Publication

This document summarizes the work done by the Helix team in 2017 and highlights the work planned in 2018. In particular, it provides details on: 

•  Additional analyses conducted by the Helix team
• Additional data collected by the Helix team
• The change in research questions, which are now:
• How can organizations improve the effectiveness of their systems engineering workforce?
• How does the effectiveness of the systems engineering workforce impact the overall systems engineering capability of an organization?
• What critical factors, in additional to workforce effectiveness, are required to enable systems engineering capability?
• The three companion documents to this report developed by the Helix team:
• Atlas 1.1: The Theory of Effective Systems Engineers – (SERC-2018-TR-101-A)This is an incremental evolution of Atlas that reflects feedback from the community, additional analysis, and maturation of the team’s thinking in 2017. In particular, Atlas includes minor updates on the values systems engineers provide, the roles systems engineers play, the proficiency model for systems engineers, and the personal characteristics of systems engineers. Henceforth, this will be referred to as “Atlas 1.1”.
• Atlas Career Path Guidebook – (SERC-2018-TR-101-B) This document provides analyses of the Helix dataset, providing common patterns in systems engineers’ careers. The Guidebook also provides some insights on questions commonly asked of the Helix team around career paths and the team’s responses. Finally, additional work on linking proficiencies to career paths has been completed and is reflected in the guide. Henceforth, this will be referred to as the “Guidebook”.
• Atlas 1.1. Implementation Guide: Moving from Theory Into Practice – (SERC-2018-TR-101-C) Whenever Atlas is presented, there are many questions about how to take the theory and apply it in practice. The Guide provides examples from organizations that have implemented parts of Atlas, and guidance created by the Helix team based on many interactions with organizations around implementation as well as the extensive Helix dataset. Henceforth, this will be referred to as the “Implementation Guide”.

The future vision for Atlas includes developing a theory of systems engineering capability which is predicated on the hypothesis that an appropriately skilled systems engineering workforce supported by culture, governance, and infrastructure will deliver an effective systems engineering capability.