Abstract
This paper discusses three main questions in three separate essays for each question. The purpose of this paper is to show the extent of learning the student has undergone during the course. The first essay is about the responsibilities of professional engineers on how they have to take decisions based on logical and valid arguments while keeping technical limitations in mind. There are several external factors which are beyond the control of an organization which are described in second essay. The last essay explains about how leadership involves a different kind of function and mind set as compared to managers.
Introduction
Professional engineers are competent by the virtue of their fundamental education along with the training in order to apply particular scientific method to get the solution through analysis of the engineering problems. They are capable to assume individual responsibility for application and development of engineering, especially in the field of research & development, designing, managing, construction, and manufacturing as learnt during their education.
Responsibilities of Professional Engineers
The engineering work is mainly intellectual hence requiring an exercise of unique judgment and thought. Following are the main responsibilities of professional engineers:-
- They have to become and remain experts in their particular area in the field of engineering especially for the one in which an extended and advanced formation is essential while requiring a high level of theoretical base.
- They have to master in an undoubtedly valuable and definable frame of understanding and knowledge.
- They have to accept the accountability and responsibility for their decisions against typical values and conduct.
Various good professional Engineering Practices include:-
- Use of seal of a professional engineer for formal correspondence
- Relations with employer or client to enhance collaboration with both
- Professional report writing aimed at presenting suitable solutions in accordance with the technical standards
- Giving opinions in technical issues
- Efficient communications at all levels
- Retaining essential technical documents
- Keeping confidential information under safe custody
- Volunteering for resolving technical issues
- Information gathering right from start of projects
A recent research conducted at Swiss federal Institute of technology (SFIT) in Zurich studied 800 cases in which structural failure took place due to which a total of 504 people got killed and 592 people were injured along with Billions of dollars got wasted due to engineers’ faults.
The major sources of such engineering disasters may include following:-
- Human factors including ethical
- Design flaws at the start and during the structuring of the project
- Materials failures due to insufficient research of the material needed according to the project’s requirements
- Not considering any sort of extreme environmental conditions at the beginning of the project
Conclusion
Engineering has always been debatable subject, and seems to continue to remain so in the future. For this reason, both negative and positive sides of engineers and their profession are to be considered. The profession of engineering has always been heatedly debated in various industries at all levels. There are engineers in the industry who continue with their engineering profession in either good or bad manner.
Introduction
There are many external factors affecting a business which are beyond the control of an organization. These external factors include social, competitive, economic, political and technological. An organization must take these factors into consideration before starting any project.
External Factors
These external factors include following major ones:-
- Social
In United States only environmental, cultural, and demographic trends are significantly shaping the way of Americans life, work, products, and consumption. The old members of America which are more than 76 million are planning to retire during 2013 which will create deep concerns of their social Medicare and security. This situation has greatly emphasized the concerns of such people on many insurance companies such as Allied Insurance.
- Competitive
A similarly important external factor is classifying competing firms and determining their capabilities, strengths, weaknesses, threats, opportunities, strategies, and objectives. The extent of competitive information collected determines the advantageous position of the company over its competitors through planning good strategies.
- Economic
The United States and other world economies have underwent prolonged severe distortions. Consequently, businesses splashed and resorted in order to achieve manpower cutbacks, with numerous big, medium, and small enterprises enforced by economic conditions to close. Similar effects have been seen in the housing meltdown which is a vital example of adverse external economic factors bringing down big industries and businesses. The house building companies including Centex Corporation which is a renowned company in United States for building homes have been affected by this change in economic conditions.
- Political
Potential and existing developments bearing on tax laws, regulatory framework, trade quota & restraints, industry subsidies, local manufacturing requirements, investment incentives, regulated pricing, trade agreements, bureaucratic processes, and economic treaties are main political factors that may be considered when planning a business. The National level political stability must be given key consideration in this external factor. The complication of political infrastructure is the reason to why strategists spend more time in influencing and anticipating actions related to public policies.
- Technological
Another significant external factor is the technological factor which is beyond the control of an organization. The technology applications also refer to advancements in systems in the field of superconductivity, which continue to increase the performance of electrical and electronics products through lowering resistance. This external factor may affect Intel Inc. which is a large producer of electronic products.
Conclusion
Despite the fact that all these factors are beyond the control of an organization, an organization can make good decisions by just taking these factors into consideration while taking decisions.
Introduction
Management and leadership go side by side in today’s era of global competition. They are quite different ways of controlling and administrating people and are still somehow linked to each other in various manners. Effort of separating both of these are expected to originate various issues than its benefits hence the differences in both of these styles of administration have been highlighted at all levels.
Differences between Managers and Leaders
The manager’s tasks are planning, organizing and coordinating. The leader’s tasks are inspiring and motivation. Following major differences can be considered as the vital ones:
- Managers administer the workers; Leaders innovate through intuition
- Managers are copies; Leaders are original
- Managers maintain the work; Leaders develop the work
- Managers tend to focus on structure and systems; Leaders focus on people.
- Managers rely on control of workers; Leaders inspire trust among subordinates
- Managers have a short-range view; Leaders have long range perspectives
- Managers ask when and how about the tasks; Leaders ask why and what of the tasks
- Managers have their eye on bottom line of the tasks; Leaders’ eyes are on the horizon of the tasks
- Managers imitate from others; Leaders originate for others
- Managers accept status quo; Leaders challenge it
- Managers are like good soldiers; Leaders are their own person
- Managers do things in right manner; Leaders do the right things
Conceivably, there was an era when calling of a manager and leader could be detached. A foreman of an industrial era plant perhaps didn’t give considerable thought to his/her production and the producing people. The job at that time was considered just to follow the orders while organizing the work and assigning right people on the right tasks. Various other task may have included coordinating the results and ensuring the work done according to the set parameters. The prime focus of that era was only on efficiency of work. Whereas in current new economy, the values come mostly from knowledge of the people while the workers are not undifferentiated cogs of industrial machine. So the leadership and management are inseparable. The managers apply modern ethical theories based on Y theory of management rather than traditional X theory of management.
Conclusion
Currently, people look towards their managers for definition of tasks with clear purpose rather than just getting instructions. Managers must organize their workers to develop and nurture their skills which will consequently result in enhanced efficiency.
