Copyright David A. Durfee 2009 Engineering Perspectives What you didn’t learn in school. David A. Durfee + Partner in a design engineering firm + Adjunct

Copyright David A. Durfee 2009

Engineering Perspectives

What you didn’t learn in school.

David A. Durfee

+ Partner in a design engineering firm

+ Adjunct Professor teaching EN1580


Why Me?Why Me?

I’m an engineer (CS and EE).My partner and I run an electronics and software

contract design firm.Our customers range from individuals to Fortune

500 companies. I’m able to convey all that I learned in 23 years in

only one semester.What do you mean I only have ½ hour?


Are you an engineer?• Do you have “the nack”? (Its ok if you haven’t found your inner nack yet.)---------------------• Dilbert's "Salary Theorem" states, "Engineers and scientists can never earn as much as

business executives and sales people.“ • This theorem can now be supported by a mathematical equation based on the following two

postulates:

• Postulate 1: Knowledge is Power.• Postulate 2: Time is Money.

• And, as every engineer knows: Power = Work / Time

• Therefore: Knowledge = Work / Money

• Solving for Money, you get Money = Work / Knowledge

• Thus, as Knowledge approaches zero, Money approaches infinity, regardless of the amount of work done.

• Conclusion: The less you know, the more you make. (This brings some people to “the dark side”. Finance/Sales)

• (www.dilbert.com)


Reality ,you are not an “engineer”.

• Diploma will say you are.• You feel uncomfortable cause you can’t even fix

your table lamp.• Engineering is like an M.D. program. You

graduate with enough knowledge to intern and later become an “engineer”.

• Therefore your “best” initial offer might not be for the most compensation (Best may not imply the most money)

• Your company isn’t likely to be making any money on you for some time.


Work EnvironmentsWork EnvironmentsStartup Big Company

No documentation Bogged down in documentation

Huge budget swings Fairly constant budget

Over-optimistic schedule Huge schedule required

Lots of hours, lots of travel More predictable hours(but could require lots of travel)

Vacillates based on potential funding sources

Inflexible in feature changes

High stakes (customers likely to want to cut corners)

Usually not job threatening


OK now what – General stuff• Need a work ethic -- (Why? Your boss knows tt’s a world economy

– not just lazy Americans to compete against.)• Web surfing/cell phones/Texting• Lunch hour?• Early in, late out - (yeah, I know some of the old guys leave at

4:59pm)• Do some homework on your own.• Be willing to do extraordinary things to hit deadlines when required.• Be careful when around customers.• Get involved.• You learn more from listening than talking• Realize there is plenty you DON’T know• Be a sponge. Learn from those who have gone before.


Half Life of Engineering Knowledge.

They say the half life of engineering knowledge is 2 years

Your engineering knowledge decays by 50% every 2 yearsAfter 10 years you are down to 3% of retained knowledge.

http://www.ensys.net/eit-half-life.htm#The_half-life_of_engineering_knowledge_is_2_years

Think back to where the state of engineering and technology was even 10 years ago.

Think where it is now. Do you think the folks that graduated 10 years ago, where trained in the current technology??

Now envision where both maybe 10 years from now.

Moral of the story? You should be a person that enjoys learning new things.


Customer RelationsCustomer Relations Recognize that even if “they would be stupid not to do XXX”,

that does not preclude them from doing YYY. Customers are not always right. Give your opinion once. If

you feel VERY strongly about it, then give your opinion twice. In either case, after you give your opinion do what you’re told without whining.

• Very few people have a clue about what you are doing (even your boss) so you must set expectations properly or else they will create their own expectations. Perception can become reality.

• Stay sober and don’t tell dirty jokes if your group takes the customer out to dinner when they come to visit.


What is engineering

• Definition: “Engineering is doing the best design you can with the time and money you’ve been given.”

• Engineers often want to make things “perfect” and have difficulty applying money and time into the equation and don’t like people looking over their shoulders (Famous Phrase 90% done with 90% to Go)

• This is why there are people called “engineering managers”.


Two Hardest Skills for New Engineers

• Must master the delicate balance between figuring things out for yourself and “bugging” your mentor.

• Recognizing obstacles that you can have some ability to remove rather than using them to explain your inability to proceed.


How to be better?

• Empathy would help – see things from other perspectives.

• Not that you have to change yourself but need to understand other perspectives

• Let’s just look at some stereotypes ===


Customer/salesman vs. EngineerCustomer/salesman vs. Engineer

Non-technical customer

Engineer

Undefined requirements Defined

Iteration (show me) Design process

Loves to make changes Inflexible – change is bad

Ship immediately Infinite testing

Likes to discuss options Likes to prove they are right

Everything is simple Finds complexity

Likes “pushing the envelope”

Perfectionist – avoids risk of failure near the envelope


Manager vs. EngineerManager vs. EngineerManager EngineerLives and dies by Budget Money is no object

Lives and dies by Schedule Can’t possibly tell you when

Worries that product satisfies customer needs

Thinks up “cool” feature to add

Wants black/white answers Equivocates constantly

Wants vendor interaction Won’t dial the phone

Wants you to get help when possible Wants to do everything himself


Is there a lesson in this?Is there a lesson in this? A man in a hot air balloon realized he was lost. He reduced altitude and

spotted a woman below. He descended a bit more andshouted...."Excuse me, can you help me?.....I promised a friend that I wouldmeet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."The woman below replied...."You're in a hot air balloon hovering approximatelythirty feet above the ground. You're between 40 and 41degrees north latitude and between 59 and 60 degrees west longitude."...."You must be an Engineer," said the balloonist."I am" replied the woman "how did you know?'..."well,' answered the balloonist "everything you have told me istechnically correct, but I have no idea what to make of yourinformation, and the fact is I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not beenmuch help at all. If anything you have delayed my trip!'The woman responded..."You must be in management.""I am," replied the balloonist..."but how did you know?'..."Well" said the woman..."you don't know where you are or where youare going. You have risen to where you are due to a largequantity of hot air. You made a promise, which you've no idea how tokeep, and you expect people beneath you to solve yourproblems. The fact is you are in exactly the same position you were inbefore we met, but now, somehow, it's my fault!"


Career

• Only you can manage your career growth.• It is not the responsibility of your “manager”• Actively seek input from many sources.• There is no one right or wrong answer for everybody.• No job or function has a lifetime guarantee.• The only constant is “change”.• “Rainy days” can and most likely will come.• Most good managers, started as good engineers first. If

they sucked they went into Marketing – The Dark Side…(just kidding).


Debugging field problems

• Reproduce it• Devise tests to prove/disprove hypothesis

to get to “root cause”• Solve based on cause

• Why experience might “show up” IQ?• Prioritize hypothesized causes base on

probability of occurrence (which you don’t know when you just get out of school)


Engineering process

• Fundamentally, a methodology to try to avoid making mistakes.

• New engineers don’t believe in it• They circumvent it and cost their employer

thousands of dollars (maybe tens or hundreds).• They then get to experience the visibility,

stress, and pressure that this creates.• Then, the smart ones, become believers.• Some folks have to “feel the heat” more than

once.


Beginning of project

• From Concept to Requirements• Risk analysis?• Should, Shall, May• Iteration? (design test to answer unanswered

questions)• True Prototype or Production • Prototype or Production attitude (if you think it’s

a prototype you’ll get a lot of “add wires”.)• Cost for changes at the beginning are smaller.


More process

• Requirement -- review• Design – review• Construct/code/fabricate – review• Test plan – review• Test execution – review

• Don’t be afraid of reviews. They might save you!

Documents

Copyright David A. Durfee 2009 Engineering Perspectives What you didn’t learn in school. David A. Durfee + Partner in a design engineering firm + Adjunct