ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT AND DECISION

MAKING ETEN 509

Electronics and Telecommunications Ahmadu Bello University (ABU)

Engineering Department (ETED)
 ELEMENTS OF ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT

BY

DR. A. M. S. TEKANYI
{B. Eng-Hons (USL-1990), MSc (LONDON-2001),
PhD (ABU-2014), MNSE, MIRDI, A-COREN}

Chairman Electronics and Telecommunications

Engineering Research Group (C-ETERG)
 ENGINEERING
➢ The profession in which a knowledge
of mathematical and natural science
gained by study, experience, and
practice is applied with sound
judgement to develop ways to
utilize, economically, materials and
forces of nature for the benefit of
mankind.
 MANAGEMENT
➢ A set of activities (including planning
and decision making, organising,
leading, monitoring, and controlling)
organisation’s resources (human,
financial, physical, and informational)
with the aim of achieving organisational
goals in an efficient and effective
manner.
ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT
➢ is concerned with the direct supervision of engineers and their
related management functions (planning, organising, leading,
monitoring, and controlling) in a technological organisation.
➢ helps engineers develop critical thinking capabilities and
makes them more effective as technical contributors
(understand managerial points of view, effect teams
coordination, drive to add value, etc)
➢ prepares engineers for leadership managerial positions of
responsibilities (managerial functions, success factors,
leadership talents/skills, business/management perspectives,
expectations, contributions, etc) and make them effective
leaders in meeting the challenges of the new millennium
 DECISION MAKING
➢ “is a conscious and Human Process involving both individual and
social phenomenon based upon factual and value premises which
concludes a choice of one behavioural activity among one or more
alternatives with the intention of moving towards some desired
state of affairs” (Shull, Delberg & Cumming).

➢ “is a process of identifying and choosing alternative courses of

action in a manner appropriate to the demand of the situation.
The act of choosing, implies that alternative courses of action must
be weighted and weeded out” (Kreitner).
 MOTIVATING FACTORS
➢ Technology and business practical know-how represent a
very powerful combination of great demand in society.

➢ Rapid evolving market environment (changing marketplace

complexities, web-based technologies, and globalization) is a
great determining factor.

➢ Leaders with understanding of technology and management

perspectives are the most appropriate to lead.

➢ Engineers with proper management and leadership training

skills have great opportunities to add value.
 MOTIVATING FACTORS
➢ New Millennium Challenges

✓ Marketplace changes rapidly (Web-based technologies,

globalization, customer demand, business networks)
affecting how progressive companies will be organized.

✓ Engineering managers to lead by supervising complex teams,

innovating with vision for the future, designing global
products, and organizing supply chains, apply global
resources to derive economies of scale and scope.
 MOTIVATING FACTORS
➢ New Millennium Challenges
 MOTIVATING FACTORS
➢ New Millennium Challenges
INSIDE:
✓ Implement projects/programs through effective management of
people, technologies, and resources to add value.
✓ Develop new valuable product features to enhance company
competitiveness.
✓ Define, monitor, control, and reduce costs to improve profitability.
✓ Initiate technology projects to sustain company position.
OUTSIDE:
✓ Keep abreast with emerging technologies and apply them to
strengthen the company’s core competencies.
✓ Apply web-based tools to enhance operations and foster customer
relations.
✓ Identify best practices to improve engineering operations and surpass
them.
✓ Create supply chain networks to derive speed, quality, and cost
benefits.
 MOTIVATING FACTORS
➢ New Millennium Challenges
PRESENT:
✓ Do things right to keep the company operating smoothly.
✓ Use Balanced Scorecard (for recording gains) to monitor non-
financial and financial performance.
✓ Control costs and eliminate wastes to obtain profitability in the
short-run.
FUTUTRE:
✓ Seek e-transformation opportunities to create company
profitability in the long-run.
✓ Introduce timely new generation products.
✓ Create vision for the future related to technologies.
✓ Define what should be done for technology-based success in
the future.
 MOTIVATING FACTORS
➢ New Millennium Challenges
LOCAL:
✓ Utilize resources to best achieve the company’s objectives.
✓ Take ethical (accepted) and lawful actions while taking into
account local conditions.
✓ Maintain and nurture (develop) local professional networks.
✓ Share lessons gained with people at other company sites.
GLOBAL:
✓ Apply location-based resources to realize global economies of
scale and scope for achieving cost and technological
advantages.
✓ Develop global professional networks.
✓ Acquire a global mindset (think globally not locally).
✓ Exercise leadership roles in international settings.
 SOME ENGINEERING ACTIVITIES
➢ Design/development of products/processes.

➢ Project engineering/management.

➢ Value engineering and analysis.

➢ Technological development and applied R&D

(laboratory, field).

➢ Production/manufacturing and construction.

➢ Customer service.
ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS
➢ The following are engineering management functions:
ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS
➢ Planning (forecasting, setting objectives, action planning,
administering policies, establishing procedures).

➢ Organizing (organizing workplace, selecting structure,

delegating, establishing health working relationship).

➢ Leading (deciding, communicating, motivating,

selecting/developing people).

➢ Monitoring (supervising, educating, showing by examples,

convincing by redirecting).

➢ Controlling (setting performance standards,

evaluating/documenting/correcting performance).
 FUNCTIONS OF ORGANIZING
➢ Functions (actions) necessary to do to
achieve good organization and success are:

➢ Organizing workplace.

➢ Developing structure (arrangement of parts).

➢ Delegating (give part of) work/responsibilities

➢ Establishing relationship
 ORGANIZING WORKPLACE
➢Set priority of daily work (attend meetings, make
phone calls, write emails, block out time to do
creative work, discourage distractions and
disruptions, keep conversations short, maintain “to-
do” lists, prioritize (critical) tasks, etc.).

➢Create a file system for efficient retrieval of kept

records (information).

➢Develop own system for names and contact

information.
SKILLS FOR TECHNICAL MANAGERS
➢ To achieve the following, a manager needs to
acquire skillful critical thinking for sound
judgement:

Administrative
Leadership Skills
Skills

Technical Skills
TYPES OF ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES
➢ Identify and group work so that it can be
efficiently done.

➢ Structural options available to achieve effective

execution of work in an organization are:
✓ Functional.
✓ Discipline.
✓ Product/Regional.
✓ Matrix.
✓ Team.
✓ Network.
 Function-based Structure
➢ The relationship of the different elements in a function-
based structure.
 Function-based Structure
Advantages: Disadvantages:
➢ Permits Hierarchy of skills. ➢ Encourages excessive
➢ Facilitates specialization. centralization.
➢ Simplifies coordination. ➢ Delays decision making.
➢ Permits the use of current ➢ Limits personal growth.
technologies and ➢ Compounds
equipment. communication line loss.
➢ Restricts development of
managerial skills.
When to Use Function-based Structure
The use of function-based structure is good in:

➢organizations with high relative stability of work flow

and limited product diversity such as certain
manufacturing operations, process industries, etc.

➢startup companies.

➢organizations with narrow product ranges, simple

marketing pattern, and few production sites.
 Discipline-based Structure
➢The relationship of the different engineering
disciplines in a discipline-based structure.
When to Use Discipline-based Structure
➢ The discipline-based organizational structure is:

➢ favoured by universities, governmental laboratories, and

other R&D organizations.

➢ Promotes innovative pursuits in individual disciplines,

allowing employees to drill down to deeper knowledge
levels without requiring much coordination with others.
 Product-Based Structure
➢ The relationship of the different products in a
product-based organizational structure is as
follows:
 Region-Based Structure
➢ The relationship of the different contents in a
region-based structure.
 Product-based/Regional-based Structures
Advantages: Disadvantages:
➢ Focuses on end products or ➢ High costs due to layers,
geographical regions. autonomy, or duplicated
facilities.
➢ Facilitates coordination.
➢ Requires management
➢ Encourages management talents.
development.
➢ Technical obsolescence
➢ Provides for of specialists.
decentralization.
➢ Changes take time to
➢ Promotes growth. effect.
 Projects Matrix-Based Structure
➢ The relationship of the different projects in a matrix-
based structure.
 Leader-Members Matrix Structure
➢ The relationship of the leader-members in a matrix-
based structure.
 Matrix-based Structures
Advantages: Disadvantages:
➢ Project manager focuses ➢ Dual reporting.
on schedule and cost and
functional managers on ➢ Severe conflicts among
quality/expertise. managers.

➢ Work load is balanced. ➢ Delicate balance of

power (people versus
➢ Excellent for individuals (to money/time).
achieve exposure
interactions. ➢ Communications
problems.
DECISION MAKING IN MANAGEMENT
Managerial Decision Making
➢ Decision making: the process by which managers
respond to opportunities and threats by analyzing
options and making decisions about goals and
courses of action.
➢ Decisions in response to opportunities: managers
respond to ways to improve organizational
performance.
➢ Decisions in response to threats: managers respond
to adverse events in order to lessen or eliminate the
negative effects on the organization.
DECISION MAKING IN MANAGEMENT
Types of Decision Making
➢ Programmed Decisions: These are routine-based
decisions which are almost automatic processes.
✓ Managers have made decision many times before.
✓ There are rules or guideline to follows.
• Example: Deciding to replace managers computers.
➢ Non-Programmed Decisions: Unusual situations that
have not been often addressed.
✓ No rules to follow since the decision to be taken is
new.
✓ These decisions are made based on information and a
manager’s intuition and judgement.
• Example: Should the company invest in a new
technology.
DECISION MAKING IN MANAGEMENT
➢ Decision Making Process
DECISION MAKING IN MANAGEMENT
➢ Decision Making Process
✓ Recognize need for decision
• Managers must first realize the need for which a
decision must be made.
✓ Frame/design the problem
• Managers must frame/design the problem for which a
decision is to be made.
✓ Generate and assess alternatives
• Managers must generate alternatives by developing
feasible alternate courses of action.
- If good alternatives are missed, the resulting decision
is poor.
- It is difficult to develop creative alternatives, therefore
managers need to look for new ideas.
DECISION MAKING IN MANAGEMENT
➢ Decision Making Process (Generate and Assess
Alternatives)
✓ Evaluate alternatives by identifying the advantages and
disadvantages of each alternative.
• Managers should specify criteria and then evaluate.
• Is the possible cause of action:
DECISION MAKING IN MANAGEMENT
➢Decision Making Process (Alternatives
Evaluation)
✓Is it legal? Managers must first be sure that an
alternative is legal both in this country and abroad
for exports.
✓Is it ethical? The alternative must be ethical and
not hurt stakeholders unnecessarily.
✓Is it economically feasible? The alternative must be
able to sustain the organization’s goal.
✓Is it practical? The management must have the
capabilities and resources to do it.
DECISION MAKING IN MANAGEMENT
➢ Decision Making Process
Choose Among Alternatives
✓ Managers rank alternatives and decide.
• While ranking alternatives, all information needs to be provided for
consideration of a proper choice.

Implement chosen alternative

✓ Managers must now carry out the alternative.
• Often a decision is made and not implemented.

Learn from Feedback

✓ Managers must consider what went right/wrong with the decision,
keep record of it, and learn from it for the future.
• Without feedback, managers never learn from experience and
might repeat the same mistake.
YOUR ATTENTION IS
APPRECIATED

THANK YOU

HOPE MESSAGE IS
PASSED