Engineering Management Institute

UPCOMING WEBINAR

BIM as an Effective Tool in Project Management

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BIM as an Effective Tool in Project Management is a guest post by Shakti Prasad

BIMBIM (Building Information Modeling) has been revolutionizing the AEC industry in terms of economic and technical viability, over the past few years. The advantages of the long-term application of BIM can be leveraged most efficiently in the field of project management. The need for management of an asset is a continuous process; from inception to demolition, a true cradle to grave cycle which involves handling large volumes of data, handling a lot of responsibilities, and so on for which BIM is the one-stop solution. Project managers need to embrace Building Information Modeling, interrogate the BIM information and reap the maximum benefits out of it for effective project management.

How Building Information Modeling (BIM) facilitates effective project management?

There are 2 broad aspects of Building Information Modeling which enables it in facilitating project management:

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TECC 132: Building Project Management into your Engineering Career

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project managementIn this episode, Chris Knutson, PE will answer some questions from listeners and give advice on why engineers should consider studying and learning about project management. He will also expand on why project management will be good for your engineering career, as well as your engineering organization.

Engineering Success quotes:

project management

project management

Here are the key points from this episode on Project Management for Engineers:

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Learn about Project Management to Enhance Your Engineering Career

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Project ManagementWhether you want to become a project manager or not, you’ll be running a project at some point in your life and in one of your capacities.  It might be in the role you hold at your firm, or in the role you occupy in a technical or professional organization, or even a role you fill in a community group.  The point is, many of activities we undertake are projects.  That is, they are what Project Management International (PMI) defines as a, temporary in that it has a defined beginning and end in time, and therefore defined scope and resources.  A project is unique in that it is not a routine operation, but a specific set of operations designed to accomplish a singular goal.


So the question is, do you want to approach your management of these projects in life half-assed, or with a framework that will make your management of the project more efficient?

Before I dive into one possible answer to this question (the option I’ll suggest is one worth following!), I’m not advocating earning a credential, certificate or degree in project management.  I don’t believe a practicing engineering professional must earn one of these to be proficient in applying project management concepts to efficiently bring about intended benefits to the customers and clients they serve.  What I do believe, is that one cannot leave development of a methodology of project management to on-the-job training or simple observation.

Learning about project management by osmosis might make you proficient, however, I doubt it.  Relying on casual observation to learn, internalize, and then apply knowledge in a fashion that enhances ones proficiency in any topic is a path that’s fraught with long lead-time.  Simply put, you’re going to get a better return on investment of time if you actively study project management methodology and know the basic concepts.

So how is knowing project management concepts going to make you a better engineer?

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TCEP 022: Working Effectively on Multidisciplinary Projects as a Civil Engineer with Todd Hay of Pennoni Associates

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TCEP Ep22

In episode 022 of The Civil Engineering Podcast, Todd Hay, who has 23 years as a civil engineer working on multidisciplinary firms, talks about cross marketing, communicating effectively, working on proposals for multidisciplinary projects, and more.

Here are some key points discussed in this episode:

  1. Communication: understand how other disciplines works and when you need to get help. Understanding the key roles of other disciplines is critical to an engineer as he/she grows in his/her profession; get a better handle on what each discipline does.TCEP Ep22 tweet quote1 [Read more…]

TCEP 021: Leading Change in Your Civil Engineering Career

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TCEP Ep21

In episode 021 of The Civil Engineering Podcast, Jon Weinstein, President of Line-of-Sight Consulting, talks about change management, what it is and why it is important to understand it in the context of an engineer involved in projects as well as management and leadership of people.

Here are some key points discussed in this episode: [Read more…]

TECC 74: Four Key Insights To Earning $100,000 Per Year in Your Engineering Career – The Engineering Career Coach Podcast

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project management
In this session of The Engineering Career Coach Podcast, Chris Knutson interviews Bruce Harpham and discusses career planning, increasing your ability to generate more income, and lifelong learning and certifications.

“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.”  – Viktor Frankl, author of Man’s Search for Meaning

In the Take Action Today segment of the show, Bruce gives some advice on how to position yourself for an increase in responsibility and compensation and how to become more fulfilled in your life.

Bruce is the founder of Project Management Hacks, a career development resource for project managers. Bruce’s project experience includes leading projects at banks and universities. Bruce earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Toronto. Bruce’s writing on project management, careers and technology has appeared at ProjectManagement.com, CIO.com, Lifehack.org and many other leading websites.

Listen to this session and learn how to earn your way to a six-figure income as a project manager. Here are some valuable tips from Bruce:

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5 Things You Can Do To Increase Focus in Your Engineering Career

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TECC 150713 FocusOne of the challenges I hear about from a lot of engineers is how to stay focused when there are so many distractions vying for their bandwidth.  I can relate, the same problem exists for me!  I think that any engineering professional today is going to have to come up with ways to protect their “space” so that they can generate quality focus time on the tasks before them. This is really important for doing work that requires the minds full engagement.  I remember doing design work early in my engineering career and how frustrated I would become when I was interrupted by a phone call or someone stopping by to chat.  It became even worse when later in my career when I sat in a cubicle farm.  Trying to concentrate on writing a report or putting a presentation together with ringing phones, conversations all around and unfettered access to anyone walking by nearly drove me insane. So how do you create the space necessary to be focused?

Before I get into the five things you can do to increase focus in your engineering career I have to ask:  do you want to increase your focus?  I ask this because some of these suggestions will require you to not be immediately responsive to another person’s desire to communicate with you. You may also have to learn how to tell people “no” when they want to stop by to chat.  And you will also need to train yourself to be focused on single tasks. If you’re willing and able, then here are the five things you can do to increase focus in your engineering career: [Read more…]

TCEP 009: Six Challenges in Managing Multi-Organizational Civil Engineering Projects and How to Overcome Them – The Civil Engineering Podcast

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Stan Musial Bridge final

In episode 009 of the Civil Engineering Podcast, we take a closer look at Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge in St. Louis, Missouri and provide project management advice from Jeff Church, PE and Gwen Lageman, PE, the engineers who worked on the project. Christian will break down the project and I will summarizes 6 challenges the project engineers encountered during the design and construction of the bridge and how communication plays an important role in the success of the project.

In this episode, you’ll learn: [Read more…]

Why Working Less on Your Projects Can Improve Engineering and Project Management Efforts

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There is a stereotype in the engineering world that I would like to disprove and that is, to be successful in your engineering and project management efforts you have to work a TON of hours.  I think this is totally false, and I think that this stereotype is causing a lot of engineering and project management professionals to burn out.

I recently had a discussion with a very successful engineering company owner and he actually told me that he tries to do the opposite.  He hires really good staff, so that he can work less and enjoy life more.  Yes, he actually said that.

I believe that one way to improve the quality of your engineering and project management work is to work less.  Yes, work less.  Here are 5 reasons/steps why and how you can improve your engineering and project management work by working less.

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9 Steps to Get A Project Back On Track

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No project lasts first contact with reality, just like no military plan lasts first contact with the enemy. It isn’t because there’s a lack of good engineers and project managers. No, it’s because these good engineers and project managers didn’t properly assess risk during the planning, design and execution phases. 

Yesterday on Engineering.com I wrote about the need for an engineer leader or project manager to know when to cut their losses on a failing project. Project Management Institute in their 2013 “Pulse of the Profession” revealed that nearly 37% of all major project fail. On $1 billion in major projects, $135 million is at risk meaning that 13.5% of every project $1 you’re responsible for is at risk.

That’s a lot of risk. And after seeing reports like this one about a major construction project off schedule, severely over budget, and embroiled in a political scandal; one quickly sees that there has to be a better way for an engineer leader to make certain that if they have a project off vector, they can get it back on vector ASAP. 

Use a 9-Line to Get Support

The Army uses what’s called a “nine-line medevac” request process to call in rotary-wing air support for the injured. The very existence of the process is because the Army knows that in the course of doing what it does, there is risk. With that risk, soldiers will be injured and there has to be a standard procedure that every soldier understands for call for help.

The analogy is this: in the course of leading a project there is risk. With that risk, there will be change orders, scope creep, schedule slips and changes in business strategy. In some cases, projects will become so far off course that they will be on the brink of failure. In these situations, the engineer leader needs their own nine-line process to get the project back on vector.

9-Line Project Rescue

Here’s your 9-line project rescue process: [Read more…]