As an Engineer, What's Your Biggest Challenge?

Thanks for your comment!

David

Accountants.

Managers and coworkers who are not engineers or engineering minded.

Management and coworkers who are not engineers or engineering minded.

(And computer systems that do random weird sh!t stuff for no discernible reasons.)

Amen to the computer system comment!

David

Although I am retired, The greatest challenge was keeping up with the ever changing technology.

Having been on both sides of the engineer/manager/director tree, I have to agree that managers are the biggest challenge.

Especially if they've never been "in the barnyard pecking $hit with the chickens".

Budgets and schedules are always a challenge, but if you have the right tools and are just left alone, you'll get it done.

Mobile goalposts (whatever the motive force).

Good analogy. How can you score a goal with the goalposts moving?

David

Ready. Fire. Aim!

Get closer to improve the odds.

Buggers just move quicker. When you're nearly there, they shift it a bit, and so on. Rapidly generates a vortex, sucking in money and the will to live.

Look in different perspective, might be you caused the bugger to become a bugger.

A bug is by-product of system and surrounding.

Sometimes one becomes a catalyst of a bug.

The world was made such as this so that justice may be fair. In reality, justice only serves the reach, punishment to the poor.

One who loves justice, loves the rich or a rich himself. Crazy world down there in the bottom of the pyramid, the top usually designed such as this so they may rule. (Divide and Conquer)

Union controlled workers.

Getting Market Demand insights via sales staff to drive design ideas and innovations and all the rest previously mentioned including the union comment.

Post #1 & 2, Managers do the scheme, accountants consipred

In the USA, my biggest problem originated at the Harvard School of Business. That being said, I do not think that I can hold them responsible because I can not gain access to the original material that has been adapted by so many facilities. If I could, I expect that I would see that most managers picked out only part of the recommendations. That is to say, that I believe the usual case of cherry picking from good recommendations is what happened. As a result, we have what is manifested as intolerance and high turnover. I'd bet my life on it! Oh, wait! I already did. No wonder I'm in Hell.

Bluntly, I found the 'Biggest Challenge' to Engineering to be "...stupid management..." who routinely threw "...financial challeges..." at projects without considering ANY possibilies of the "unintended consequences" such as schedule, cost, safety, reliability, and contractual requirements...ie: "Bean-Counter" managlement.

They are the suckers & leaches looking to impress Corporates with increase with out considering impacts down below and to customers.

Push the limits and multitask without wage increase, BS.

How to Handle Management, Incompetent or Otherwise

We as engineers need to take a step away from ownership of the project or program. We don't own it, our employer, or the designated program manager, does. Our responsibility is just to make it work, where "it" is whatever management supports.

Unfortunately, we sometimes lose our job in the case of program failure. But our responsibility ends after we inform them what is possible given the level of support they provide, and the risks of their decisions. It's their responsibility to take the risks if they want to.

The best managers are engineers. Everybody else is only half baked. Losing a job because of a manager who is ignorant of engineering principles, is a blessing in disguise.

The incompetence of most "business major" managers is simply unacceptable. Consequently, it is important to know the background of the people in charge. All these business majors can do is think about money. They have no capacity to understand how we do what we do. And usually, they are focused on their secret bonus checks they will get if the project is done in half the time they were told it would take. That is a recipe for failure.

"I want it done in half the time."

"Great, give me twice the money." Or, "Great, cut out these requirements." Or, "That's nice. The likelihood that it will kill someone is... 35% greater."

There is one thing worse than having a business major run your company. That is having an accountant run it.

As always, Lyn, you are right on!

Seeing Engineering budgets cut every year with no basis in reality. It costs "X" amount just to sustain the business. I believe that with the budget reductions to the AOP in recent years where I work that we have crossed the "sustaining" cost line and we are struggling mightily as a result.

The biggest challenge I ever face was management whether it was from the business side or accounting or legal demanding quick specific answers to questions that they (management) could not define. Answers are easy; thr hard part is what is the question?