Lessons from Los Alamos
It is not often that an organization of any kind has such a clear mission as the Los Alamos site of the Manhattan Project at Parajito Plateau in northern New Mexico did in the 1940s. The goal of designing and testing the world’s first nuclear bomb was single-focused, and Julius Robert Oppenheimer was hired, against the advice of many, to lead this effort, in 1942 at the age of 38.
Why was Opie, as he was known, placed in this position? What were his strengths; where did he fall short? And what are the perennial lessons of leadership that his story teaches us?
It is by no accident that Christopher Nolan chose to make his latest film, Oppenheimer, about the 1940s and early 1950s, the building and use of the atomic bomb and the life and times of J. Robert Oppenheimer. The book on which Nolan based the movie, American Prometheus by Bird and Sherwin, tells the story not just of the brilliant young scientist, but also of the times in which he lived, the background of the second Red Scare, the undercurrent of anti-Semitism and the way in which one brilliant man was ultimately brought down by the establishment. The parallels for our times are clear. We may not be living with those exact issues, but we are living with the fear of global conflicts, the potential effects of climate change and the fear of failing economies and increased poverty. Watching the movie, and reading the book, inspired me to consider the possibility of lessons for our times, and more specifically, to ponder the perennial and necessary leadership traits illustrated firmly in black-and-white and glorious technicolor.
As I watched the film (comfortable in my recliner seat, thank goodness, for it is a long one), I saw a relatively young, impressively brilliant man tried and tested. I was pulled in to the ideas that related to what it means to be a pure scientist and how science is harnessed and used in our daily lives. And in Oppenheimer I saw a young, charismatic intellectual who lived for the theories of physics; a man in his late 30s who had spent his life up until that time in labs and classrooms, who was propelled into the world of Los Alamos.
While the Manhattan project was essentially about building the world’s first nuclear bomb, it was also about creating a place of work for a group of highly skilled personnel. This was Oppenheimer’s work too—part of his leadership role as a general manager. Oppenheimer was not just responsible for assembling a team to build and test this bomb, however; he was also, in effect, the town manager or mayor of a small town in a somewhat isolated area of New Mexico. He ensured that people had decent homes, recreational activities and a welcoming community that they could raise their children in. (The baby boom at Los Alamos from 1943-49 was impressive: 1000 newborns!) What began as a town of 1,500 in 1943, boomed into a place with 8,200 residents.
Oppenheimer also found a way to cope with his own boss; a man representing the US government—it does not get much tougher than that! He needed to partner with General Leslie Groves, United States Army Corps of Engineers, in creating, sustaining and leveraging the success of the work at Los Alamos. Groves was able to procure people and supplies for Opie that he could not have done without, and yet he brought with that a need for Oppenheimer to manage a cordial working relationship with him. An early scene in Nolan’s movie shows Oppenheimer wearing a military uniform; one of the ways he tried to show his partnership with the US government—his friends and colleagues told him it looked silly and Oppenheimer soon reverted to his signature tailored clothing and the porkpie hat. Oppenheimer’s ability to work with Groves, see him as a colleague and a confidant, while respecting his military role, worked in both of their favors. Managing someone who in many ways was a board member with direct connection to the funders, was one of the ways in which Oppenheimer showed skills that he would have learned working in labs since an early age. Oppenheimer never challenged Groves inappropriately; as the pure scientist he knew where his experience was best used. His negotiation skills became highly developed.
Oppenheimer also seemed aware of what he could not do, an excellent trait for any leader. He was a theoretical physicist not an applied one. His coordination and use of his hands often made it literally hard for him to move things around and create experiments. For this he brought in his brother Frank. Fortunately, because of Opie’s relationship with Groves, Frank Oppenheimer who was thought to have distinct communist leanings, was allowed to join the project. Oppenheimer knew how to leverage people with the skills he did not have.
Interestingly, in the early days of creating the world’s first nuclear weapons laboratory, Oppenheimer was not known for his patience, or even his meticulousness. His supervision experience was in graduate seminars. In American Prometheus, the authors describe Oppenheimer’s short temper, apparent unwillingness to change and the chaos evident in the early stages of the construction of the project site. It became obvious though, that during those first months Opie “demonstrated his capacity for change.” (A.P., page 209.) He showed that he was a responsive leader—"he could correct any deficiencies and seemed to know a lot more about administrative procedures than anyone knew.” (Robert Wilson quoted in American Prometheus.) A leader who shows his or her own growth to their colleagues is deeply regarded, and Oppenheimer was such a person.
Oppenheimer’s use of language was inspirational, in spite of his quiet tones, frequently inaudible; but he pulled people in. Surprising many, for example, when he spoke in Dutch, having learned the language apparently in 6 weeks in order to speak to his colleagues in Leiden in The Netherlands. Adapting his language, drawing on his knowledge of poetry and philosophy, Oppenheimer was able to pull in many people whom he needed to aid the success of his project.
At the core of Oppenheimer’s leadership, especially towards the end of his time at Los Alamos, was his humanity. His understanding that he could no longer hold on to being that pure scientist and realizing that in his efforts to ensure that the United States built the first bomb, his work and how it was then treated by the politicians in power, would affect the future of the world. Eventually, he knew in his head and his heart that building and using the bomb might be the beginning of a chain reaction that could ultimately destroy the world. Oppenheimer continually showed us his own self-questioning and his devotion to understanding his purpose and the purpose of the work.
A deeply moral man, Oppenheimer became an extremely successful and inspirational leader. His ability to learn on the job, hire effectively, support his team members and their families all made him distinctly effective at what he did. His story is the story of an intellectual who transferred his theoretical skills to achieve at the highest possible level. The clarity and scope of his mission helped him drive forward. His role in ending The Second World War was instrumental in creating the world we know today. The lessons from Los Alamos are many; the lessons for steering an organization are distinct. Oppenheimer’s approach to problem-solving arguably paved the way for us to understand the interplay between theoretical science and real-world leadership, and perhaps, above all lets us see the role of a charismatic leader with an enormous range of skills during an important part of the world’s history.