A Validated Systems Engineering Competency Methodology and Functional/Domain Competency Assessment Tool

摘要

As typical systems and Systems of Systems (SoS) become more complex, corporate success mandates that a well-trained, experienced, and competent workforce be employed. However, the difficulty arises on determining how a company can effectively assess their staff's functional and technical competencies to see if they are aligned with corporate objectives. While there is no shortage of SE competency models/ methodologies, one must first define the desired goals. For BAE Systems, Inc., the goal was to establish a methodology which allows SE contributors to self-assess in both SE functional and domain technical competencies (by business area), to identify training/ experience shortfalls, and to provide a mechanism for growth discussions with functional management. The developed competency methodology/tool were beta tested using several systems engineers. Findings included that: 1) SE practitioners could quickly assess their current SE competencies, as well as understand the key domain technical focus areas of their business area, 2) Systemic training/experience short falls in both the functional and domain competency areas were rapidly identified and mitigated, 3) Assessment tool artifacts were successfully used at functional management reviews to identify required training/ mentoring and development plans for all participants and 4) Surveyed participants felt like more of a stakeholder in their own training plan and better aligned with corporate objectives.