About the Book

Business Management for Engineers will help anyone with a technical background understand, and appreciate, the business side of the engineering profession. This book is intended to make you more successful as an engineer by giving you a broader and deeper understanding of how organizations conduct business.

The book is written by a technical professional (Ph.D. in Physics) with significant experience in the aerospace and defense industry. It focuses on the type of business knowledge required by engineers, vs a traditional MBA curriculum.

Topics addressed in the book are listed below. You may download a complete copy of the Table of Contents and Introduction at our downloads site.

CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION
The Four Factors of Production
Free and Controlled Markets

CHAPTER 2 – THE BUSINESS OF BUSINESS
Stock Markets
Financial Accounting
Cost Accounting
Pricing
Value Proposition
Business Model
Forecasting

CHAPTER 3 – NAVIGATING THE CORPORATION
Organizational Structure
Organizational Hierarchy

CHAPTER 4 – RULES OF THE ROAD
Example: US Laws and Regulations
Budgeting & Planning
Government Purchasing Methodology
Fiscal and Monetary Policy

CHAPTER 5 – GLOBALIZATION: WORKING INTERNATIONALLY
US Export Regulations
Foreign Import Regulations
Currency Exchange Rates
Cultural Differences

CHAPTER 6 – PLANNING FOR SUCCESS
Concept Definition

  • The Technical Aspect
  • The Business Case
  • The Budget Aspect

Program Management

  • Scope
  • Time
  • Cost
  • Quality
  • Human Resources
  • Risk (and Opportunity)
  • Communications
  • Procurement
  • Stakeholders
  • Integration

Business Development

  • Sales
  • Marketing
  • Strategy

CHAPTER 7 – EVALUATING SUCCESS
Project Success – Earned Value Management
Making EVM Work
Portfolio Success – BCG Matrix
Business Unit Success – GE / McKinsey Matrix
Corporate Success – Stock Price

Appendix – Laws and Regulations Affecting Aviation and Space Exploration

The 2022 edition, in final release now, will feature updates to all tables and figures, as well as a new Chapter on – Learning to Lead. The tentative release date is March 31st, 2022.