Is Industrial Engineering a Profession with a Future?
Industrial engineering is one of the engineering disciplines that will never become outdated. The most significant reason for this is that industrial engineering continuously renews itself, stays aligned with current developments, and is a discipline that constantly develops new problem-solving methods and methodologies. The following news articles indicate that industrial engineering will continue to be popular in the future:
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Industrial engineering is one of the 18 professions mentioned in the news article titled “The Professions of the Future” published in 2009 (see [6]).
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Industrial engineers can work as actuaries, mathematicians, statisticians, data scientists, and software engineers, which were listed among “The Top 10 Professions of 2014” (see [7]).
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Industrial engineers can work as general and operations managers, market research and marketing analysts, auditors, medical and healthcare service managers, and management analysts, all of which were included in “The 20 Best Professions of the Future” (see [8]).
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Industrial Engineering was the only engineering field to appear in the “Top 10 Professions of 2015” determined by a partnership between Career Builder and EMSI (Economic Modeling Specialists International). Industrial engineers can also work in other roles listed, such as sales representatives, software developers, web designers, and medical/healthcare services managers (see [9]).
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Industrial Engineers can work as statisticians, mathematicians, financial advisors, actuaries, and operations research analysts, all of which were included in the top 5 of “The Best Professions in Business” published in 2017. (Operations research is one of the subfields of industrial engineering. Statistics is one of the core study areas in industrial engineering departments) (see [10]).
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Data science, which is seen as one of the most popular job fields today, requires education in probability/statistics, optimization, and computer programming. These topics are considered core subjects in industrial engineering education programs. Many industrial engineers are still working as data scientists.
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The primary goal of the 4th Industrial Revolution, Industry 4.0, is to increase efficiency. Industrial engineering is known as Quality and Productivity Engineering, and its main purpose is to ensure optimal decisions are made based on data analysis and modeling. With Industry 4.0, it has become easier to access data, and as a result, the need for industrial engineers has increased.
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According to a study conducted in 2011 with 183 CEOs and general managers, 52% of CEOs in Turkey have an engineering background, and 20% have a business background. Among engineering fields, industrial engineering and mechanical engineering are at the forefront with a 31% share. Within this 31%, it is possible to say that industrial engineers are predominant in most sectors (see [11]). Industrial engineers have held top managerial positions (CEO, Deputy Minister, Vice President) in large firms and institutions in Turkey and globally, such as Turkcell, Unilever, Microsoft Turkey, Marks&Spencer, ETI, the Central Bank of Turkey, Ministry of Economy, Wells Fargo, and Apple (see [12]).
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According to the “Most Effective Financial Managers in Turkey” research conducted in 2016 by Fortune Turkey and Data Expert, 5 industrial engineers were among the top 50 (see [13]).
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According to the “Most Effective Information Managers in Turkey” evaluation organized by CIO magazine in 2015, 5 industrial engineers were among the top 20 (see [14]).
In summary, there is considerable truth in the phrase: “For a doctor, it's a physician; for defense, it's a lawyer; for space, it's an astronaut; for everything else, it’s an industrial engineer.”
Let’s conclude our article with a narrative that demonstrates how industrial engineers approach problems differently (see [15]).
When asked how to find the height of the Pisa Tower, which has a specific tilt in Pisa, Italy, the mathematician would say he can find the height by using the Pythagorean theorem when the shadow of the tower falls. The civil engineer would say he can use a plumb line from the top of the tower to find the height using the length of the string. The industrial engineer, however, would say: “Why go through all that trouble? I’d just ask the staff, and they’ll tell me the answer.”
ibrahim.akgun@agu.edu.tr for your questions.
References:
[1] Brandeau, M.L., Sainfont, F., Pierskalla W.P. Operations Research and Healthcare: A Handbook of Methods and Applications, Kluwer Academic Publishers, New York, 2005.
[2] Alves, C.J.S., Pardalos, P.M., Vicente, L.N. Optimization in Medicine, Springer, 2008.
[3]Yih, Y. Handbook of Healthcare Delivery Systems, CRC Press, 2011.
[4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrial_engineering
[7] http://finans.mynet.com/haber/detay/haber-analiz/2015in-en-kotu-ve-en-iyi-meslekleri/100614/12
[8] http://www.endustrimuhendisligim.com/endustri-muhendisligi-ile-ilgili-hosunuza-gidecek-5-bilgi
[9] http://www.businessinsider.com/best-jobs-for-2015-2014-11#industrial-engineer-
[12]https://www.endustrimuhendisligim.com/category/size-ozel/4-unlu-endustri-muhendisleri/
[13] https://www.endustrimuhendisligim.com/en-etkin-cfo-lar-aciklandi-iste-endustri-muhendisleri/
[14]https://www.endustrimuhendisligim.com/cio-odullerine-endustri-muhendisi-damgasi/
[15] http://www.sauemk.com/vitrin/endustri-muhendisligi-nedir-ne-degildir.html