While industry is working out the details of model-based systems engineering implementation, I am going to discuss the most basic concept in systems engineering: The System. The word system creates a difficulty since the word can refer to a system of any degree of complexity, be it an eco-system, an …

As one year turns into another, we are looking back to see what compelled our attention in 2018. What were the ideas and stories about systems engineering that caught our eye? Where were we challenged to re-think certain assumptions we held, and how did that change us? Where did we …

Last time, we covered the first three of our nine laws of effective systems engineering. Law #1 – Begin with the End in Mind; Law #2 – It Doesn’t Help to Solve the Wrong Problem; and Law #3 – Insight Is the Goal. Today we encounter the next three: Law …

As is often the case, it is the neglect of fundamental principles that is at the root of poor performance. Sports coaches often stress the return to fundamentals—the “blocking and tackling”—as the key to improving team performance. This is a recognition of the powerful effect that adherence to sound fundamental …