Back before I co-founded NC3T with Hans, I had my own small consulting company called
DeHavilland Associates. Why DeHavilland? Aside from the fact that it sounded a LOT better
than Pawlowski Associates, it was inspired by a story that education futurist Lewis Perelman
used to tell:

After World War II, the US government decided that this country needed to have the
best, biggest, and fastest transatlantic steamship. The government learned that the British
liners Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth had proven to be invaluable strategic assets as
troop carriers during WWII. So the government had Newport News, VA shipyards build
and launch the SS United States.

On its maiden voyage in 1952, the SS United States set the all-time maritime speed
record for crossing the Atlantic: a little less than 84 hours, nearly a third faster than the
record set by the Queen Mary. But in that same year, a British airline introduced the first
jet passenger plane which, within a couple of years, was carrying people across the
Atlantic in under six hours. The SS United States lost money every time it sailed; and the
ship, designed for 30 to 40 years of service, was bankrupt in 12 years and spent the next
quarter-century rusting away at a pier in Turkey.

The SS United States fully achieved the government’s national goal of building the best
transport ship of its kind in the history of the world. But it was the wrong “best”. There is no
way you can say the Newport News shipbuilders failed. They were the best in the world,
and they built the best ship in the world. They didn’t need to be reorganized or retrained
or any of the usual nostrums of reform. They increased the top speed of a transport ship
from around 30 knots to over 40 knots – a huge improvement. But there was no way then
or now to get a ship to go 500 knots.

DeHavilland Associates was named in honor of that first jet passenger airplane – the
DeHavilland Comet – which represented a quantum leap forward in transportation and served as
an example of the importance of setting the right goals. And hopefully, it serves as an example
for all of us as we think about what it is that we’re really trying to accomplish. Are we trying to
build the fastest ship? Or are we trying to get across the ocean?

Note: No source is provided because the book this was shared in, Future Courses, is out of print.

Brett Pawlowski is Executive Vice President of the National Center for College and Career Transitions (NC3T). NC3T provides planning, coaching, technical assistance, and tools. These strategies help community-based leadership teams plan and implement their college-career pathway systems and strengthen employer connections with education. Discover more at www.nc3t.com.