engineering leadership june 07.ppt 1 by kenneth e. arnold june, 2007 engineering leadership...

Engineering Leadership June 07.ppt 1

By Kenneth E. Arnold

June, 2007

Engineering Leadership

Professionalism, Ethics, Sustainability and Thomas Jefferson


Requirements of an Engineering Leader

Understanding the Context

Creating a Culture of Dignity and Respect

Developing a Vision

Communicating a Strategy

Monitoring

Adjusting



The Commercial Environment– Company– Clients– Competition

The Technology

– Design

– Construction

– Operation

– Project Management

Motivating for Success

– Staff

– Clients

– Vendors, Contractors





Developing a Vision


Monitoring

Adjusting


Creating A Culture –The “Engineering Company Conundrum”

“We are a company of engineers and not just an engineering company”

Yet …

“Our most important asset is our people”

- Management’s efforts concentrated on:

• Client relations

• Commercial relations and contract administration

• A few “key” project managers and technical leads


Creating a Culture –The “Engineering Company Conundrum” (Cont’d)

– Engineering is viewed as a commodity

• “We need X manhours of Y type of engineers”

• Engineers are “hands”

• Engineers are disposable

– Engineering is provided “givens”, a list of standard “deliverables” and a budget of manhours

– Engineering is not consulted in making major decisions

– Little attention paid to engineering technology and work processes.


Creating a Culture

The most important and least understood step

Created by thousands of actions and omissions not words

Must flow from top through each level of management down to all first level supervisors

Cannot be delegated to Human Resources

Involves all staff and not just engineers, technical staff or a select few.



Understanding “Professionalism” and the burden of thinking this implies for every member of the staff

Understanding “Ethics” and how it effects the way we interact with each other

Understanding what is meant by “Sustainability”

An example of how to Communicate these concepts to the staff

The “Payout” for creating a culture of dignity and respect


My Background Technical

– Co-author of two textbooks on Production Facility Design

– Editor of Petroleum Engineering Handbook, Volume 3

– Published over 50 technical articles in various journals

– Recipient of technical awards form SPE, API and 2003 TSPE Houston Engineer of the Year

– Member NAE

Commercial

– Founded Paragon Engineering Services - 1980

– Staff of 160 in 1993 and 500 when sold in 2005

– Between 1993 and 2005 had nine major changes of ownership while growing the staff and maintaining the culture

– Voted one of the ten best companies to work for by Houston Business Journal in 2003


Understanding “Professionalism”

To be a professional company each individual in the company must behave in a professional manner.


1st Principle: Spend the Client’s Money As If It Were Your Own

A professional contract is a license to steal

We must always operate in the best interest of the client

Definition of Client

– The public

– The client

– The project

– Internal “clients” Each individual must think about what he is doing in context

of the best interest of the “client”.

The best interest of your company, the best interest of your career does not govern.

The drag reducer example


2nd Principle: We Owe the Client One Strong Agreement

Professionals are hired for their brains

You are not allowed to say:

– “ I knew there was a better way but they wanted it done this way”.

– “I knew he wouldn’t listen”.

– “This is standard practice, even though it doesn’t make sense in this context.”


3rd Principle: “Shut up and Do What the Client Wants”

Why might a client disagree:

- You could be wrong

- Different data

- Comfort

- Ego

Best interest of the client

Handle disagreements with care

Station controls example

But don’t forget the following trump all

- Technical reality

- Safety

- Ethics


4rd Principle: A Professional Takes Responsibility for His Work

Mistakes and Errors in Judgment Happen

– Insufficient Data

– Misleading or Incorrect Data

– New Data / Revisions

– Communications

Think about the potential effects of new information on the project as a whole

Verify that others realize the impact

Correct errors as soon as practical

Figure out how to avoid them in the future

Dehydrator slab example

If you do not know at the end of every job how you could have done it better you are not a “professional”.


Understanding Ethics

To create a culture of dignity and respect each individual in the company must act in an ethical manner in dealing with others.


Ethics - Religion

In the Talmud Rabbi Hillel said, “Do not do to others what is hateful to you. All else is commentary.”

In the Gospels Jesus said, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

In the teaching of the Moslem prophet Mohammed it is written, “no one of you is considered faithful until you wish upon your brother what you wish for yourself.”

Confucius said, “What you don’t want for yourself, don’t do to others.”


Ethics – Religion (Cont’d)

The Swami Chinmayananda a spiritual Hindu teacher said “Charity is an attempt wherein I try to expand and bring into the ambit of my life, all others around me and grow to consider the other man’s needs and requirements as important as my personal needs.”

The Law of the Egyptian Goddess MAAT for right and truth says, “…I have done neither harm nor ill … I have done no hurt to man …I have made none to weep….”


Ethics – Cultural

The Declaration of Independence, “We hold these truths to be self-evident … That all men are created equal … that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights… That among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness

Everyone deserves the same respect that we believe should be paid to us.

– The right to be heard

– The right to be treated with dignity

– The right to earn a living

– The right to be told what is happening

Do we really believe in this?


Examples of Unethical Behavior – Pecking Orders

The “Global Pecking Order”– The Client– Consultants– Vendors– Contractors– Grunts in the Field

The “Corporate Pecking Order”

– CEO– Vice President– Managers– Supervisor– Project Manager– Engineers


Examples of Unethical Behavior – Pecking Orders (Continued)

The “Engineering Pecking Order”

– Engineers

– Designers

– Procurement

– Accounting

– Secretaries

– Other Support Staff


Examples of Unethical Behavior - Bidding

There is nothing unethical about bidding

But … Preparing a bid costs money and resources

It is unethical to:

– Bid a job that you know may not be awarded

– Bid someone you know you will not award the job

– Withhold information bidders need to judge their chance of success – competition, evaluation criteria, etc.

– Bid a job more than once without compensation

– Take a value added idea from an unsuccessful bidder and give it to the successful bidder to implement without proper compensation


Examples of Unethical Behavior – Change Orders Complex engineered equipment, fabrication or construction will

always have the need for a change order adjustment in price

– Use future purchasing power to blackmail a vendor to avoid paying for extra work that was requested and performed

– Hold a contractor to a legal requirement or a technicality when circumstances have clearly changed the intent

– Demand something when you know your client is not able to realize it is not really a change in scope

There is nothing unethical about protecting yourself from a vendor who is motivated to get the most out of change orders

There is nothing unethical about protecting yourself from a vendor who is motivated to get the most out of change orders

It is unethical to:


What If I Act In An Unethical Manner?

– Refrain from explaining to someone that they are asking you to do something that may be construed as unethical

– Refrain from apologizing

We all consider ourselves and our actions to be ethical

But … In the rush to do business, or because we don’t have all the facts, or because we are distracted we all act unethically from time to time

We all have bosses or clients who require us to do things we think are unethical

It is unethical to:


Understanding “Sustainability”

Meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Balancing the three business objectives of economic effectiveness (profit), social justice (people) and environmental protection (planet).


Elements of a Sustainability Program

Profitable Growth

Human rights

Health and Safety

Environment

Community Involvement

Ethical Business Conduct

Employment Rights


Bottom Line of Sustainability

Leadership must be engaged in providing

A pleasant work environment

Ability for long term employment

– Career Challenge

– Training

– Growth

Help in time of need

Competitive salaries and sharing in corporate profits

Volunteer activities to:

– Promote teamwork and morale

– Invest in the local community

– Protect the environment

– Advance technology

A safe place to work


The Other Side of the Bottom Line

– Be a good ambassador

– Pay attention to quality

– Suggest ways for improvement

Do something extra on occasion

– Often the payout is clear

– Sometimes it is not. Trust and commitment goes two ways.

Support the company

Help secure work and staff for the company

Speak up when you disagree


Communicating to the Staff

Each company must evolve its own process.


The AMEC Paragon Example (Orientation)

Ethical Will– A document which sets out the learnings of those who have come

before concerning the principles of right and wrong that govern the conduct of an ethical life

– Covers principles governing our actions towards our business objectives, goals and focus, and our responsibilities as a company, a manager and supervisor, a project manager and an employees

All new hires have a two hour meeting with a member of the Leadership Team concerning professionalisms and ethics

All new hires have a two hour presentation on safety and sustainability


The AMEC Paragon Example (Leadership Support)

Active Social Committee with monthly events for staff and families

Multiple Community Involvement Committees– Spring Branch ISD

– Rebuilding Houston

– Gulf Coast Blood Center

– United Way

– Ronald MacDonald House

Committee for Environmental Efforts– Recycling

– Car Pooling


The AMEC Paragon Example (Leadership Support) – (Cont’d)

Support for Technical Society Involvement– Pay for dues– Pay for attendance at programs– Support involvement in committees

Active Professional Development Program

– Support for outside training and degree programs

– In-house courses

– Lunch and learns

– Professional Development Plans for engineers


Payout for Creating a Culture of Dignity and Respect


Benefits of Creating the Culture

One view: If we do so, in the long run we will be more profitable due to customer satisfaction, staff motivation, and increased technical competence

But … these long term benefits are hard to quantify and may not be real. Our clients don’t always understand and reward such good behavior

Our clients don’t always understand and reward such good behavior


So What is the Payout ?

By creating such a culture and balancing needs of shareholders with those of staff and community we will: – Be profitable

– Attract and retain qualified technical staff

– Better enjoy our time at work

– Be proud of the work we accomplish

– Advance technology

– As a team working together we can help make a difference in the community





Developing a Vision


Monitoring

Adjusting


FINAL THOUGHTS

A good leader must establish the proper culture to allow engineers to be professional and demand they act accordingly.

The culture is developed over time by thousands of small actions keyed to dignity and respect of all staff and a set of “sustainable” policies.

Leadership in engineering is not difficult, but it is time consuming and requires constant effort.

The culture is supported by a thousand small decisions and can be killed by a thousand small cuts.


FINAL THOUGHTS (continued)

However, the leader can only be as good as the followers. They must willingly take on the burden of being professional, being ethical and acting in a sustainable manner.

It takes a good motivated staff to be a good leader.

Thomas Jefferson did not write the Declaration of Independence by himself. He had a good, highly motivated group of people behind him with a clear understanding of where they wanted to go.

engineering leadership june 07.ppt 1 by kenneth e. arnold june, 2007 engineering leadership...

Documents

disposable engineering

budget of manhours engineering

respect slide

technical staff

culture of dignity

company of engineers

technical leads slide

understanding professionalism