1. Are You a Professional or Just an Engineer?By
Kenneth E. Arnold, PE, NAE
WorleyParsons
December, 2014

2. Outline Defining a “Professional” Principles of Professional Behavior
Recovery from Unprofessional Behavior
Risks and Rewards of Being a Professional
Conclusions

3. What is a Professional Is a professional defined by:
Level of education
Job title
Salary grade
Complexity of job description
Degree of supervision required
Society perception
Or is it something else?

4. Definition of Professional
There is no objective definition of a professional job or assignment. There is only a definition of “professional behavior”.
Anyone who acts in a professional manner is by definition a professional
Professional behavior requires:
Always looking out for the best interest of your project, client and society
Never making decisions based solely on your best interest, the best interest of your employer or personal convenience
So let’s discuss the Five Principles of Professional Behavior

5. Outline Defining a “Professional” Principles of Professional Behavior
Recovery from Unprofessional Behavior
Risks and Rewards of Being a Professional
Conclusions

6. 1st Principle: Spend the Client’s Money As If It Were Your Own
Definition of “client”
Supervisor
The Project Itself
Employer
Customer
The public
You must think about what you are doing in the context of the best interest of the client
“Am I spending my time and thus the client’s money wisely”
You can’t just perform a task; you must understand how the task fits the client’s needs
Drag reducer example

7. 2nd Principle: You Owe the Client One Strong Argument
Professionals are hired for their brains
You are not allowed to say:
“I knew there was a better way but they wanted it done this way”
“I knew they would not listen”
“This is standard practice, even though it does not make sense in this context”
“That is not my job”
Make your case carefully and politely

8. 3rd Principle: Shut Up and Do What the Client Wants
Why might a client disagree with you
You could be wrong
Client may have different data
Client may be comfortable with a specific approach
Ego
Remember
Best interest of the client
Handle disagreements with care
The following trump all
Technical reality
Safety
Station controls example

9. Exception: Technically It will Not Work
Make sure you are right
Understand you erred the first time in not explaining it correctly
Get help formulating your explanation
Carefully bring it up inn a non-threatening way
Never blame the client for not understanding
Clients always agree once the technology is understood.

10. Exception: Safety Issues
Make sure it is really a safety issue and not merely a preference
Get help analyzing the issue
Never question the client’s motive
Relief valve example
Meet with the client with others from your group present
Do not document the disagreement, yet
Listen to the client; he may have a different insight which is valid
Only document the disagreement if it is unbridgeable
Stand by your decision and accept the consequences
Manifold example

11. 4th Principle: Correct Errors
A professional makes mistakes
Insufficient data
Misleading or incorrect data
New data/ revisions
Miscommunication between team members
Think about potential effects of new information on the project as a whole
Correct your errors as soon as practical
Verify that others realize the impact on their work
Figure out how to avoid the same error in the future
If you do not know at the end of the job how you could have done it better, you are not a “professional”
Dehydrator slab example

12. 5th Principle: You Must Act Ethically Towards Others
Everyone deserves the right to be treated with dignity
Customer, Vendor, Boss, Subordinate, Peer
Everyone deserves the right to be treated equally and fairly. It is unethical to:
Requesting favors and giving advantages to favorites
Using your position to force others to do things not in their interest
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you

13. Outline Defining a “Professional” Principles of Professional Behavior
Recovery from Unprofessional Behavior
Risks and Rewards of Being a Professional
Conclusions

14. What If You Act In An Unprofessional Manner?
We all do unwittingly from time to time
We act before thinking
We are distracted
We don’t have all the facts
We are human
Bosses or clients may require us to do things we think may be unethical
Follow the rules for the Safety Exemption
Apologize
Not paying for extra work example

15. Outline Defining a “Professional” Principles of Professional Behavior
Recovery from Unprofessional Behavior
Risks and Rewards of Being a Professional
Conclusions

16. So What Is the Payout for You?
Job satisfaction
Knowing you are doing good
Gaining respect for your work
Getting more interesting and challenging opportunities
Better relations with co-workers
More enjoyable work environment
Better reputation in industry
Ability to make a difference

17. What Are the Downsides?
You have to think about what you are doing and how it fits into the client’s goals
You have to force yourself to speak up and not accept authority’s answer as necessarily correct
You have to educate yourself and ask questions so you can speak up
You may be wrong and have to admit it
You have to think about your behaviors and how they are perceived by others
You have to be prepared to suffer the negative consequences

18. Outline Defining a “Professional” Principles of Professional Behavior
Recovery from Unprofessional Behavior
Risks and Rewards of Being a Professional
Conclusions

19. So Are You Going to be a Professional or Just Another Engineer?
It is up to you. I don’t have the answer.
There are many who are not comfortable being a professional
There are many who don’t want to expend the effort to be a professional
Only you know what you are capable of doing and what you wish to accomplish in your working life

20. Questions?
Contact Information; Cell: