Engineering Your Future Engineering Your Future: The Professional Practice of Engineering, Third Edition Stuart G. Walesh John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Thisbookisprintedonacid-freepaper. Copyrightr2012byAmericanSocietyofCivilEngineers.Allrightsreserved PublishedbyJohnWiley&Sons,Inc.,Hoboken,NewJersey. 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T56.8.W362012 658.4'04–dc23 2011028236 PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 To that growing core offorward-looking engineers committedto the reformation of engineering education and early experience in theU.S. and beyond. You know who you are andyourefforts arebearing fruit. Contents Preface to the Third Edition xix Technical Competency: Necessary but Not Sufficient xix Audiences: Students and Practitioners xx Organization and Content xx Additions and Improvements xxi This Book and ABET Engineering Accreditation Criteria xxii This Book and the Body of Knowledge Movement xxiii Acknowledgments xxvii Cited Sources xxviii List of Abbreviations xxix Chapter 1 Introduction: Engineering and the Engineer 1 The Playing Field 1 Definitions of Engineering 3 Leading, Managing, and Producing: Deciding, Directing, and Doing 4 Leading, Managing, and Producing Defined 4 The Traditional Pyramidal, Segregated Organizational Model 4 The Shared Responsibility Organizational Model 6 The Focus of This Book: Managing and Leading 7 Leading Misconceptions 8 The Seven Qualities of Effective Leaders 8 Honesty and Integrity 9 Vision: Reach and Teach 9 Strategies and Tactics to Achieve the Vision 12 Always a Student 13 Courageous 15 Calm in a Crisis and Chaos 17 Creative, Innovative, Collaborative, and Synergistic 18 The Engineer as Builder 19 Concluding Thoughts: Common Sense, Common Practice, and Good Habits 20 Cited Sources 22 Annotated Bibliography 23 Exercises 24 vii viii Contents Chapter 2 Leading and Managing: Getting Your Personal House in Order 27 Start with You 27 Time Management: But First Roles and Goals 28 Time is a Resource 28 Roles, Goals, and Then, and Only Then, Time Management 28 Time Management: The Great Equalizer 30 Time Management Tips: The ABCs 31 A Time Management System 45 Key Ideas about Time Management 46 Employment or Graduate School? 46 Full-Time Graduate Study 47 Full-Time Employment 48 Learn From Potential Employers 48 The New Work Environment: Culture Shock? 49 No Partial Credit 49 Little Tolerance for Tardiness 49 Assignments are Not Graded 50 Schedules are More Complicated 50 Higher Grooming and Dress Expectations 50 Teamwork is Standard Operating Procedure 51 Expect and Embrace Change 51 The First Few Months of Practice: Make or Break Time 51 Recognize and Draw on Generic Qualities 52 Guard Your Reputation 53 Learn and Respect Administrative Procedures and Structure 53 Complete Assignments in Accordance with Expectations 53 Get Things Done 54 Trim Your Hedges 54 Keep Your Supervisor Informed 55 Speak Up and Speak Positively 55 Dress Appropriately 56 Hone Communication Ability 57 Seize Opportunities for You and Your Organization 57 Choose To Be a Winner 57 Summing it Up 59 Managing Personal Professional Assets: Building Individual Equity 59 Personal Professional Assets 59 Annual Accounting 60 Careful Management of Personal Professional Equity 60 Continuing Education 61 Involvement in Professional Organizations: Taking and Giving 61 Licensing 64 Concluding Thoughts: Getting Your Personal House in Order 67 Contents ix Cited Sources 68 Annotated Bibliography 69 Exercises 70 Chapter 3 Communicating to Make Things Happen 73 Five Forms of Communication 73 Three Distinctions between Writing and Speaking 75 Single-Channel versus Multi-Channel 75 One-Directional versus Two-Directional 76 Conveying versus Convincing 76 Listening: Using Ears and Eyes 77 Be Attentive 77 The Value of Facts and Feelings 78 Body Language: The Silent Messenger 78 Verify Understanding 80 Use What Is Learned 80 Writing Tips: How to Write to Make Things Happen 80 Define the Purpose 80 Profile the Audience 81 Structure the Document to Reflect the Audience Profile 82 Ask About Document-Writing Guidelines 84 Start Writing on “Day 1” 84 Get Started: Overcome Writer’s Block 85 Avoid Tin Ear 87 Retain Some of the Outline in the Document 88 Write Major Documents in Third Person: Mostly 88 Employ a Gender-Neutral Style 89 Write in an Active, Direct Manner Rather Than a Passive, Indirect Manner 89 Recognize that Less Is More 90 Apply Rhetorical Techniques 92 Adopt a Flexible Format for Identifying Tables, Figures, and Sources 93 Use Lists 94 Design a Standard Base Map or Diagram 94 Compose Informative Titles 94 Establish Milestones 95 Produce an Attractive and Appealing Document 95 Cite All Sources 95 Read One More Time 96 Speaking Tips: How to Speak to Make Things Happen 97 Conquer Reluctance to Speak: Commit to Competence 98 Prepare the Presentation 99 Deliver the Presentation 111 Follow-Up the Presentation 116 Concluding Thoughts about Writing and Speaking 118 x Contents Cited Sources 118 Annotated Bibliography 120 Exercises 121 Chapter 4 Developing Relationships 123 Taking the Next Career Step 123 Personality Profiles 124 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs 125 The Hierarchy 125 Application 126 Theories X and Y 127 Definitions 127 Applications of Theory X and Theory Y Knowledge 127 Dominance of Theory Ys 128 Delegation: Why Put Off Until Tomorrow What Someone Else Can Do Today? 129 Reasons to Delegate 129 Reluctance to Delegate 131 Delegation Isn’t Always Down 133 Delegation Tips 133 Three Possible Outcomes 134 Orchestrating Meetings 135 Reasons to Meet 135 When Not To Call a Meeting 136 Tips for Successful Meetings 136 Additional Meeting Thoughts 145 Working with Technologists, Technicians, and Other Team Members 145 Essential Members of the Organization 146 Challenges Unique to Working with Varied Team Members 147 A Dozen Tips for the Entry-Level Technical Person 148 Selecting Co-Workers and “Managing Your Boss” 150 Carefully Select Your “Boss” and Co-workers 150 Seek a Mutually-Beneficial Relationship 150 Avoid Being a “Yes” Man/Woman 151 Caring Isn’t Coddling 151 Coaching 152 Coaching Tips 152 Concluding Thought 153 Teamwork 153 Three Teamwork Essentials 154 Creating a Team 155 The Forming-Storming-Norming-Performing Process 157 Closing Thoughts about Teams 157 Effective Professional Meeting and Conference Attendance 158 Contents xi Learning about the Conference 158 Before the Conference 158 At the Conference 159 After the Conference 162 Looking Ahead 163 Concluding Thoughts about Developing Relationships 163 Cited Sources 164 Annotated Bibliography 165 Exercises 166 Chapter 5 Project Management: Planning, Executing, and Closing 167 Project Broadly Defined 167 Project Management Defined 168 The Centrality of Project Management 169 Relevance of Project Management to the Student and Entry-Level Technical Person 172 Planning the Project 173 All Projects Are Done Twice 173 The Project Plan: Introduction 174 Consequences of Poor or No Planning 175 The Project Plan Avoidance Syndrome 175 Preparing the Project Plan 176 Principal Project Plan Elements 177 Element 1: Objectives – What Do We Want to Accomplish? 178 Element 2: Scope – How Are We Going to Do It? 178 Element 3: Risks – What Could Go Wrong? 178 Element 4: Deliverables – What Will We Provide to the Client/Owner/Customer? 181 Element 5: Milestones/Schedule – When Will We Provide the Deliverables? 181 Element 6: Tasks – What Tasks Need to be Done and in What Order to Provide the Deliverables? 182 Element 7: Resources/Budget – How Much Will the Project Cost? 183 Element 8: Directory – Who Will Participate? 184 Element 9: Communication Protocol – How Will We Collaborate? 185 Element 10: Monitoring and Control Procedure – How Will We Know HowWeAre DoingRelative tothe Project Plan? 185 Ten Possible Additional Project Plan Elements 186 Project Planning Versus Project Doing 187 Executing the Project 188 Keep the Project Team on Track 188 Interact With Client, Owner, or Customer 188 Communicate With Stakeholders 188 Monitor Project Progress and Take Appropriate Actions 189 xii Contents Closing the Project 190 Seek External Input 190 Conduct Project Team Meeting 191 Leverage the Just-Completed Project 191 Closure: Common Sense and Self Discipline 192 Cited Sources 192 Annotated Bibliography 193 Exercises 194 Chapter 6 Project Management: Critical Path Method and Scope Creep 195 This Chapter Relative to the Preceding Chapter 195 The Critical Path Method 196 Introduction: The Four Schedule Questions 196 Alternative Scheduling Methods 197 Network Fundamentals 199 Critical Path Method Steps 200 Example Application of the Critical Path Method 201 Tips for Determining Tasks 207 Some Observations about the Critical Path Method 208 Review of Earlier Schedule Questions 209 Closing Thoughts about the Critical Path Method 210 Scope Creep 210 Two Types of Scope Creep 210 Consequences of Uncompensated Scope Creep 212 Drivers of Uncompensated Scope Creep 213 Doing Something Extra: The Platinum Rule 215 Relevance to You as a Student 215 Preventing Uncompensated Scope Creep 216 Resolving Uncompensated Scope Creep 223 Ideas for Clients, Owners, and Customers about Avoiding Uncompensated Scope Creep 225 Closing Thoughts about Scope Creep 227 Cited Sources 227 Annotated Bibliography 228 Exercises 228 Chapter 7 Quality: What Is It and How Do We Achieve It? 231 Everyone Is for It! 231 Quality Defined 232 Quality as Opulence 232 Quality as Excellence or Superiority 233 Quality as Meeting All Requirements 233 A Caution for Engineers and Other Technical Personnel 235 Quality Control and Quality Assurance 236 Suggestions for Developing a Quality Seeking Culture 237