Electrical Engineering & Electronics Design

Being an Expert in any field is fine as long as that field is high-paying and in great demand (which is usually why it is high paying). However, there is no golden goose market where you are going to get rich being an expert. This applies for those who even have advanced degrees with Masters and Doctorates.

Being an expert is fine for specific research purposes and going after a doctorates thesis, but in the general marketplace if you ever had to look for a job, the employers are not looking for any electrical engineering expert.

In fact they are looking for as many skillsets as possible in what I call the 'Dear Santa I have been a good company and here's what I want for an engineer this year' ; which is a laundry list of analog, digital, RF, power, video, embedded, optical, motion control, control systems, electromechanical (PCB layout), simulations and CAE / CAD/ CAM software tools. Not to mention the typical Office packages of Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Access, Outlook, and Visio.

In addition, every industry is myopic to its own selfish interests. if you worked in Medical , the Defense contractors don't care, which is the same for commercial, industrial, Aviation, Biotech, High Performance Computing, Semiconductors, Marine, Transportation, Automotive, and Space.

Each industry requires specific standards and processes that make it run and they want you to have it coming in the door. No on the job training here ! Only if you are a new grad or intern are exceptions made.

And the same thing is true for each discipline. If there is a motion control systems job that requires analog, digital, embedded, optical, DSP, magnetics, RF, and power. They want it ALL, not just a piece of it.

If this is a jack-of-all-trades, then NO it is NOT becoming old fashioned. The only thing that is becoming old fashioned is the EXPECTATION for all these skills and being an EXPERT at all of the skills !

So if most engineers are Jack-Of-All-Trades its because of a job marketplace that *demands* it !

As always Steven great advice.

It appears more important than ever to gain a broad spectrum of skill sets especially in regions where company's are leaving for other destinations.

FYI, you can put your hat back on to anyone who is an expert in their industry. That expert is as good as milk. They have an expiration date as soon the skillset becomes a commodity. Sure they have a unique set of skillsets for the moment. And likely they will be paid well for the demand in that skill - for the time being. But who wants this expert if the industry shifts. - e.g. Experts in the Compact Florescent Lighting marketplace. So how much are they in demand now ! ? ! And what about the experts in the Hard Drive industry where all media is going solid state ! ? ! And what about the computer (Laptop and desktop) experts - how are they doing ! ? ! And what about the experts in the CD / DVD / Bluray player marketplace - I'm sure those experts are in *really* high demand; now that all media is on-line.

Yea, being an expert at the right time is fine for the moment and maybe a few years, but i'll place my Jack-of-all trades skillsets over the experts over the long haul for my long term payoff !

I totally agree Steven,

I had no choice but to study a wide area of skill sets starting

as a hobbyist that then turned to something more serious. My journey with

engineering started in an electronics forum chat room about 10 years ago when

an American engineer ripped me apart saying an idea was outright impossible. I

was a total beginner to engineering and electronics but I researched the

subject day and night for a month, did the math and accepted the challenge.

After 12 months of repeated prototype test failures I finally created something

no one had done before, refined the design and started selling them. Since that

day it has been a never-ending process of learning and studying new skill sets.

Without leaning a wide area of skill sets there is no way I would have survived

in engineering starting from the position that I did with £50 in my pocket. It

has been extremely difficult day and night learning new skill sets pieces at a time

but it has given me my own websites, fully equipped office, lab and workshop.

Engineering and automated systems design has now taken me in to the world of finance and business. This is an important strategy time for myself to decide what direction to take for the future. Electronics or Finance & Investment or a combination of the both?

My advice is to combine the best of both and create something unique in the industry. BUT make sure that the idea has merit as a BUSINESS. Too many engineers fall in love with their 'science projects' and they lose sight of the purpose of their efforts. You are an engineer or you are a scientist - not both !

A scientist proves out theoretical ideas and concepts to see if they can be proven; but they do not have to be practical ! An engineer's job is to take scientific proven concepts and available parts and materials to construct something as a useful and viable (affordable - but this is subjective) product.

A Boeing 737 is a viable product but not affordable to consumers. Make sure you understand the BUSINESS side of things FIRST, then go off and decide whether or not to pursue the engineering effort. And the costs associated with that BUSINESS venture.

You do not need to have any degree to be a multi-millionaire, but you need to be able to manage time, money (costs), labor, and operational expenses (costs). Richard Branson can get any expert to work for him with money, but he can't force people to buy it. - That's the hard part !!

The compelling reason for markets is the value proposition you are providing in solving a problem to save time, money, effort, risk, and efficiency. And whether you are successful is dependent upon people voting for your idea with their cash.

Thanks for the advice Steve much appreciated.

I have learnt some hard lessons in engineering as well as business over my past years experience and I have been putting serious hours in to my financial education and plan to draw on all experience to move forward with a solid future strategy. Financial education has opened my eyes to a new world of possibilities and has had a really positive change in myself and the way that I think this year.

By the end of this year I want to plan all strategies or at least get them started.

Yes, the world needs more generalists & JoTs !

Specialists are important for complex niches, and not having to absorb the learning curve can be very valuable when your project is on a schedule or budget. Larger companies almost always hire for specialites, but as was said so well above, that skill has an expiration date. And that "tool" only works for some problems.

Generalists make better entrepreneurs, or consultants like me. The cross pollination of knowledge is really useful as an architect. I hire specialists where I can or need to, but Product Development, which I say incorporates and engineering, design and business skills, needs at least some generalists. The smaller the team, the more true this is.

Mike  -  Agreed ! !

If you look back in History, people who received degrees hundreds of years ago had Doctorates in Philosophy (which is not the same today). Their understanding of the world in all aspects of history, natural science and mathematics (what we call STEM today) allowed them to think more creatively and express themselves into the world we live in.

However capitalists and business people are not looking for 'philosophers' to ponder the aspects of life. They are out to achieve business goals of making money in the most efficient way possible.

The need for specialists came from the Henry Ford manufacturing approach where one person was more efficient in a factory by performing one single task. This is why larger corporations like 'experts' to perform one key task in their mental assembly line.

This focuses their efforts into maximum IP valuation translated into patents translated into maximum market protection. It also secludes them from other business aspects to protect the principals running the organization such that each expert is not a threat to the business organization.

All of this is not to study the mechanics of the world, but to use people in the business factory of ideas with a net result of monetary profit for those who run it and those who invested into it.

Nice to know there are employers and like minded engineers out there who realize how important multiple skill sets are and understand engineering is evolving in the modern climate. I have known of professors and teachers who frown upon combined skill sets and use the Jack of all trades as a slur. It seems to stumble their pace when I remind them some of the most successful people in the world Bill Gates, Paul Allen, Richard Branson, Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, Jordan Belfort, Julian Assange, Larry Ellison, Michael Dell, Matt Mullenweg, Daniel Ek, etc... list goes on were all college drop outs and most company's in the world have only succeeded due to assimilating multiple skill sets. Some of the most important world changing inventions came from the bedroom, back garage or the garden shed. I would never advise anyone to drop out of college or university however I have on many occasions had highly skilled graduates and engineers with some very costly university qualifications asking me for advice in certain areas and especially in high voltage system and HV transformer design. I personally believe both multi skill set and specialists are incredibly valuable to the future of engineering although the increasing trend of company's only accepting university graduates may spell the beginning of the end for this multi skill set and innovative revolution and will enslave millions in increasing levels of debt with no actual guarantee of even getting a job.

Jason - Well it's clear that I don't need to teach you anything since you understand the bigger picture. I wonder how many other free thinkers that there are out there, especially with all the controlled and programmed media and information. There are too many 'sheeple' that are spoon fed concepts and have become the literal androids that they communicate with.

Jason - My last comment also applied to your last comments as well.

Jack-of-all-Trades-Master-of-None is a slur, but having multiple skillsets is not a slur but a complement. The Experts are noteworthy in their domain, but outside they are a 'fish out of water'.

Also many of those who teach, can only do that and cannot perform in a changing real world environment. They prefer the blanket of security in their science projects world where they thrive in minutia.

I completely agree Steven and most certainly agree with your comment before that. The level of controlled and programmed media and information. It seems to be infecting multiple levels throughout society.

I guess job security has certain advantages in certain areas such as those who do their best work and have their best ideas in a low stress environment however progress would certainly be stunted if not for those who did not get pushed or push themselves outside the comfort zone or blanket of security. I guess this is where certain degrees of diversity is very important for society as well as engineering. One thing is for sure engineering will not change itself, it is up to all of us to change it and guide it in the right direction for the future. My concern is at the moment this direction is being guided by the very same programmed media and information you speak of and is being guided by people where at the least I consider their motives to be questionable.

Their motives are simple - maximize profits at the expense of anything or anyone and use whatever means are available to do so. This means cheaper labor, off-shoring, buying competition, hiring less skilled and less expensive workers, using worldwide resources (not local ones), and undermine competition. This all makes sense for those without a moral conscience and with greed for a soul.

yep, greed is in the essence......