Creating awareness for systems engineering: Interview with Paul Schreinemakers
Paul Schreinemakers has more than 25 years of experience in product development. He runs his two consultancies, SEPIAdvies BV and How2SE BV, which are active in the application of systems engineering in various domains. Paul has been involved with INCOSE since 2000 and has been the technical director of INCOSE since the beginning of 2015.
At TdSE 2016, I had the opportunity to talk to Paul about training in systems engineering.
International ReqIF training course on April 28, 2017 at Düsseldorf Airport. The English-language workshop allows arrival and departure on the same day. Details >>
Training in systems engineering is a major challenge - how do we tackle the issue?
All people in an organization contribute to systems engineering, and we need to foster this self-understanding. Systems understanding is usually expected from academically trained people, but it is important that these people also understand why this is necessary. It also applies to other people in the organization, right down to the worker.
Everyone, down to the worker, does their part to validate and verify (Paul Schreinemakers) [tweetthis]Everyone, down to the worker, does their part to validate and verify[/tweetthis]
So we need to adapt our training to the different groups?
Exactly. A certain level of understanding is also taught at universities. But that's not the case for factory workers. But everyone contributes their value to both systems and systems engineering. So yes, appropriate training for the different target groups is very important.
Which target groups are currently covered and which are not?
A systems engineer's favorite answer is: "It depends". High-level groups are generally well covered, but not research. This is a worldwide problem, not just a German one. One example: We have a strong focus on model-based work without first having a solid Ontology as a basis.
There is still a lack of awareness of systems engineering at management level, but conversely, many systems engineers are not leaders. They are often extremely good at defining requirements or developing an architecture, but they have only moderate leadership skills. And that is probably an understatement.
It's probably an understatement to say that Systems Engineers don't always have leadership skills (Paul Schreinemakers) [tweetthis]It's an understatement to say that Systems Engineers don't always have leadership skills[/tweetthis]
Incidentally, there are companies where the CTO is the number two, and this is a real systems engineer with a deep understanding of the system. That's the right kind of systems engineer at management level.
Interesting. Then you have to differentiate between project and company level. But what does that mean for the role of the project manager?
As a rule, the project manager has a strong outward focus: project boundaries, budgets, personnel. The systems engineer has an inward focus and looks after people and the internal organization. Both need leadership skills. Problems can arise if, for example, the system engineer does not even talk to the external stakeholders. If the division between internal and external is absolute, then there is a separation that can lead to problems.
The systems engineer should at least talk to the external stakeholders to understand their needs. (Paul Schreinemakers) [tweetthis]The systems engineer should at least talk to the external stakeholders to understand their needs[/tweetthis].
This applies at both project and company level. However, there is often a lack of understanding, particularly at management level, that a systems engineer is needed.
And how do we solve this?
There are several solutions. For example, communication should be included in the curriculum of systems engineers. It should also be taken into account that the role of the systems engineer can be divided among several people and that all members of a team must have at least rudimentary leadership skills.
Engineers are often introverts. Therefore, at least some people in the team should have an extroverted disposition to ensure balance.
So a systems engineer should have a solid technical education, but then supplement this with appropriate management skills, right? Does something like this already exist?
INCOSE has the Leadership training for promising young talent, in which leadership skills are taught. And many companies have corresponding in-house programs. I'm thinking of Thales, Airbus, Siemens, BMW or BAE Systems, for example. This enables employees to find their place in a company where they can achieve maximum effectiveness.
What are you planning next?
I train professionals myself, mainly in companies, adapted to their needs and level of maturity. I will soon be giving up the role of INCOSE Technical Director, which takes up a lot of my time. I'm looking forward to devoting more time to my own company again.
But I'm sure that INCOSE will be back sooner or later with new challenges. We'll see...
Image source: Paul Schreinemakers
