“More Than Just Engineers” How Engineers Define And Value Communication Skills On The Job.

Abstract

While most professional and academic sources have expressed a need for engineers who possess strong communication skills, what these skills are actually defined as on-the-job remains somewhat vague in the literature. In this mixed-method study of practicing engineers from industry and governmental engineering workplaces, we heard and observed some answers to help define what communication skills engineers are actually practicing in their jobs. Through qualitative data collected over the past two years in six workplace case studies (including over 50 hours of observation and more than 50 interviews), interviews of engineers and their managers (N=91), and surveys of engineers and engineering managers (N=162), three main themes emerged to provide insights into what engineers mean when they say they value "effective communication" in other engineers. The first theme was what numerous engineers in our study described as "the big picture," or the ability to effectively speak, write, and interact with audiences who were outside of their specific discipline, work group, or focus. Our second theme centers on an engineer's willingness and self-motivation to initiate communication with others and to seek out resource information through informal interactions. Finally, the third theme involves the ability of engineers to listen carefully to others in order to do their best work and achieve results that are valued by their stakeholders (clients, managers, co-workers). Understanding these three themes can inform more authentic and engaging ways of teaching engineering students. Teaching improvements are needed, as one interviewee put it, because "Good engineers typically are more than just engineers….I need someone who I can drop in [who] can communicate effectively today."

What engineering employers want: An analysis of technical and professional skills in engineering job advertisements

“…Communication is one of the most commonly used of all skills, with several studies showing that engineers working in industry spend over half of their working hours on some form of communication, including writing, oral presentations, or other oral discussions (Lattuca et al, 2006; Mazzurco et al, 2021; Nicometo et al, 2010; Passow & Passow, 2017; Sageev & Romanowski, 2001). Communication is not limited to such formal forms and includes informal forms such as one‐on‐one and small group conversations with colleagues, and key components of communication skills are listening, clarity, and negotiation (Darling & Dannels, 2003).…”

Why Industry Says That Engineering Graduates Have Poor Communication Skills: What the Literature Says

“…This same expanded definition of communication has arisen in the -How People Learn Engineering‖ project headed by Sandra Courter at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which addresses the question of how engineers learn to communicate. In this case study project by Nicometo et al, 38 interviews of engineers and their managers (N=91), and surveys of engineers and engineering managers (N=162), uncovered three main traits that engineers assign to -effective communication‖ in other engineers. The first trait is the ability to communicate the -big picture.‖ That ability is the -ability to effectively speak, write, and interact with audiences who [are] outside of their specific discipline, work group, or focus.‖ The second theme is the -willingness and self-motivation to initiate communication with others and to seek out resource information through informal interactions.‖ The third trait is the ability to listen to others.…”

Peer Review and Reflection in Engineering Labs: Writing to Learn and Learning to Write

“…For instance, engineering faculty reframed writing as a design process [22,44], and they have used fiction novels as sources for brief design projects [69]. Others have argued strongly for the need to better align writing tasks with industry practice [1], where engineers are viewed as writers [70].…”