Search

COVID-19 pandemic has affected technology, manufacturing, healthcare, education, tourism, and other service industry globally as well as in the US. The pandemic has caused supply chain disruption, chip shortage, worker shortage, etc. Nowadays chips aren't used in computers and smartphones only, but in automotive and various other products. In response to the pandemic, the US government has issued stimulus packages to help workers, employers, and economy. All this has resulted in an increase in inflation and cost. Workers are retiring or changing jobs for higher wages which has created another issue, i.e. workers with tribal knowledge are leaving the industry they used to work with. Now industry not only needs to hire replacements but also train them for right qualifications in order to keep up with productivity. On the positive side, the US government is investing in chip manufacturing in the US which goes in line with the Made in America effort, making policies to help global supply chain to reduce backlogs, and pushing for vaccine mandate. As a result, manufacturing, tourism, and service industries are returning gradually to the pre-pandemic level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Systems engineering vs. engineering systems; thinking in systems vs. systems thinking; systems engineering vs. systems architecting; these are just a few examples of the diverse concepts in systems engineering that are often confusing to students and sometimes even misused by professionals. In this paper, we will first examine the origins, definitions, and dimensions of these concepts through a comprehensive literature review. We will then focus on the differences and common characteristics among them with regard to their practical usage within various systems disciplines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2017, US companies spent over 90 Billion dollars on employee training. Despite the intense effort, training generally is not deemed satisfactory as many studies show that trainees fail to demonstrate the ability to transfer the desired knowledge and skills to their jobs. As a result, many organizations are still looking for reliable and effective training mechanisms to ensure an adequate return on their training investment. Competency training has presented itself as an alternative to traditional training methods as it pinpoints the skills for certain tasks and assesses the workforce's readiness in accordance with the desired levels of competence. While the competency based method is a more linear form of training, the evaluation of trainees' level of competence is still a lengthy process. In this paper, we propose a concept map based framework for competency training assessment. In particular, we demonstrate the use of similarity flooding algorithm in quickly determining the differences between desired competencies in the expert's map and those shown in the trainee's map. The framework is used to develop a change management process strategy at the organizational level in accordance to the Australian Technical and Further Education (TAFE) guidelines. In this vein, the competencies identified for the change management process at the organizational are introducing, managing and assessment of the change management process. To assess the suitability of competency-based mapping, a trainee participated in a three-week course that included lectures and effective learning elements such as case study and small-scale projects. Concept maps were created by the trainee to represent the desired competencies. In this study, we present the analysis that shows the effective assessment of concept map based competency training that can help organizations achieve their training goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]