December 7, 1941, is, in President F.D. Roosevelt’s words, “a date which will live in infamy.” Could the Japanese surprise attack have been avoided? If defending the Hawaiian island of Oahu against internal and external threats was the primary objective of the military authorities, could the U.S. forces have been better prepared? Just how good was Japan’s plan for “Operation Hawaii”? This presentation will address how project management could have helped mitigate or outright avoid one of the darkest days in the history of the United States. The first hour of the presentation covers the events leading up to the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, while the second hour of the presentation examines the Japanese project of attacking Pearl Harbor and the U.S. project of defending Hawaii from a project management perspective, using the PMBOK Guide Knowledge Areas. Also discussed are the assumptions made by the military leaders of both countries, what happened to the main protagonists involved directly or indirectly in the attack on Pearl Harbor, and valuable lessons learned for today’s project managers.
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