Most of the institutes face problems due to vulnerability, uncertainties, complexities, and ambiguities due to shortage of funds, the dearth of high-quality faculty members, and approval of innovative programs from the national councils. The institutes should plan to meet all these disruptions. The PPTs provide a set of guidelines to overcome these problems.
Institutional Transformation in Engineering Education to Meet VUCA Challenges
1. INSTITUTIONAL TRANSFORMATION AND
DEVELOPMENT IN THE ENGINEERING EDUCATION
TO MEET THE VOLATILITY, UNCERTAINTY, COMPLEXITY AND
AMBIGUITY
Thanikachalam Vedhathiri
(vthani2025@yahoo.in)
3. VOLATILITY
The external environment is unstable.
Presents challenges that are infinite at great
speed.
Old products are wiped out
Formal degrees lose their value
Multidisciplinary programs are needed
New products invade the market
Their half life is also limited!
4. VOLATILITY
V: Volatility
A High Rate of
Change due to AI
Job shift in
manufacturing,
software etc.
Robots take the
jobs
Engineers and
Technologists with
multidisciplinary
skills are needed
Learning to
provide agility to
tackle unforeseen
challenges
Develop Super
leaders to succeed
in the face of
volatility
5. UNCERTAINTY
Unprecedented trends in the external
environment.
The long-term trajectories are more
difficult to predict.
Create a blueprint to meet the
uncertainty!
6. UNCERTAINTY
Lack of Clarity about the Present and Future Jobs
Supervision Would Guide the Educational Managers to Meet the
Challenges in Uncertain Times
Multidisciplinary Learning Provides Agility to Tackle Unforeseen
Challenges
Anticipation gives Strength to Face Disruptive Forces
Assessment of the Global Trends would Estimate their
Potential Impact on the Engineering Education
9. AMBIGUITY
The external environment is hazy, with many
unknown unknowns, and cause- and-effect is
unclear.
Think of yellow light
Wait for green
Succeed
10. AMBIGUITY
Lack
Lack of clarity
about the
meaning of
events
Drive
Drive to act
decisively
and keep a
relentless
focus on
objectives
Develop
Develop
Super
Leaders
Design
Design agile
strategies to
effectively align
core capabilities
with the
challenges due to
dynamic changes
11. INVISIBLE V U A
IN INDIA
Earlier After
15 REC 31 NIT
TTTI NITTTR
5 IITs 23 IITs
12. V U A
IN INDIA
Before After
4 IIM 19 IIM
0 ? 5 IISER
?
1 IIITM
IISC IISC
0 ?
4 IIITDM
1 IIIT 19 IIIT (PPP)
?
43 Central Universities
?
NBA
13. LEADERS IN HIGHER EDUCATION
Should join in global thinking, leading change and retaining and
developing multidisciplinary talents in the graduates.
They must acquire personal proficiency and become human capital
developers, strategists, talent managers and executors (Dave
Ulrich’s leadership model)
Executives must be trained in action learning, international
assignments, rotational programs and executive coaching and
mentoring (Rebecca L Ray et al. 2012).
The leaders in Engineering Education need to master people
engagement, navigating and making decisions in a complex, diverse
environment.
They must possess institutional building and collaborative ability.
They need to show agility and cultural sensitivity.
14. WHAT
Higher education should be planned, structured with a formal
process to develop high potentials for the graduates.
The leaders should have a clear articulation of the selection criteria,
clear road map of development opportunities and a tracking
mechanism to monitor the progress of the faculty.
The senior faculty members of higher education institutes need
action learning, international assignments, rotational programs and
executive coaching and mentoring (Mitchell, Ray and Van Ark, 2012,
Michael Campbell and Roland Smith, 2012)
Accelerated leadership development programs are to be carried out
transparently to retain top talent of the faculty.
15. CONTINUOUS TRANSFORMATION
V U A
Networking among educational management teams while
leveraging their diversity to rethink approaches to the
national and global market(Katherine Jones, Karen
O’Leonard, and Josh Bersin, 2012).
The global context is changing fast, becoming complex
and raising new risks around dealing with context and
raising opportunities that senior led skills around dealing
with context, and complexity ( Mathew Gitshan, 2009)
16. ROAD MAP
Each high potential graduate has a career development “ road map”
High potentials reflect on their career aspirations, the experiences
and education that have led to their current roles in the
organization, and the development they need to reach their goals
(Douglas A Ready, Linda A Hill and Jay A Conger, 2008)
Competency models guide recruitment strategies as well as
development and training plans (Corporate Executive Board, 2008)
Leaders who learn to combine the East and West as they shape the
future, make changes happen, develop talent, nurture future human
capital, and take care of themselves to become truly global leaders
(Shalini Shukia, 2012)
17. Considering the need for developing competent engineers
to face volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity,
the development strategies adopted in the engineering
education are to be critically reviewed and the gaps are
identified
Suggestions are proposed to develop interventions to
develop human capital to meet the challenges of volatility,
uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity.
18. Focus Alumni Employers
Program Educational
Objectives (PEOs) Course
Outcomes (COs)
Involve in the Evaluation of
the PEOs, and COs
Representatives: HR
Personal, R&D Personal, to
Review the Curriculum
Advanced Courses, Electives,
Student Proposed Practicum,
student designed course
Alumni and Representatives
of the Experts from the
Consulting firms
Evaluation and Discussion
over Conference Call, Video
Conference
Term Papers, Project Works,
Product Development,
Dissertation, & Research
Check the Relevance, topics
are industry relevant
Involvement, and
Suggestions for the Relevant
Projects
Assessment of Industrial
Process
Suggestions for
Advancement, and Problem
Solving.
Open Discussion
Critical Analysis V, U, C, A Can act as CKO
Problem Solving Can act as CLO Can suggest Problems
19. Audience Industry Relevant
Product Planning,
Design, Prototype
Development,
Testing,
Improvement
Manufacturing:
Industrial layout,
machines, CNC, AI,
Flexible, Clean
manufacturing,
human resources,
robots, TQM,
Maintenance:
Preventive
maintenance, break
down maintenance
Senior Faculty with
PhD/Master Degree
Yes Yes Yes
Middle-level Faculty
with Master Degree
Yes Yes Partly
Junior Faculty Yes Yes Partly
Technical Support
Staff with Diploma/
ITI Certificate
No Yes Yes
20. Level Exposure Intense Training
Junior Industrial Production Process,
Equipment, Layout, Safety, TQM,
Capacity, Technology
Manufacturing Process
Senior Design, Prototype Development, Testing,
Product Improvement, Energy
Conservation, Costing, Industrial
Automation, Ancillary units, Marketing,
Maintenance companies etc.
TQM, Safety, Environmental
Protection, Clean
Development Mechanism,
Lean Manufacturing etc.
Short Internship
Master Degree
Program
Advances in Design, New Design
Concepts, Topics for Research
Steps taken to meet the
challenges in V, U,C and A
Doctoral Degree
Programs
Advances in the Product Design,
Industrial Trends, Interdisciplinary
Research
Creating a model,
Excellence
21. V U A
Global thinking mindset
Leading changes and transformations in the workplace
Acquiring job specific talent in planning, design, and prototype
development
Employee training in quality and productivity
Introduce research as one of the courses for senior students
Decisions in a volatile, complex, diverse, and ambiguous
environment
Relation building with clients, suppliers, and distributors
22. Collaboration with the executives and technology
specialists
Agility
Cultural sensitivity to work in international sites and
centers
Integrity
Sustainability of productivity, quality and cost
Entrepreneurial talents so that they can plan and
manufacture ancillary components
Introduce interdisciplinary programs.
23. FACULTY
DEVELOPMENT
Faculty Long-term
Courses
Short-Term
Courses
MOOCs Seminars/
Conferences
International
Programs
Junior Masters Content
Updating,
Engineering
Education
edX,
Coursera,
WBI, IIT
Programs,
NITTTR
Programs
Advancement
s in their
areas os
specialization
Masters, and
Doctoral
Programs,
Online
Programs
Middle Level Doctoral Advances,
Global
Programs
Do
Do Doctoral
Programs
Senior Post Doctoral,
Interdisciplin
ary and
Multi-
Disciplinary
Advances,
Interdiscipli-
nary
programs
Do Do Postdoctoral
Programs
24. Institutes Self Supporting Industry/ Private
Foundation
AICTE/ UGC IDAs
(ADB, UNDP,
UNESCO, WB)
Offering Masters
Programs
Yes Possible Yes Yes
Offering
Doctoral
Programs
Yes Possible Yes Yes
Outstanding
Institutes:
Undertake
sponsored
projects,
Conduct
interdisciplinary
Research
Yes Possible but can
generate
internal revenue
through
consultancy
projects, royalty
on publications,
sale of models
Yes Yes
Can bid for the
projects
25. DESIRED OUTCOME
Plan Super leadership competencies to succeed to meet the
challenges of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity
(VUCA)
Design agile long-term strategies to effectively align core capabilities
of engineers to meet the challenges of a fast disruptive growth of
global economy.
Develop ability to integrate the stability that is a must for meeting
the demands .
Develop agility in educational leaders and institutes.
Plan innovative interdisciplinary engineering programs to create
human capital to meet VUCA.
Interlink the institutes of national importance with the rest.
26. FACTORS OF SUCCESSFUL PROGRAMS TO
MEET THE CHALLENGES OF VU A
Holistic in design, planning and implementation in
real life situations
Global focused on the international market
Transparent at every stage of planning and
implementation
Leader- led
Customized program for the given participants
27. FACTORS OF SUCCESS PROGRAMS...
Programs based on the 70-2-10 rule.
70% Challenging experiences
20% Relationships
10% Formal programs
Activities should lead to experiences in the work
environment and culture
29. QUALITY IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
WORKPLACE OF INSTITUTES
Consultancy Centers
Extension Centers
Innovation Units
Incubation Units
Start-up Units
Research and Development Centers
Centers of Excellence
30. GLOBALIZATION OF ENGINEERING
EDUCATION
Bologna Process of the European Union
Focused on the networking with the European
Universities
American Universities’ collaboration with the leading
Chinese, Japanese and Korean Universities
IITs have networked with many foreign universities
Government of India’s proposed Grant of INR 10000 crore
to 20 universities to become World Class Universities
31. DESIRED INITIATIVES FROM INDUSTRY
Display of desired skills and competencies needed from the fresh
graduates
Displaying projects for research
Displaying the needed collaboration in solving problems
Desire to offer internship in the needed areas
Themes for executive development
Needed areas for training the skilled activities
Desire to avail the training programs for the executives
Desire to offer industrial training
Creating a chair
Donating equipment
32. SUMMARY
Monitor the global trends and the potential impact
of Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous
situations
Design agile strategies to tackle VUCA
Develop key leadership
Learn to integrate the stability
Innovate