Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Jeffrey A. Jalkio
Vice President of Research
CyberOptics Corporation
Minneapolis, MN
and
Department of Manufacturing Systems and Engineering
University of St. Thomas
St. Paul, MN
SUMMARY
An engineer’s role in an organization is determined not
only by his or her training, experience, and interests but
also by the size and culture of the organization in which
they work. In many companies each engineer has a clearly
defined job with stable responsibilities and authority. Over
time, engineers may move from one position to another
within the company, but these transitions are clearly
defined and relatively infrequent. Although this model is
common in large organizations, small companies rarely
follow it. Since they provide a disproportionately large
percentage of new jobs, it is profitable to consider how
small companies employ their engineers and how
universities can provide engineers that meet their needs.
Within small, entrepreneurial companies, engineers are
often called upon to play many parts, from marketing,
customer service, and participating in sales calls to
managerial, financial, and administrative responsibilities.
Occasionally, they even design products and processes.
Engineers are often chosen for these roles because of their
demonstrated problem solving abilities, but success in these
arenas requires other skills as well. The engineer in a small
company must be able to explain, persuade, motivate,
facilitate communication, be able to recognize which skills
are required in each situation and adapt rapidly to these
changing requirements.
A well-integrated liberal education can provide the
engineer with this required flexibility. In particular, it
gives the engineer a broad view of problem solving and
design that encompasses the human, organizational, and
societal aspects. Combined with a rigorous program of
scientific and engineering courses, such an education is the
best possible training for leaders in business and society.
1 Dennis, W. J., Phillips, B.D., Starr, E, (1994),“Small business job creation: The findings and their critics”, Business
Economics, Vol. 29, No. 3, p. 23
2 Greiner, L.E. (1972), “Evolution and Revolution as Organizations Grow”, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 50, No. 4,
pp.37-46
3 Society of Manufacturing Engineers, (1997) "Manufacturing Education Plan: Phase I Report", SME
4 MacKinnon, J.C., (1997), “The Engineering Humanities”, American Society of Engineering Education PRISM, Vol. 6,
No. 8, p. 48.
5 Nair, Indra, (1997), “Decision Making in the Engineering Classroom”, Journal of Engineering Education, Vol. 86, No. 4,
pp.349-356.