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On this page there are articles, presentations, news items and random thoughts by me about aspects of Systems Engineering. It is divided into three sections, which represent the three different books I am hoping to write representing different perspectives on Systems Engineering
- Everything is a System
- The Practical Practice of Systems Engineering
- People Make Systems
1. Everything is a System
This section is about looking at anything (transport systems, aircraft, cities …) through the lens of systems - to show the generic system properties that explain how they work 'as a whole'. I know (as a nod to the systems thinking scientists) that everything isn’t a system, and even the definition of what is a system is a mental construct in the eye of the beholder. The theme of the book is everything, or anything, can be thought of as if it were a system; and often this provides useful or interesting insights
- Systems Lessons from the Panama Canal
I wrote a paper for IS 2024 (in Dublin) with this title. This is an adaptation of the paper presentation that I gave at the CAG Syntell Summer School in August 2024. This basic premise of the paper is seeing the “systems” issues in the Panama Canal, – but there are aspects that fit into the other Blog categories:
a) there is the practical practice issue of ensuring the realisation systems for your system are prepared
b) there are a lot of people / leadership issues (both good and bad)
Anyway, I think that the history of the Panama canal makes an interesting systems canal. If this wets your appetite I thoroughly recommend the David McCullough book “the Path Between the Seas” which was the inspiration (it is pure history without the “systems lessons”)
2. The Practical Practice of Systems Engineering
This represents my reflections and take on how Systems Engineering can be done in order to produce useful results - recognising Systems Engineering isn’t done for its own sake, but to increase the chance of producing / updating systems so that they work!
This is an article prompted by some material I read on Brainstorming. This technique is very much part of the practice of Systems Engineering, so it fits in this section. There is awful an amount of discussion on behaviours and making sure all get to contribute, so there is ‘people’ stuff in this as well.
3. People Make Systems
This area looks at the 'soft skills' and organization principles need to enable individual, teams and enterprises to effectively do and engage with Systems Engineering. To my mind this is the most important, and most challenging part of doing Systems Engineering.
This is an initial set of thoughts about the important aspect of how individuals professionally develop, starting with being honest and open about their weaknesses and shortcomings rather than just emphasing their strengths. I expect there will be a lot more to come in this arera
4. Other
This is an area for other material that doesn’t fit into any of the sections above.
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