NSBE Magazine - Fall 2010 - 47

THEAENICHE

leTTiNg eNgiNeers lead
By Thzaira Charles, P.E., NSBE National Alumni Extension Chair

he collapse of the housing market; the roller coaster rides on Wall Street; the uncertainty of employment returning to pre-recession levels; the possible emergence of China as the next superpower and that nation’s interest in markets in Africa; the “Green Movement”; the oil spill in the Gulf Region. All of these things and more are happening today, and we must be prepared to react and adapt to the changes they bring. As engineers, we are trained to solve problems, be the technical experts and come up with the next technological innovation to make life better. But, as engineers, we are not always thought of as the strategy developers for the technical and nontechnical personnel who make up the project team. When it comes to choosing the person to produce the comprehensive report with findings and recommendations, engineers rarely get the nod. As engineers and other technical professionals, we work in teams to achieve the goal of completing a project, and the project’s ultimate goal is usually to solve a problem. But despite our expertise, we don’t often get the opportunity to lead those projects. As a result, we see many engineers move on to management jobs in which they may or may not use their technical knowledge. We see technical professionals get frustrated and move into different fields altogether to take on more leadership responsibilities. These personnel movements often have a detrimental effect on employers, who lose or fail to fully use their technical competence. Brain power is lost, and employers get unwanted reputations as organizations that cannot retain engineering talent. Despite the stereotype of the engineer as a nerdy, introverted human calculator, we know the reality: that we are highly skilled individuals who not only possess the technical knowledge to produce and execute the solution but also have the soft skills needed to anticipate problems and deliver and market the solutions. We need look no farther than the Gulf of Mexico today to see engineers’ critical role in industry and government, and the kind of costs that can quickly accrue when our skills are not fully appreciated.
www.nsbe.org

As NSBE members, we are in a unique position to help shift the popular paradigm for the use of technical talent. One of my focuses this year is to leverage NSBE’s partnerships: to see our corporate and government sponsors not only as sources of funding and employment but also as opportunities to showcase the fact that we possess both the technical and soft skills to lead multidisciplinary teams and still retain “engineer” in our job titles. By becoming true partners with our sponsors, NSBE can change the general perception of the technical professional in the employer community and create career paths where “technical” and “management” no longer diverge at a particular point. ■

“As NSBE members, we are in a unique position to help shift the popular paradigm for the use of technical talent.”

• CAREER ENGINEER • fall 2010 • 47

NSBE Magazine - Fall 2010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NSBE Magazine - Fall 2010