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This is a blog post from a consultant I work with. I found it helpful to get a basic grasp of how to manage the systems engineering process in a way that is l

This is a blog post from a consultant I work with. I found it helpful to get a basic grasp of how to manage the systems engineering process in a way that is lightweight and flexible.

MilStdJunkie 4y ago
I'm glad this exists. I've been a gadfly among a dozen or so different "Top Down Systems Engineering Model Based" organizations - circulating maybe a hundred different management fads - and it's telling that the basic rules laid out in the article I've rarely seen followed or even realized. Except for one time, when the United States Army Aviation Safety Office took the reins and corralled all the panicked cats and dead-eyed MBA drones. The integrator that was in charge is still one of my favorite engineers of all time. "The hell this has forty parameters? It's fuel. Am I outta gas? Yes. No. That's the parameter." tosses paper down table, picks up next paper. Hammered out a doc system for that guy on the fly, something that everyone could see without paying 50k in license costs, and worked my ass off but felt better than I had in years. That kind of magic doesn't happen often, but you gotta save it in your mental cabinet of treasures when it does.
- sitzkrieg 4y ago
  people like that put fulltime CAMEO mickey mouse modellers out of business
- a_square_peg 4y ago
  I really would have liked to work with someone like that. Funny enough, this also (over-regimented documentation and too many requirements) also happens in small organizations when they don't have the expertise to know doing systems engineering isn't to produce a pile of documents. Unless it's driven by someone from higher up, it's an uphill battle to say that we can get rid of 90% of requirements that's just a repeat of some section from different standards.
- Spooky23 4y ago
  I love the “mental cabinet of treasures”. What usually happens is that consultants are selling time, not outcomes. So it is in their interest to waste time and minimize risk to themselves. I’ve had experiences like yours a few times, most recently during the nadir of COVID. It felt great.
gilbetron 4y ago
Ah, a consultant. Not someone that actually builds systems, but makes money convincing people how they should build systems.
- davidhyde 4y ago
  I think you’ll find that James is quite hands on when it comes to building embedded systems in Rust. Just look through his other blog posts and the kind of content he puts up on YouTube.
Kinrany 4y ago
> This gets a little weird in the time between "the requirements say what the system will do", and "the requirements say what the system does do". That's a longer topic for another day. Is there a follow-up? This is a crucial piece. You clearly need all of these: current state, plans for the future, past states, past plans.
- jamesmunns 4y ago
  I'm continuing to write on my cohost page! I haven't answered this yet, but plan to in the future. Also happy to take any direct questions here, or by email (it's in my profile)

This is a blog post from a consultant I work with. I found it helpful to get a basic grasp of how to manage the systems engineering process in a way that is lightweight and flexible.

MilStdJunkie 4y ago

I'm glad this exists. I've been a gadfly among a dozen or so different "Top Down Systems Engineering Model Based" organizations - circulating maybe a hundred different management fads - and it's telling that the basic rules laid out in the article I've rarely seen followed or even realized. Except for one time, when the United States Army Aviation Safety Office took the reins and corralled all the panicked cats and dead-eyed MBA drones. The integrator that was in charge is still one of my favorite engineers of all time. "The hell this has forty parameters? It's fuel. Am I outta gas? Yes. No. That's the parameter." tosses paper down table, picks up next paper. Hammered out a doc system for that guy on the fly, something that everyone could see without paying 50k in license costs, and worked my ass off but felt better than I had in years. That kind of magic doesn't happen often, but you gotta save it in your mental cabinet of treasures when it does.

sitzkrieg 4y ago
people like that put fulltime CAMEO mickey mouse modellers out of business
a_square_peg 4y ago
I really would have liked to work with someone like that. Funny enough, this also (over-regimented documentation and too many requirements) also happens in small organizations when they don't have the expertise to know doing systems engineering isn't to produce a pile of documents. Unless it's driven by someone from higher up, it's an uphill battle to say that we can get rid of 90% of requirements that's just a repeat of some section from different standards.
Spooky23 4y ago
I love the “mental cabinet of treasures”. What usually happens is that consultants are selling time, not outcomes. So it is in their interest to waste time and minimize risk to themselves. I’ve had experiences like yours a few times, most recently during the nadir of COVID. It felt great.

gilbetron 4y ago

Ah, a consultant. Not someone that actually builds systems, but makes money convincing people how they should build systems.

davidhyde 4y ago
I think you’ll find that James is quite hands on when it comes to building embedded systems in Rust. Just look through his other blog posts and the kind of content he puts up on YouTube.

Kinrany 4y ago

> This gets a little weird in the time between "the requirements say what the system will do", and "the requirements say what the system does do". That's a longer topic for another day. Is there a follow-up? This is a crucial piece. You clearly need all of these: current state, plans for the future, past states, past plans.

jamesmunns 4y ago
I'm continuing to write on my cohost page! I haven't answered this yet, but plan to in the future. Also happy to take any direct questions here, or by email (it's in my profile)