Proposing a framework for restructuring an introductory engineering management course for undergraduates

Kathryn D. Abel, Anirban Ganguly

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

Abstract

Engineering Management (EM) is concerned with the application of engineering principles to the domain of business, project and process management. With the varied and expanding employment opportunities available to an Engineering Manager, it is more important than ever for the EM undergraduate to have an understanding of what his major encompasses, including its utility as a practical discipline, as well as, the advantages it provides within industry. The purpose of this paper is to propose a framework for restructuring an existing introductory EM course for the undergraduate Engineering Management population. The goal of the new course is the same as that of the existing introductory EM course; to effectively communicate what EM is and all that it encompasses within one semester's time. However, the revised version of the course is approached with the intention of improving the course's quality and appeal, as well as its' overall effectiveness in conveying the different aspects of EM to the sophomore level audience. The paper proposes the use of failure analysis, and the mapping of it to various EM topics, in order to introduce EM to the undergraduates from a different perspective than the traditional one.The goal being to intrigue the student with how EM practices could have been used, or used better, to have avoided the failure. The process of restructuring the Undergraduate course titled 'Management of Engineering & Technology' at Stevens Institute of Technology is used as an illustrative example to validate the framework. The paper concludes with the findings. In addition, recommendations are provided.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publication119th ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition
StatePublished - 2012
Event119th ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition - San Antonio, TX, United States
Duration: 10 Jun 201213 Jun 2012

Publication series

NameASEE Annual Conference and Exposition, Conference Proceedings
ISSN (Electronic)2153-5965

Conference

Conference119th ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CitySan Antonio, TX
Period10/06/1213/06/12

Keywords

  • Engineering management (EM)
  • Failure analysis
  • Introductory EM course

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