OVERVIEW

The ability to think well is certainly a trait which is important in this turbulent and uncertain pandemic times. Engineers and other professional vocations alike must be able to use the most appropriate thinking tools to analyse the available data and observations to make the best decisions. Often we see bad and poor judgement were made not because of insufficient information or data, but due to poor thought-process and the steps taken to reach a decision. Engineers are well-known as typical vertical thinkers. They prefer structured processes and proven facts before moving to the next step in decision-making. It is a good habit by the way. But, sometimes, knowledge of some readily available thinking tools will allow engineers to make quicker and faster decisions without having to risk the repercussion of ill-judgement, or at least minimising a faulty decision. In this talk, I will share some available tools which engineers can use to make better decisions, especially in time of crisis. The techniques are derived from works by De Bono and other well-known thinking experts.


SPEAKER PROFILE

Ir. Prof. Dr. Mohd Rizal Arshad

r. Prof. Dr. Mohd Rizal Arshad has been working at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Malaysia as full-time academics since March, 1999. He graduated from University of Liverpool in 1994 with a B.Eng. in Medical Electronics and Instrumentation. He then pursued his MSc. in Electronic Control Engineering at the University of Salford and graduated in Dec. 1995. In early 1999, he completed his Ph.D degree in Electronic Engineering from the University of Liverpool, UK. He is a Full Professor at the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, USM and currently, seconded to Universiti Malaysia Perlis (UniMAP) as the Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic and International. He is  the President of Malaysian Society for Automatic Control Engineers (MACE), Past-Chair of IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society Malaysia Chapter and committee member for IEM Marine Engineering and Naval Architecture Technical Division (MNATD).