At the end of fall semester, one of the last assignments I gave my students at California State University, Fullerton, was an analysis of Boeing's 787 product launch. Together, we had watched videos about the 737's just-in-time initiative and the implementation of a moving production line for the 777. Everyone, myself included, has been impressed with these successes. They took incredible amounts of planning, coordination, and cooperation among Boeing's various departments. So why did such a competent organization encounter years of delays as a result of electrical and software issues, engine failures, fuel leaks, windshield and wing cracks, employee strikes, and a string of other problems with its 787?
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