ENGR 200: Engineering in the Global Environment
This course addresses the adaptive challenges facing engineers in a global environment. Its elements cover relevant business dynamics, national and international requirements, as well as less formal elements beyond the realm of core technical competence. An expanded understanding of how companies make outsourcing decisions is relevant whether one is participating or is impacted in other ways. Virtual technologies enable professionals to communicate more effectively in a multi-national environment assisted by workflow software, videoconferencing and other virtual technologies. These tools enable project design to be executed in real-time across continents at all hours. They can also facilitate active collaboration with contractors and clients through implementation phases. Compliance with applicable regulatory requirements can minimize costly delays. Enhanced awareness of these added elements is essential whether a project is operating domestically or internationally.
Global engineers must also apply what may be referred to as “soft skills.” Each nation has unique business protocols. Arriving late to a meeting in one country may instantly damage a professional relationship, while bypassing informal conversation in some cultures could be considered comparably offensive. There may also be essential protocols when interacting with personnel on-site in an unfamiliar national context. The topics below are designed to widen the engineering practice framework to incorporate necessary added skills to succeed in an increasingly global environment.
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About the Instructor
Dr. Tom Fryer is the CEO, Co-founder, and visionary for a highly innovative Customer Relationship (CRM) startup. Creedenz Solutions developed a radical approach to traditional CRM for enterprise customers by architecting a highly flexible and configurable CRM platform called CXM. CXM can be scaled and deployed at a fraction of the cost and deployed considerably faster than traditional CRM systems.
Tom has senior level experience as a Chief Information Officer, Chief Technical Officer, and Chief Operations Officer, managing large-scale technology operations for the government and private sector. His technology experience includes large scale operations consisting of big data transactional systems linked across a global network of data centers.
His experience includes managing, deploying, and implementing regional data hubs, call centers, cell systems, and satellite communication centers located spanning the globe for Governments and private industry.
Additionally, he also worked as a Systems Engineer for Raytheon and the United States Air Force (USAF) providing international engineering support Defense Support Program, Global Positioning System, and other classified multi-billion dollar defense systems.
In his spare time Tom can be found teaching graduate engineering courses at UCR and volunteering his time reading to the hearing impaired.
Dr. Fryer is also certified in Theory of Constraints (TOC) and Critical Chain Project Management and holds multiple U.S. patents in software security and software processes. Dr. Fryer served in the USAF and is a veteran of the Gulf War.
Dr. Fryer earned an Electronics Engineering degree from the USAF, a BBA and MBA in Management from Angelo State University (Texas Tech), and a Doctorate of Business Administration (DBA) from Canterbury. He also studied Law at Loyola Law School.