The engineer entrepreneur / Daniel T. Koenig.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Koenig, Daniel T.

Contributor:

Anne and Joseph Trachtman Memorial Book Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Engineering firms--Management.

Engineering firms.

Entrepreneurship.

Physical Description:

x, 345 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : ASME Press, 2003.

Contents:

1. A Short History of the Organization of Engineering Work: Where We've Been and Where We're Likely to Go 1

The Organization Man Concept 1

The Change in the 1980s 4

The Resulting New Role of the Engineer 7

2. The Engineering Education Needs for the Future 11

The Skills Needs Assessment, Then and Now 11

The Skills Philosophy Needed for the Successful Engineer Practicing in the Early 21st Century 14

Current Training Regime for Engineers While in School, and Why It Is Inadequate 16

How the Curriculum Must Change to Be an Effective Training Mechanism 18

How to Introduce Entrepreneurship into the Curriculum 26

3. The Entrepreneur's First Step: Learning About and Using the Art of Project Management 35

Enlightened Self-Interest 36

The Skills to Bridge the Engineer-Employee to the Engineer-Entrepreneur 39

A Short Tutorial on Project Management 39

Some Final Thoughts on Project Management 69

4. From a Business Team Member to a Business Owner 71

Purpose of a Business 71

Vision and Mission Statement 74

Functions of a Business 78

The Basic Organization of a Business 79

Using the 7 Steps of the Manufacturing System 81

The Intricacies of Organization in Applying the 7 Steps of the Manufacturing System, Using the Basic Manufacturing Resources Planning (MRP II) System 86

Developing an Organization Compatible to the 7 Steps of the Manufacturing System 89

Differences Between a Small Business and a Business Team 92

Company Support for Business Teams Compared with the Entrepreneurial Approach 94

The Continuing Road Toward Entrepreneurship 96

5. All Communications Are Good, Some Better Than Others 99

The Communications Process 100

Barriers to Effective Communications 103

Some Guidelines for Effective Communications 106

Learning How to Listen 109

Communicating with the Customer 113

6. Going from Raw Emotions to a Polished Commercial Offering; The New Product Introduction Process 125

Using the Scientific Method to Introduce a New Product or Service 125

Reason for a Business

A Great Idea that Can Be Commercialized 126

The New Product Introduction Process Philosophy 128

The New Product Introduction Process Technique 130

7. Financial Potpourri 157

The Classic Ways of Measuring Financial Status 157

Constructing Budgets 166

Budget-Related Measurements 174

Some Useful Management Techniques for Maintaining Financial Viability 180

Keeping Focused on Controlling the Operation 190

Financial Measurements and the Business Plan 193

8. E-Commerce and the Virtual Corporation: Opportunities for the Entrepreneur 195

Imperative of Being Wanted 196

The Supply Chain Evolution 198

How to Join a Supply Chain 201

Introducing Your New Product to the World Using a Supply Chain 203

Being Able to Handle Transactions via E-Commerce 204

Some Concerns About E-Commerce Order Entry Systems 213

9. The Business Plan for the Entrepreneur 215

The Content of the Business Plan 216

Some Final Words on the Structure of a Business Plan 225

An Example of the Development of a Business Plan 227

10. Toward World-Class Performance 271

Basic Truisms 272

Understanding the 7 Steps of the Manufacturing System 272

A Discussion of Each of the 7 Steps 275

Why the 7 Step Sequence Applies Even Though a Company May Be Ignorant of Its Existence 283

Why Understanding the 7 Steps and the Linkages Between Them Is Necessary for Developing "Communications Excellence" 285

Why the 7 Steps of the Manufacturing System Are Universal, No Matter What the Product Is 286

When a Step Is Not Readily Apparent: Why That's Dangerous and How to Find the Missing Step(s) 290

Why the Facts (Data) Need to Be the Same and Cascade from Step to Step, and What Happens When This Rule Is Disregarded 291

How to Evaluate Your Company to Determine How Well You Comply with the 7 Steps of the Manufacturing System 292

How to Compare Your Results Against Best Practices, A Gap Analysis 297

Defining the Opportunities for Improvements 301

Appendix A Investigation Points (product company) 309

Appendix B Investigation Points (service company) 319.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (page 337) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Anne and Joseph Trachtman Memorial Book Fund.

ISBN:

0791801934

OCLC:

50810644