Structural Engineering Managers – Innovation Challenges for their Skills

Abstract

The profession of structural engineer is highly responsible, because the consequences of a structural engineer’s errors result not only in economic damage of property and often irreversible damage of the environment, but also they can lead to direct loss of lives. In the current turbulent, dynamically developing society it is not possible that the managerial methods of structural engineers stagnate at the level of the last century’s usages. This paper deals with challenges which the ingoing century brings to structural engineers and managers. It compares the results of research regarding the current state of managerial skills of structural engineers in Czech building companies to the defined skills of the 21st century’s managers according to the global research programme ITL Research and according to the Vision for the Future of Structural Engineering, drawn up by Structural Engineering Institute – SEI ASCE.

The profession of structural engineer is highly responsible, because the consequences of a structural engineer’s errors result not only in economic damage of property and often irreversible damage of the environment, but also they can lead to direct loss of lives. In the current turbulent, dynamically developing society it is not possible that the managerial methods of structural engineers stagnate at the level of the last century’s usages. This paper deals with challenges which the ingoing century brings to structural engineers and managers. It compares the results of research regarding the current state of managerial skills of structural engineers in Czech building companies to the defined skills of the 21st century’s managers according to the global research programme ITL Research and according to the Vision for the Future of Structural Engineering, drawn up by Structural Engineering Institute – SEI ASCE.