Technical Report
Atlas: The Theory of Effective Systems Engineers, Version 0.5
-
Human Capital Development
Report Number: SERC-2015-TR-108
Publication Date: 2015-12-01
Project:
Helix – Developing Effective Systems Engineers
Principal Investigators:
Dr. Art Pyster
Co-Principal Investigators:
Research conducted through the Helix project has now produced version 0.5 of Atlas1 : the Theory of Effective Systems Engineers. Figure 1 provides an overview of the theory and its various elements.
Foundational to Atlas is the understanding that an effective systems engineer is someone who consistently delivers value by performing systems engineering activities in positions assigned by the organization, as illustrated in Figure 1 along with the elements that influence and enable this effectiveness of systems engineers. The changes in these elements over time present a dynamic view, that is manifested in the career paths of systems engineers.
This report presents details of the various elements of Atlas; provides insights into how they were built based on Helix data; and offers recommendations for the development of effective systems engineers by individuals and organizations.
The Helix team continues to develop Atlas into a complete and mature theory that may be deployed
independently by individuals developing their personal careers in systems engineering and by
organizations developing their systems engineering workforce.