Several of us in Australia, the United States, and elsewhere, have taken on quite a challenge in the past several years. Namely, to take ideas from the realm of complexity theory, the study of complex systems science, etc., and (increasingly) to apply this learning to improving our practice of systems engineering in the most challenging environments that we face today—and in the future. This talk highlights just one aspect of this quest.
We are actively exploring, presenting, and debating ideas and methods beyond the boundaries where systems engineering is currently defined, and more importantly, practiced. Most notably, the ideas that seem to offer the most value are being taken from what is sometimes called "complexity science," and in a language of conception and expression with which many systems engineers are not very familiar. Furthermore, many systems engineers are uncomfortable with adopting a broader perspective of systems engineering and trying to adopt and formalize complementary techniques that may help greatly in practicing systems engineering in the real-life areas within which we are being asked to work. Therein lies the challenge, because at the heart of the matter is the need for ideas, concepts, mechanisms, and processes, in a language that is relevant to systems engineers, by which we can produce useful results at the considerable scales (views: {scope, granularity, mindset, and timeframe}) being asked.
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