Date of MSc: 1992 / 3 (Generalist Ergonomics course with HCI)
Project Title: The Effect of Reclined Sitting Postures on Hand Controlled Operations
Pre-MSc Background: BSc (Hons) in Psychology, worked with autistic children, travelled around the world for a year
Pre-MSc View of HCI/Cognitive Ergonomics: Thought it was the more complex end of psychology!
Post-MSc View of HCI/Cognitive Ergonomics: Realised that it was complex but that there are also other areas of equal complexity!
Subsequent-to-MSc View of HCI/Cognitive Ergonomics:
In order to provide a little context, my first job on graduating was as part of a human factors team within a large multinational engineering company, British Aerospace which proved to be a great grounding. From there I went into consultancy, two small companies, followed by setting up my own, and then after ten years joining with a larger consultancy of 20+ to become one of the directors of that company. The industries I have worked in include; oil and gas, chemical processing, defence, transport systems, manufacturing, telecommunications, medical products, air traffic control, amongst others.
I believe there are some essential ingredients required to develop from a good student into a good human factors practitioner because they are two quite different beings.
The knowledge gained on the master’s degree is fundamental to developing a detailed understanding of humans in the world of work. This is the baseline from which the professional needs to start.
The application of that knowledge, in my view, is the greatest challenge, and the development of the technical skill in being able to do that does take years. I think the most challenging aspect of any application of ergonomics is gaining a deep understanding of the domain area, i.e. the industrial application, how different industries work, what the human elements are, what ergonomics / HCI information is relevant and the mechanism by which to apply the knowledge to a given situation.
The third ingredient is being able to effectively deliver the knowledge and skill within the commercial world. This takes consultancy skills whether you are an internal or external consultant; understanding the need for the skill to package and selling it, negotiating contracts, managing projects (typically several at once), managing teams, delivering a high quality product via reports or verbal delivery, and project administration, and so on. There are several wheels that need to be oiled to keep the wheels in motion.
So my view of post qualification is that the professional journey starts at the point of qualification and that there is a need to develop quite different skills in order to deliver the newly gained knowledge. When I am involved in recruiting human factors consultants, these are the essential ingredients I am looking for; a good knowledge base from a relevant qualification, experience of applying knowledge in industrial settings, consultancy skills, and the appetite to continue to learn and develop.
Additional Reflections
In terms of the subject area, I now have 20 years of practitioner experience of it and seen how it has changed over that time. I also work with lots of different types of professionals and see how we compare.
I do recall, as I’m sure many other past graduates will, the debate sparked by John Long on whether ergonomics / HCI is an art, science or engineering discipline. Although I have my own views on this, the very posing of the question has helped me to understand my professional position within the world of other professionals – so thanks John for that!
That line of thought being included in this statement, I think as a profession, although we are developing at a pace, we are still in our infancy and that now is a time for consolidation. I believe we need to agree how we move forward, what our minimum standards are, and how we need to be structured – perhaps taking on a few more characteristics of being an engineering discipline?…..