Description:

Designing Engineering Design Teams - Integrating Cognitive and Computational Models of Team Problem Solving

Jonathan Cagan

George Tallman and Florence Barrett Ladd Professor in Mechanical Engineering

Associate Dean for Graduate and Faculty Affairs, College of Engineering

Faculty Co-Director, Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship

Carnegie Mellon University

Talk:

Teams are assumed critical to engineering problem solving in general, and design in particular. But are they? This talk will first look at cognitive properties of humans solving problems as individuals and in teams. Based on those properties an agent-based algorithm is created that emulates human team problem solving strategies. This algorithm then allows for much faster problem solving than with humans, and enables a computational approach to designing human teams with optimal properties. In some cases the best team configuration is…surprising. The talk will also look at answers for why teams behave the way they do, and why the best team design is not always the most obvious one.

Background:

Jonathan Cagan, the George Tallman and Florence Barrett Ladd Professor in Mechanical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University with an appointment in Design, is the Associate Dean for Graduate and Faculty Affairs for the College of Engineering. He also serves as Co-Faculty Director of the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship. Cagan was co-founder of the Integrated Innovation Institute, focused on formal methods for innovation bringing together engineering, design and marketing. His research focuses on design methods, cognitive problem solving, and computation. By understanding the fundamental cognitive mechanisms that individuals and teams use while solving problems, new approaches to automating design and problem solving emerge. This research leverages design representation, optimal search, and machine learning, and has resulted in over 250 reviewed publications and several patents. His recent research foci include computer-human teaming, generative design, and biomechanical systems design and diagnostics. Cagan is the co-author of three books: Creating Breakthrough Products, Built to Love and The Design of Things to Come. He is a Fellow of American Society of Mechanical Engineers, was awarded the ASME Design Theory and Methodology Award, and most recently awarded Carnegie Mellon’s prestigious Doherty Award for education. Cagan is a licensed Professional Engineer.