The “Secret Weapon” for Systems Engineering – Using Creativity to Improve Your SE Process and Product (Expert)

Tutorial: 13

When: Sat 07, Jul 13:30-17:00

Where: Declaration A

Keywords: SE process; Differentiator; Creativity; Actionable Tools

Meeting listing: Open

Abstract: You are an expert Systems Engineer and your team does good work. But what if you and your team could bring a “secret weapon” to your Systems Engineering (SE) process that could help you better meet all stakeholders’ requirements, reduce rework, maintain or improve program metrics, and brought the team together in a positive way? Adding focused creativity tools has been demonstrated to have strong positive return on investment. Actively applying creativity to your SE toolkit can improve your overall engineering work by eliciting more original ideas at each stage of the project while improving your personal work processes and products. In addition, creativity can be used as part of team management and be a differentiator throughout the process. These tools can also improve both formal and informal team leadership by encouraging even reticent team members to participate. In this tutorial, you will learn about multiple creativity tools to help generate better ideas; expand the problem space without increasing the project size, and assure that team members contribute. You will get hands-on experience to help you address accelerating technology including autonomous and complex systems design. Creativity tools will support your need for workable solutions that meet the performance requirements becomes greater. Creativity tools are inexpensive and do not add extensive time to project schedules. They can and should be embedded with the standard SE tools. You will learn what creativity is and how it can be applied in SE; how to use tools and techniques to personally be more creative; to unleash the creativity in your team members; and how to integrate these tools with the rest of your SE toolkit. By the end of this tutorial you will have the skills, tools, and techniques to bring the creativity “secret weapon” to your work.

Biography
Jennifer Narkevicius: Jennifer McGovern Narkevicius, PhD has worked with Defense, Transport, Infrastructure, distributed networked social and work interactions, supported decision making, and design of web-based enterprise applications through research, development, test and evaluation. She facilitates clients’ efforts to define and develop the interactions of the users with the other elements of systems. Throughout her career, Jen has worked in Systems Engineering focusing on Human Systems Integration, identifying and defining the systems requirements that include human capabilities and limitations. In parallel, she has taught enrichment course focusing on using creativity to improve student’s math performance, problem solving, organizational strategic planning, and teamwork. Jen is a professional musician teaching, performing and arranging traditional music. Dr. Narkevicius is member of INCOSE, Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, and the American Harp Society. She holds a PhD in Cognitive Psychology, with master’s degrees in Systems Engineering, Adult Development Psychology and Special Education: Gifted and Talented and is Certified Music Practitioner.

Biography
Donna Bennett: Donna Bennett, LCSW-C is a Clinical Social Worker with 25 years of experience in program development and implementation across Southern Maryland. Donna has successfully written innovative programming grants to bring services to youth and families. She is the owner of Coaching for the Voyage, which offers therapy, life coaching and ADHD coaching to clients in an innovative practice incorporating a strengths based model as well as creative strategies utilizing the Expressive Arts to facilitate clients meeting their personal goals. This practice proudly serves military members and military contractors in the Southern Maryland area. Donna has extensive training in the use of the Expressive Arts for self- growth, healing and promoting creativity and incorporates these strategies into individual and group work. Donna is a Certified Music Practitioner and plays prescriptive harp music for individuals who are ill and dying. Donna also writes original music to facilitate her work and to perform. Donna is a Licensed Certified Social Worker- Clinical with a Master of Social Work from Delaware State University and a BS in Recreation and Parks from the School of Forestry at West Virginia University. Donna is completing a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies in the Expressive Arts from Salve Regina University.