Business Fundamentals for Engineering Managers

Book excerpt: Engineering managers and professionals make a long and lasting impact in the industry by regularly developing technology-based projects, as related to new product development, new service innovation or efficiency-centered process improvement, or both—to create strategic differentiation and operational excellence for their employers. They need certain business fundamentals that enable them to make decisions, based on both technology and business perspectives, leading to new or improved product or service offerings, which are technically feasible, economically viable, marketplace acceptable, and customer enlightening. This book consists of three sets of business fundamentals. The chapter “Cost Accounting and Control” discusses service and product costing, activity-based costing to define overhead expenses, and risk analysis and cost estimation under uncertainty. The chapter “Financial Accounting and Analysis” delineates the key financial statements, financial analyses, balanced scorecard, ratio analysis, and capital asset valuation—including operations, opportunities, and acquisition and mergers. The chapter “Marketing Management” reviews marketing functions, marketing forecasting, marketing segmentation, customers, and other factors affecting marketing in making value-adding contributions. The new business vocabulary and useful analysis tools presented will enable engineering managers to become more effective when interacting with senior management, and to prepare themselves for assuming higher-level corporate responsibilities.