Career Goals and Challenges

What Engineers of the Future Need to Know to Succeed

April 29, 2019 By Anthony Fasano

What Engineers of the Future Need to Know is a blog post by Matthew K. Loos, PE, LEED AP

The following is an excerpt from The Business of Engineering: A New Mindset for the Engineer of the Future available only through this Kickstarter Campaign.

Engineers of the future will need to possess skills not commonly taught in engineering schools today. However, we can see that the curricula for a majority of engineering schools are beginning to change. Many schools are starting to adopt alternative learning strategies to engage more and more brighter students who may not have previously chosen engineering as a career path. The engineering schools have started to realize that technology is moving at such a rapid rate that they must prepare students differently than they have in the past.

Tips to Advance Your Career as a Mechanical Engineer

March 25, 2019 By Anthony Fasano

This is a guest blog by Carol Evenson

Being a successful mechanical engineer goes beyond just being a pro at science and math. Whether an individual has several years of experience as a mechanical engineer or has graduated recently, there are strategies and engineering career tips to take their profession to the next level. These tips can help any professional in the field of mechanical engineering advance their career. [Read more…] about Tips to Advance Your Career as a Mechanical Engineer

Focus on Getting Better at Your Engineering Job Every Day

March 18, 2019 By Anthony Fasano

***Focus on Getting Better at Your Engineering Job Every Day* *is a guest blog by Holly Welles***

Whether you’re starting an engineering management role for the first time or you’re a more seasoned professional, your energy is likely to wane after a few months of focusing at getting better at your engineering job. You’ve settled in and learned the ropes, after all. It becomes easier to do what needs to get done without pushing yourself to keep advancing your skills, service and expertise.

At this stage, it’s important to keep up your motivation. Engineering management professionals can do themselves, their teams and their clients a huge favor by focusing on getting better at their jobs every day. While it seems like a tall order, continual improvement is actually pretty easy to bake into your everyday routine.

You can focus on improving your priorities, mindset and knowledge with just a little effort each day. Here’s how to get started: [Read more…] about Focus on Getting Better at Your Engineering Job Every Day

How to Make Yourself an Always Demanded Engineering Professional

March 11, 2019 By Anthony Fasano

***How to Make Yourself an Always Demanded Engineering Professional* *is a guest blog by Jim Hughes***

Regardless of your job, industry, or position in the company you work for, it is always important to stay in the competition and be an in-demand professional. By being a demanded engineering professional, you’ll always have options and opportunities to grow and take on bigger roles. If your boss gives you more responsibilities, it is likely because you are doing your job very well and he or she sees you as a skilled and dependable person. Getting your superiors’ attention goes a long way in enhancing your odds of getting a promotion or a salary increase. Though the competition may be tough for you, there are many ways to make yourself a highly demanded engineering professional. Here are some of the most effective ways in increasing your value as a professional. [Read more…] about How to Make Yourself an Always Demanded Engineering Professional

How to Use Your Fear to Build Your Self-Confidence as an Engineering Professional

February 28, 2019 By Anthony Fasano

***This* *is a guest blog by Nader Mowlaee***

Building self-confidence is not easy. For many engineering professionals, comfort is a function of routine. We establish a set of sequences that we enjoy, that we know we succeed at, that will make us feel good, and that’s the end of it. But, to build true self-confidence, we need to break our routines. [Read more…] about How to Use Your Fear to Build Your Self-Confidence as an Engineering Professional

Young Engineers Moving into Management Positions

February 26, 2019 By Anthony Fasano

This is a guest blog by Kyle K. Cheerangie, P.E.

So, what is Engineering Management? Is it preparing budgets, scheduling, resource allocation and earned value management? These skills are the barometers of monitoring projects and work groups. But management principles are more defined than you’d think. Specifically: [Read more…] about Young Engineers Moving into Management Positions

Why Engineers Might Consider Opportunities in Construction Fields

January 21, 2019 By Anthony Fasano

This is a guest blog by Holly Welles

The automotive, aeronautical and electronics industries are all popular among engineering graduates, however, as a recent graduate, it’s essential to explore the full spectrum of possibilities. While you likely have preferences and priorities, you shouldn’t limit yourself by your expectations. There’s no set path you need to follow.

With this in mind, you should consider seeking opportunities within the construction field. It’s an excellent field for engineers, and there’s always demand for professionals with a specific set of skills and abilities. More than that, the necessity of construction ensures its value far into the future.

Presently, you might be curious about what engineering in construction fields entails. I’ll tell you everything you need to know about the subject, touching on three reasons why you should research the industry and review your options. Consider the following…

Good Engineers Practice: Skills to Advance Your Career

November 14, 2018 By Anthony Fasano

This is a guest post by Kyle K. Cheerangie, P.E.

As a younger engineer I occasionally spent time doing the wrong things. My eagerness caused me to accept tasks and work with unconfirmed assumptions. This lead to repeat work and disappointment from my mangers. My focus was on activity, not results.

Keeping a journal helped me learned that I was spending much of my time doing tasks that did not contribute to my team. The best engineers perform the necessary tasks and delegate or eliminate the unnecessary.

For example, spending weeks to create a report with multiple iterations for comments and changes, when a simple technical memorandum would suffice. Young engineers typically experience challenges like this one and most managers don’t have the heart to say, “No! This is not what I want.”

Learn and practice these skills to improve:

5 Key Skills You Can Build to Manage Conflict in the Workplace

July 11, 2018 By Anthony Fasano

5 Key Skills You Can Build to Manage Conflict in the Workplace
is a guest blog by Walter Bodell

Conflict is an inevitable part of life. People with the healthiest relationships, both personally and professionally, understand and recognize this fact. Rather than trying to simply avoid conflict, they learn to manage conflict and work through it. Developing good conflict resolution skills for the workplace is possibly one of the most important things you can do to create a healthy working environment both for yourself and for others. By learning to manage and resolve conflict in the workplace, you can make yourself an invaluable part of almost any team. Here are 5 critical elements to you can use to manage conflict in the workplace.

3 Things You Need to Know to Engineer Resolution

July 3, 2018 By Christian Knutson, PE, PgMP, PMP

One thing that is certain to happen in your engineering career is conflict. This isn’t because the engineering profession is more prone to conflict than accounting or that engineers tend to be a contentious lot. It’s because, as in any profession, you’ll find people. Wherever there are people you will find conflict. Because of this, it’s important to develop a basic understanding of the three things you need to know to engineer resolution.