Book Club: "Know What You Don't Know" by Dr. Michael Roberto

Over the course of the summer, I will be reading books on professional development and posting my less than professional opinion and a summery of lessons to take away.  Feel free to read the books and comment your opinions!  Share any books you've read on professional development (or something of interest to SWE)!  

The first book I read was "Know What You Don't Know" by Dr. Michael Roberto and my book club post can be read below!

Best wishes,

Emily

This was one of those books I read with a pen in hand writing how my own personal work and leadership experiences compare to the examples given in this novel.  The most interesting part was reading dozens of different case-study like examples about the leaders in hospitals, the military, the government, and industry (Pixar, Chrysler, Dyson, Polaroid, etc).  Each case-study from the variety of industries and companies showed different leadership styles, work environments, and levels of experience.

The leadership skills this book attempts to develop are how to find problems before they become even larger issues.  Problems can come from breakdowns of a technical, cognitive, and/or interpersonal nature.  Learning to be a "problem finder" is broken into seven sections:

1. Circumvent the gatekeepers: look for the raw data, remove information filters
2. Become an ethnographer:  observe and take note of employees, customers, and suppliers
3. Hunt for patterns:  experience gives you a deck of patterns you've seen; reflecting and refining your pattern recognition helps; novices often don't see the same patterns as those with experience, which has pros/cons (I'm talking to you interns and those new to a job!)
4. Connect the dots:  large scale failures are often preceded by small problems
5. Encourage useful failures:  always be reflecting (some companies in the book had museums or walls dedicated to remembering failures); "rapid, relatively low cost experimentation" (pg 133) is an opportunity for youth (such as interns or newbies) to experiment and for anyone to be creative and find problems early
6. Teach how to talk and listen:  communicating effectively; the RPI Archer Center for Student Leadership Development is a great resource for all students to take advantage of to build collaborative  skills, as well as speaking and listening
7. Watch the game film:  review what you've done as well as competitors (ESPECIALLY your competitors) to learn from what you've done

Quick Tips to Consider:

• Empower those you work with to bring problems forward.  Mistakes and false alarms are learning experiences.  Even if you intuition is saying something is wrong, run with it.
• There is a fear of repercussions for bringing forward a problem, but know that you were hired for a reason, so don't worry about your job security.  Bring forward the issues so you can get help with them.  
• Do not conform, a unique viewpoint makes you an asset
• Make sure everyone feels personally accountable and invested in the project
• Look at the assembly line, not just the task at hand
• Group decisions exceed the quality of individual choices (studies have shown this!)
• Communicate face to face whenever possible

This novel also brought up points you should consider as you look for your dream career!  The environment is a large part of ensuring your happiness in your career.  This novel brought up the thought that the company/managers/leaders should create "a climate in which people feel comfortable coming forward" (pg 35) with any problems.  You should feel considered and valued, and not fear bringing up a problem.  Job rotations are a part of some careers early on.  They are very beneficial in that they expose you to other units of an organization.  This fosters a better understanding and appreciation for the work being done in other units.  This also helps individuals build your social networks as well as who to ask about critical information (pg 110).

Leaders should be on the lookout for problems, no matter your position in an organization.  This novel was a great breakdown of how to train your brain to look for them.  Feel free to share your thoughts and experiences! 

Member of the Month, March: Nicole Gagnon

Nicole, at left, teaches girls about liquid nitrogen at Spring GSED 2013!

As a freshman I joined SWE. Being a member of SWE, I have had the opportunity to attend so many wonderful events and workshops and network with fabulous women. My favorite part of SWE has to be outreach committee though. I am still a kid at heart so doing experiments and building things is a blast! I love being able to share the fun of engineering with young girls so that maybe one day they will grow up to be engineers too. As an outreach member, I have participated in Girl Scout Engineering Day which is the most fun event on campus! I have helped build giant marble roller coasters and freeze marshmallows in liquid nitrogen (which are delicious). I have really enjoyed being an RPI SWE member during my 4 years here. I have had so many great SWE experience and met so many fabulous people!

Member of the Month, February: Maima Samah

I’ve been part of SWE since first semester this year. From the beginning I knew this was going to be one of my favorite clubs on campus. SWE has been very useful guiding me through campus with the many helpful workshops they offer like the how to handle my finances during Handle Your Purse at the February GBM. SWE has also allowed me to network with interesting professionals as well as other SWE members. I am also a part of the Outreach Committee and it’s nice to know that I’m helping put together events that will help get kids interested in the field I love so much. Hopefully as I go through my life here at RPI I will be able to be more involved with SWE.

Member of the Month, February: Morgan Kube

Morgan, center, speaks to parents at Girl Scout Engineering Day Spring 2013

I have become more involved with SWE at the beginning of this year. SWE has opened so many doors for me both professionally and personally. I really enjoy all the networking events that they schedule for their members as well as just the generally body meetings. Recently I volunteered through SWE at Girl Scout Engineering Day. I helped with the parent program and led an activity about how to make home-made lava lamps. This was a fun way to give parents fun science activities that they could do with their children to get them involved in STEM fields. Not only do the kids enjoy these activities but you can tell that the parents really enjoy them too. This was also a great networking experience because I was invited to go camping with one of the Girl Scout troops to teach them all about environmental engineering while camping. I look forward to many more SWE-vents in the future!

Member of the Month, February: Obe Aye-Addo

Obe hard at work on the far right at Girl Scout Engineering Day Spring 2013

I have been involved with SWE a lot so far this semester and I wish I started earlier! As a transfer student, I was still finding my way around a bigger school, my classes, meeting new people, and even though it was my third year in college, it was my first year away from home so adjusting did not come easy at first. I usually have the problem of wanting to do everything at once, so after trying out different clubs and events my first semester, I narrowed down the extracurricular activities I wanted to do the rest of my time at RPI (finally!) and I’m happy to say SWE was one of them! I think the thing that really drew me to SWE, besides what the organization itself stands for and how candid, humble, and devoted the members and officers are, was how really involved the RPI chapter is; and I mean, REALLY! Besides hosting companies for networking sessions and empowering sessions like Night of Networking and Breaking Barriers Women Unite (the list goes on!), they also reach out through SWE Outreach to younger children especially young women. This outreach section of RPI’s chapter does their part in educating kids about engineering while making presentations interactive and fun in events like Exploring Engineering Day and Girl Scouts Engineering Day. I have to say that this is my favorite part of SWE so far; I get to educate young people about the endless possibilities of applying everyday life through engineering while having fun doing things like making slime and breaking things with liquid Nitrogen; odd combination, I know, but they make it work and that’s why I love being a part of it!

Member of the Month, October: Catie Barry

Catie is to the right, helping out at UFO!

I’ve have been involved with RPI SWE since freshman year. My experience with it has been phenomenal. Through SWE I’ve been able to reach out to the community, do things I normally would not do, and make great friends. When I joined SWE I really got involved with outreach and volunteered at events such as UFO and Girl Scout Engineering day. These two events encourage kids to pursue a career in math and science. I had so much fun volunteering at these events because I love math and science and it is fun to work with kids and teach them about it. Through SWE I was also able to attend the SWE annual conference in Houston, TX. I am very much a homebody and would never travel farther than 150 miles without my family yet I went to Texas and had a great experience. I talked to companies which was big for me because I can be shy sometimes. I also was able attend a presentation and talk to people from the Walt Disney Company. I was excited about this because I hope to be an Imagineer (Engineer who works in the Disney parks) someday. Lastly I’ve made great friends through SWE. I’ve met so many nice people here who support one another and are just great to be around. I am really glad I joined SWE, it’s one of the best decisions I’ve made.

Member of the Month, September: Konane Bay

Konane is to the far left, working hard on her airplane at the last UFO!

A few weeks ago I walk into the SWE GBM late because of another time commitment. I go and sit next to one of my friends and immediately told by them I was September member of the month. As soon as the meeting was completely I was informed by others in SWE. This is just how SWE is we congratulate each other on each other’s achievements.

I have been a member of RPI SWE since beginning of freshman year. I started participating in the outreach meetings and now today I am currently planning the UFO program. The UFO program is a 4 hour long program with girl scouts to teach them what aeronautical engineering is. We are planning to have 3 different activities that include plane launchers, bottle rockets, and balloons jets. I am happy that I have received the opportunity to help organize and run the UFO program for SWE. I am glad I joined SWE those two years ago not only for the outreach opportunities, but for the people I have met and become friends with.