Module 1: The Field Of Engineering Management PDF

THE FIELD OF ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT ENGR. FHER NOAH N. LEONGSON | EM 101 | UNIVERSITY OF SAN AGUSTIN - ILOILO  C O N T E N TS 01 The Functions of the Engineer 05 The Process of Management 02 The Engineer in Various Types of Organi...

THE FIELD OF ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT ENGR. FHER NOAH N. LEONGSON | EM 101 | UNIVERSITY OF SAN AGUSTIN - ILOILO  C O N T E N TS 01 The Functions of the Engineer 05 The Process of Management 02 The Engineer in Various Types of Organization | Management Skills Required at Various Levels 06 Requirement for the Engineer’s Management Job 03 What is Engineering Management 07 How One My Become a Successful Engineer Manager 04 Management De ned THE FIELD OF ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT Engineers are expected to perform a variety of tasks depending on their specialization and job level. It is important to the engineer that he knows what he is expected of him so that he may be able to perform his job e ectively and e ciently. His next concern will be to identify the skills required but which he does not have. As engineers are not trained directly to deal with people, it is expected that their weakness will most apparent once they are assigned to occupy management positions. It follows that if the engineer manager would want to do his job well, some exposure to engineering management activities becomes necessary. THE FUNCTIONS OF THE ENGINEER Since prehistoric times, mankind has bene ted from the various tools, equipment, and projects developed by engineers. THE FUNCTIONS OF THE ENGINEER Among these are the following: 1. The stone bladed axe which was a very useful tool; and the irrigation system used to promote crop - 6000 to 3000 B.C.; 2. The pyramids of Egypt - 3000 to 600 B.C.; 3. Roadbuilding by the Romans - 600 B.C. to 400 A.D.; 4. The production of paper and gunpowder by the Chinese - 100 to 1600 A.D.; 5. The production of steam engine and the spinning and weaving machinery - 1601 to 1799 A.D.; and 6. The manufacture of cars and household appliances - modern times. THE FUNCTIONS OF THE ENGINEER Even as engineers are currently producing solutions to many of the di culties faced by mankind, much is still expected to them. THE FUNCTIONS OF THE ENGINEER Their outputs, new or improvements of old ones, are very much needed in the following speci c problem concerns: 1. The production of more food for a fast-growing world population; 2. The elimination of air and water pollution; 3. Solid waste disposal and materials recycling; 4. The reduction of noise in various forms; 5. Supplying the increasing demand for energy; 6. Supplying the increasing demand for mobility; 7. Preventing and solving crimes; and 8. Meeting the increasing demand for communication facilities. THE FUNCTIONS OF THE ENGINEER Speci cally, the functions of engineering encompasses the following areas: 1. Research - where the engineer is engaged in the process of learning about nature and codifying this knowledge into usable theories. 2. Design and Development - where the engineer undertakes the activity of turning a product concept to a nish physical item. 3. Testing - where the engineer works in a unit where the new products or parts are tested for workability. 4. Manufacturing - where the engineer is directly in charge of production personnel or assumes responsibility for the product. THE FUNCTIONS OF THE ENGINEER Speci cally, the functions of engineering encompasses the following areas: 5. Construction - this is where the construction (a civil engineer) is either directly in charge of the construction personnel or may have responsibility for the quality of the construction process. 6. Sales - where the engineer assists the company’s customers to meet their needs, especially those that require technical expertise. 7. Consulting - where the engineer works as consultant of any individual or organization requiring his services. THE FUNCTIONS OF THE ENGINEER Speci cally, the functions of engineering encompasses the following areas: 7. Government - where the engineer may nd employment in the government performing any of the various tasks in regulating, monitoring, and controlling the activities of various institutions, public or private. 8. Teaching - where the engineer gets employment in a school and is assigned as a teacher of engineering course. Some of them later become deans, vice presidents, and presidents. 9. Management - where the engineer is assigned to manage groups of people performing speci c tasks. THE ENGINEER IN VARIOUS TYPES OF ORGANIZATION From the viewpoint of the engineer, organizations may be classi ed according to the degree of engineering jobs performed: 1. Level One - those with minimal engineering jobs like retailing rms. 2. Level Two - those with a moderate degree of engineering jobs like transportation companies. 3. Level Three - those with a high degree of engineering jobs like construction rms. THE ENGINEER IN VARIOUS TYPES OF ORGANIZATION Management Skills Required at Various Levels Among the types of organizations, the engineer will have a slim chance of becoming the general manager or the president of level one, unless of course, he owns the rm. The engineer manager may be assigned to head a small engineering unit of the rm, but there will not be too many rms which will have this unit. In level two rms, the engineer may be assigned to head the engineering division. The need for management skills will now be felt by the engineer manager. THE ENGINEER IN VARIOUS TYPES OF ORGANIZATION Management Skills Required at Various Levels Level three rms provide the biggest opportunity for an engineer to become the president or general manager. In this case, the engineer manager cannot function e ectively without adequate management skills. WHAT IS ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT? Engineering Management refers to the activity combining “technical knowledge with the ability to organize and coordinate worker power, materials, machinery, and money.” When the engineer is assigned to supervise the work of even a few people, he is already engaged in the rst phase of engineering management. His main responsibility is to lead his group into producing a certain output consistent with required speci cations. The top position an engineer manager may hope to occupy is general managership or presidency of any form, large or small. WHAT IS ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT? As he scales the management ladder, he nds that the higher he goes up, the less technical activities he performs, and the more management tasks he accepts. In this case, it is proper that the management functions taught in pure management courses be well understood by the engineer manager. MANAGEMENT DEFINED Since the engineer manager is presumed to be technically competent in his specialization, one may now proceed to describe more thoroughly the remaining portion of his job, which is management. Management may be de ned as the “creative problem-solving process of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling an organization’s resources to achieve its mission and objective. THE PROCESS OF MANAGEMENT Management is a process of consisting of planning, organizing, directing (or leading), and controlling. Explained in a simple manner, management must seek to nd out the objectives of the organization, think of ways on how to achieve them, decide on the ways to be adapted and the material resources to be used, determine the human requirements of the total job, assign speci c tasks to speci c persons, motivate them, and provide means to make sure that the activities are in the right direction. REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ENGINEER MANAGER’S JOB Depending on the type of products or services a rms produces, the engineer manager must have the following quali cations: 1. A bachelor’s degree in engineering from a reputable school. In some cases, a master’s degree in engineering or business management is required; 2. A few years experience in pure engineering job; 3. Training in supervision; 4. Special training in engineering management. These quali cations will be of great help to the engineer manager in the performance of the various management functions. HOW ONE MAY BECOME AN ENGINEER MANAGER Successful engineer managers do not happen as a matter of chance, although luck is a contributory factor. It is very important for the engineer to know the various factors leading to successful management. Kreitner indicates at least three general preconditions for achieving lasting success as a manager. They are as follows: 1. Ability 2. Motivate to Manage 3. Opportunity HOW ONE MAY BECOME AN ENGINEER MANAGER Ability Managerial ability refers to the capacity of an engineer to achieve organizational objectives e ectively and e ciently. E ectiveness according to Higgins, refers to a description of “whether objectives are accomplished”, while e ciency is a description of “relative amount of resources used in obtaining e ectiveness.” HOW ONE MAY BECOME AN ENGINEER MANAGER Motivation to Manage Many people have desire to work and nish speci c tasks assigned by superiors, but not many are motivated to manage other people so that they may contribute to the realization of the organization’s objectives. A management researcher, John B. Miner, developed a psychometric instrument to measure objectively an individual’s motivation to manage. HOW ONE MAY BECOME AN ENGINEER MANAGER Motivation to Manage The test is anchored to the following dimensions: 1. Favorable attitude toward those in positions of authority, such as superiors. 2. Desire to engage in games or sports competition with peers. 3. Desire to engage in occupational or work-related competition with peers. 4. Desire to assert oneself and take charge. 5. Desire to exercise power and authority over others. 6. Desire to behave in a distinctive way, which includes standing out from the crowd. 7. Sense of responsibility in carrying out routine duties associated with managerial work. HOW ONE MAY BECOME AN ENGINEER MANAGER Opportunity Successful managers become possible only if those having the ability and motivation are given the opportunity to manage. The opportunity for successful management has two requirements: 1. Obtaining a suitable managerial job, and 2. Finding a supportive climate once on the job. Newspaper advertisements abound with needs for engineer managers. HOW ONE MAY BECOME AN ENGINEER MANAGER Opportunity It is a little di cult to determine if the rms requiring their services provide a supportive climate for e ective and e cient management. A supportive climate is characterized by the recognition of managerial talent through nancial and non- nancial rewards. SUMMARY Engineers are known for their great contributions to the development of the world's civilization. There are many areas where their presence is necessary like research, design and development, testing, manufacturing, construction, sales, consulting, government, teaching, and management. Engineers may be found contributing their share in the various levels of organization. Engineering activities need to be managed and engineers are sometimes placed in positions where they have to learn management skills. SUMMARY Management is concerned with planning, organizing, leading, and controlling an organization’s resources to achieve its mission and objectives. There are certain quali cations required of the engineer manager. One may become a successful engineer manager if the preconditions of ability, motivation to manage, and opportunity to manage are met.  END ENGR. FHER NOAH N. LEONGSON | EM 101 | UNIVERSITY OF SAN AGUSTIN - ILOILO