10.6.0 Panel 10.6.0: Is the Systems Engineering Profession Quantitative Enough?

Systems Engineering (SE) is engineering, and as such it is perceived as quantitative profession. Nonetheless, consider SE to be an art with qualitative methods and intuitive approaches based on little evidence and quantitative data. What is the reality, and what are the possibilities? We think that SE should be based on more quantitative methods, and would like to discuss ways to promote this direction by our discussion in this proposed panel. We will assess several SE aspects by assessing their quantitative/qualititative status. For each topic, we propose how to drive that aspect into more quantitative approaches & techniques. Each short presentation will be followed by participants discussion, to draw further ideas from the audience. We consider the following key topics: System Architecting – Art or Engineering? –How can we quantify the quality of the architecture? Modeling & Simulation – as a central quantitative tool for system analysis, but a tool with drawbacks – What are the bounds of M&S? Quantifying Technical Management– How can we measure technical management? – How much SE is enough? – What is the return on investment? Capabilities of the Systems Engineer – How can we measure the skill level? – Identifying the Masters from the Journeymen. How can we measure the quality of the System Design?