowperthwaite takes us through the harrowing experience that no amount of training could've prepared the team for. Former plant superintendent Atsufumi Yoshizawa describes the scenes from the frontlines and how a method called "Resilience Engineering" helped his team prevent total meltdown. You'll also hear from operations manager Akira Hogyuko as he talks about how trust between team members and seniors helped them navigate the disaster. Plus Lake Barrett, a retired nuclear engineer and consultant on the clean-up effort, helps explain the major events that unfolded in those frightful moments.

Teamistry is an original podcast from Atlassian. For more on the series, go to www.atlassian.com/podcast.

The Car that Saved Ford Apr 13, 2020

Show notes

In 1985, the automobile giant Ford was teetering on the edge of financial collapse. Faced with internal chaos, an uninspiring product line, and fierce competition from Japanese cars – they needed a sensation. Enter: The Ford Taurus. This breakthrough model didn't just rescue the company, it sparked new life in an industry that represented 3% of the United State's GDP. But how Ford did it is even more surprising. For the first time ever, the venerable carmaker changed how it made cars. It introduced a brand new cross-functional team approach, putting engineering and design together in the same room, and welcoming the contributions of employees across the organization. The Taurus was not just a revolutionary product, it represented a revolution in how to do business. In this episode, host Gabriela Cowperthwaite takes us to the design floor where together creative geniuses from different departments hash out the details of an entirely new American automobile. We hear from John Risk, the Program Director of the Ford Taurus project, and Jack Telnack, then the head of North America design. We also get the insights of Eric Taub, author of "Taurus: The Making of the Car That Saved Ford," and David Cole, former director of the Center For Automotive Research.

Teamistry is an original podcast from Atlassian. For more on the series, go to www.atlassian.com/podcast.

Photographing a Black Hole Mar 30, 2020

Show notes

On April 10, 2019, the world saw what many thought was unseeable. An international group of astronomers and scientists — called The Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration — photographed a Black Hole. But while this first-ever image of a glowing orange ring was splashed across the front pages, buried in the back was the amazing story of how the team actually did it. A story of the herculean scientific work and dicey political maneuvering required from the researchers and scientists that spanned countries, continents, and institutions. In the second episode of Teamistry, host Gabriela Cowperthwaite uncovers the story of a team separated by time zones but united by the collective quest for the greatest cosmic discovery of our times. Shep Doeleman, co-founder of the Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration, tells the tale along with insights from team member and professor of theoretical astrophysics at the University of Amsterdam Sera Markoff. We also hear from Avery Broderick, a black hole astrophysicist at the University of Waterloo, Paul Ho, Director of the East Asia Observatory in Taiwan, and Emily Conover, Physics Writer with Science News.

Teamistry is an original podcast from Atlassian. For more on the series, go to www.atlassian.com/podcast.

The Wizards of Menlo Park Mar 16, 2020

Show notes

It's time to set the record straight: Thomas Edison's greatest achievement was not the lightbulb. In fact, he wasn't even the first to invent it. The unrecognized master stroke of Edison was he brought together some of the brightest minds to collaborate, exchange ideas, and work in creative ways to change the world as we knew it. In the first episode of Teamistry, host Gabriela Cowperthwaite journeys to late-19th century Menlo Park, where a team of unsung heroes is hard at work setting up an electricity grid that could light up a New York city block. There's a lot at stake: financial ruin, countless hours of labor, and Edison's very reputation. We hear from David Burkus, author of The Myths of Creativity and Jill Jonnes, author of Empires of Light. We also get the insights of Robert Friedel, University of Maryland history professor and coauthor of Edison's Electric Light, Kathleen Carlucci, Director of the Thomas Edison Center, and Paul Israel, Director of the Thomas Edison Papers at Rutgers University.

Teamistry is an original podcast from Atlassian. For more on the series, go to www.atlassian.com/podcast.

This is Teamistry Mar 02, 2020

Show notes

Think about the stories that captivate you. Survival in the harshest places on earth. Courage in the face of death. Invention that changed the world. What do these stories have in common? The work of teams. Teamistry is a podcast that examines the chemistry that exists between people who team up to pull off what no one could ever do alone. It launches March 16.

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