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August 2013

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From:
"Nutting, Phil" <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
TechNet E-Mail Forum <[log in to unmask]>, Nutting, Phil
Date:
Tue, 13 Aug 2013 17:10:40 +0000
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Dewey, love your five sayings!

Ok, this thread has struck a nerve.

I have several "signs" that there is a very limited pool of young talent to replace those of us who have grown up with technology as it too grew up.

Our local high school dropped Shop and HomEcc many years ago.  I worked as an industry advisor to two high school technical programs.  It was sad the lack of knowledge these kids had about simple tools or how things worked.

My alma mater has decided to shift away from all the excellent hands on Associates degree programs (where many of my peers got their start and spark) in favor of four years Bachelor of Technology programs.  Now they want to shift all these to full Bachelors.  So my son will be the last graduating class in Mechanical Engineering Technology.  The school has decided to only offer Mechanical Engineering.  They seem to be reaching to being a University rather than the Institute or Institute of Technology that got them to where they are now and the $$$ they can charge.  Are they really that blind to what is really going on?

I was mentioning this change in our society to my boss some time ago and he thought everything would be ok with global outsourcing and we would become a service economy.  There are only so many folks needed to ask if "you want fries with that order".

So now we are waking up to the fact that offshoring may not be as economically practical anymore and then reshoring the manufacturing here.  With what work force?  The Baby Boomers (most of us on Technet) are reaching or have reached retirement age.  With offshoring kids weren't directed into manufacturing (it was "dirty, unexciting, had no future"), so there were no new technicians and young engineers to carry the torch.  Now we want every kid to go to college... for what, to get a Bachelors Degree and then struggle to find a job in their "field of study".  So they mooch of Mom and Dad and maybe take a job at next to minimum wage and can't afford to spread their wings, move out and buy a car or a house. I've invested about $100,000.00 in my daughters education and she is working for $11/hour part time.  Really?!

I read in the trade mags how some companies are so desperate for skilled workers that they have teamed up with a local school and created an apprentice program.  Wow, a blast from the past.  That was how many of us started.

Now we have business managers that got the questions right on their MBA exam, but have no clue about the products their companies make or what the needs are to properly manufacturer their product.

I could go on, but I'll get off my soap box now.  Thanks to those of you who read this whole rant.  

Phil (the curmudgeon)

-----Original Message-----
From: TechNet [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Whittaker, Dewey (EHCOE)
Sent: Tuesday, August 13, 2013 12:13 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [TN] Refreshment

As I was reflecting on the things you said I noticed the words on my board.
They consist of 5 statements that came from a bigger list I had from something I wrote many, many years ago. When the term" The Peter Principle" came out, I wrote " The Peter Pan Principle" as a Manager's guide to Never -Never Land to deal with the time of MBOs( management by or in spite of objectives) and other lack-of-management-skill terms. Now we have Six Sigma and other tools which only yield answers that reflect an aggregate whole of the consensus opinion of both the informed and the utterly clueless. It's not that the answer is wrong; it is the best available answer given the inputs, but not the best correct answer. The ability to find multiple recommendations and inputs on any subject matter via all the available search engines has negated most individual contributions.
No corporation strives for perfection let alone pride in that accomplishment , but get it out the door as quickly and cheaply as possible with all supporting efforts at a level of just good enough.
They still appear to be pertinent. They are as follows:

*	Never let the grasp of reality hold you back.
*	Never let the voice of reason drown you out.
*	Never let the light of wisdom shadow your intentions.
*	Never let an intellectual spark ignite your creativity.
*	Never let the cataracts of conscience dull your vision.

Dewey

 
-----Original Message-----
From: TechNet [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Ed Popielarski
Sent: Tuesday, August 13, 2013 8:33 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [TN] Refreshment

Inge,

I, too, have noticed the gradual fade, and it's my opinion we, ourselves, are to blame. Similar to what has happened inside NASA, the "pioneers" that sculpted the industry are dead, dying, retired and tired. We as a society failed to properly backfill with fresh talent and the methodology of upstarting engineering grads is much different than "in our day". Seems to me the new generation engineers have developed a love affair with their desktop computers and the internet (something that didn't even exist when we were sprouting wings) and "we" collectively, are transforming to a more digital existence, as opposed to the hard, wet, hot physical realm. As this evolution proceeds, much of the pioneering spirit is lost, as well as the good-old-fashioned "chutzpah" to "break outside the box, damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead." Job preservation has become a primary focus and this has really retarded the craft.

Just my $0.0199999 and ventilation of an issue that I've been containing for some time now.

Ed Popielarski
Engineering Manager


                               970 NE 21st Ct.
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-----Original Message-----
From: TechNet [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Inge Hernefjord
Sent: Tuesday, August 13, 2013 3:00 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [TN] Refreshment

Technet, once a supernova...now just a fading sparkle. Time for renaissence (french)? Blood transfusion? Vitamin therapy?  Dopamin cure?
.......zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz, ...sorry....YYYAAAWN...

Inge


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