1. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
THE ENGINEER AND THE FUTURE:
Making Impact in a Globlalised World
Egbetokun, A. A. and Isola, O. O.
National Centre for Technology Management
Ile-Ife, NIGERIA
Presented at IEEE, OAU, Ile-Ife
February 12, 2010
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2. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Protocols
 Appreciation to the conveners of this gathering for
inviting me to present at this assembly
 Acknowledgment of dignitaries
 the Vice Chancellor,
 the Dean of the Faculty of Technology,
 the Chairman and members of the Local Organising
Committee,
 Sponsors,
 Partners, and
 Distinguished participants
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3. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Outline
 Introduction
 Concepts
 The Engineer
 The Future
 Globalisation
 Agenda for Action
 Concluding Remarks
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4. I have found that all ugly
things are made by those
who strive to make
something beautiful, and
that all beautiful things
are made by those who
strive to make something
useful.
Oscar Wilde (1854-1900,
Anglo-Irish playwright,
author, The Value of Art
in Modern Life, 1884).
11 February 2010 4

5. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Concepts
 The combination of Science, Engineering, Technology and Innovation
(SETI) are required for a nation to achieve meaningful growth and
development.
 SCIENCE = organised or systematic knowledge of empirical
phenomena with the main goal of directing or forecasting these
phenomena using the understanding acquired through systematic
inquiry.
 ENGINEERING = the application of science to the optimum
conversion of the resources of nature to the uses of humankind.
 TECHNOLOGY = the totality of knowledge-based activities directly
applicable to the production and improvement of goods and services.
 INNOVATION = the process by which firms master and implement
the design and production of goods and services that are new to
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them © NACETEM 2009

6. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
The Engineer
 "able to solve problems, generally engineering but
increasingly multi-disciplinary, through applying a deep
understanding of mathematics and scientific
principles.’’
o Jamie Goggins Engineers Journal I Volume 62: Issue 9
November 2008
6 © NACETEM 2009

7. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
…today
 “…Engineering schools beget engineers. Engineers beget ideas. And
ideas beget companies.”
- Guy Kawasaki, Reality Check (2008)
 “…Today’s engineer is on a different planet. He or she faces of life of
multiple project assignments with an almost interchangeable array of
employers, clients, start-ups and established firms; these assignments
require an extraordinarily broad set of technical, business, and
interpersonal skills performed as part of ever-changing and shifting
interdisciplinary teams.”
- David Goldberg, The Entrepreneurial Engineer (2006)
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8. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
…and then, globalisation
 the process whereby, in the interest of free trade,
nation-based legal, regulatory, fiduciary, logistical and
technical barriers are progressively reduced (Locke,
2005).
8 © NACETEM 2009

9. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
…The Future will intensify
 Abundance of knowledge
 Virtual division of the new global economy based on
access to knowledge and ability to exploit it
 Economic activities shifted from largely domestic affairs
to more complex international relationships
 Unprecedented cross-border transferability of
information and the removal of trade barriers
 Significantly increased occurrence of externalities
within nations
 Global employment challenges
9 © NACETEM 2009

10. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Youth Unemployment 15-24 age group (2000-2008)
50.0
40.0
30.0
20.0
10.0
0.0
2004
2000
2001
2002
2003
2005
2006
2007
2008
Nigeria Ghana SA
10 © NACETEM 2009

11. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Youth Unemployment 25+ age group (2000-2008)
80.0
70.0
60.0
50.0
40.0
30.0
20.0
10.0
0.0
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
Nigeria Ghana SA
11 © NACETEM 2009

12. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
DEVELOPING ECONOMIES
EMERGING ECONOMIES
DEVELOPED ECONOMIES
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13. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Development Status Report (1)
Country Human Per Capita % population % population
Developmen GDP (PPP below $1/day below $2/day
t Index USD)
ranking
Singapore 25 24481 - -
South Korea 27 17971 <2 <2
Chile 39 10274 <2 9.6
Malaysia 56 9512 <2 9.3
South Africa 94 10346 10.7 34.1
China 87 5003 16.6 46.7
Nigeria 136 1050 70.2 90.8
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14. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Development Status Report (2)
 29% of children ages of 0-5 years are underweight.
 Less than 40% of the population connected to the national
electricity grid
 Agricultural contribution to GDP has fallen consistently to
about 40% in 1987 and 33% in 2005
 Average capacity utilisation in the manufacturing sector still
less than 50%
 Manufacturing accounted for just 9.6% of the non-oil GDP
in 2005
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15. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
ON THE MARCH TO THE FUTURE
What we need to do
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16. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Action Points
 Know your subject by reading, tutelage and
study
 Learn to write/communicate: English and
not EngliS!
 Learn to read and understand data
 Contacts: you’re only as good as your
network
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17. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Action Points
 Immerse yourself in the right groups: no
point standing out if you’re in the wrong
audience
 Openness/Team spirit: the best things are
done by TEAMS
 That’s why more people would watch
Champions League than Grand Slam!
 FOCUS
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18. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Are you a flash light ?...
 Very bright at the on set
 Travels far with white light
 Lacks focus and concentration
 When seen from afar can not tell whether it is head
lamp for bike, bus, truck.
…or an Infra Red ray?
 Focused from beginning to the end
 You must be able to use your strength to mask
your weaknesses.
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19. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Technical Fundamentals are Key…
 It is impossible to address any technology-based
challenge, no matter how ‘small’ without strong technical
fundamentals, such as thermodynamics, circuits, quantum
theory, physical properties of solids, optics, fluid
mechanics, physiology, and molecular biology.
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20. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
…but
 The electrical engineer of today who has confined his
work entirely to theoretical fields has, comparatively
speaking, very little chance in competition with his
brother worker who, in addition to much practical
experience, has been trained in commercial ways…
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21. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Build Capacity Widely
 The statement so often made that the electrical
profession is overcrowded is absolutely untrue…there
are dozens of positions waiting and there always will
be, for the demand exceeds the supply, many, many
times.
Amateur Works Magazine http://chestofbooks.com/crafts/popular-
mechanics/Amateur-Work-6/index.html
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22. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
3 Core Requisites for the Future Engineer
 Ability to analyse (technical as well as business issues)
 Ability to translate important concepts and conclusions
into the language of different constituencies (e.g., your
boss, investors, non-technical colleagues, reporters)
 Ability to perceive new opportunities - connecting
disparate ideas from different disciplines in new ways
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23. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
Concluding remarks
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24. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
An Agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology
THANK YOU!
Comments
&
Questions
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