As a non-profit professional engineering organization, the success of the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) is entirely due to the efforts of its leaders and the many other volunteers who share their time, expertise, and knowledge to nurture the organization and advance the practice of systems engineering.
Through the Hall of Leaders, INCOSE recognizes and remembers the many individuals who have made the organization and systems engineering what it is today.
We invite you to learn about our valued members and their distinguished achievements.
Award Criteria
INCOSE strives to recognize those who contribute to the advancement of the systems engineering profession as well as the advancement of our organization.
Criteria for our INCOSE awards are shown below:
All award nomination packages should be sent electronically by their respective deadlines to
awards@incose.org . An acknowledgment of receipt will be sent within one week. If you do not receive a confirmation, please resend.
Awards
INCOSE
7670 Opportunity Rd., Suite 220
San Diego, CA 92111-2222
View Past Pioneer Award Recipients
The Pioneer Award will be presented to one distinguished individual or team, who by their achievements in the engineering of systems, has contributed uniquely to major products or outcomes enhancing society or meeting its needs. The criteria may apply to a single outstanding outcome or a lifetime of significant achievements in effecting successful systems.
Criteria
The Pioneer Award is intended to recognize outstanding pioneer- applications of Systems Engineering in the development of successful products or services of benefit to society. Some examples would include, but not be limited to; applying systems engineering principles to unique, highly complex problems; the successful application of systems engineering to brand new market segments and outstanding examples of advancing the state of the art and/or practice of systems engineering beyond its current bounds.
Nomination Process
Any INCOSE member in good standing may initiate a Pioneer Award nomination but they may only nominate or provide a letter of support for one (1) individual or team for Pioneer per year. The nominator shall prepare a nomination letter describing the nominator’s qualifications for making the nomination and the contributions made by the nominee that qualify them for consideration for this award. The nomination letter must be accompanied by a minimum of three (3) detailed letters of support. Of the three letters of support, at least two (2) shall be from INCOSE members in good standing. Each letter of support must be from an individual other than the nominator and shall state the supporter’s qualifications for supporting the nomination and why they believe the nominee is qualified for consideration for this award.
The nominator shall assemble the nomination letter and the letters of support into a nomination package and submit the nomination package to the Chair of the Honors and Awards Committee not later than 28 February for consideration. Nomination packages received after that date will not be considered.
The Honors and Awards Committee (see CMT-100: Committees) shall evaluate the Pioneer Award nomination packages and make a rank-ordered recommendation to the BOD of a maximum of three candidates for the award. The Board of Directors shall select the award recipient at the Second Calendar Quarter Board of Directors meeting by voted resolution.
Once the Board of Directors decision is made, the Chair of the Honors and Awards Committee shall prepare the citation for the Award and provide the Citation to the INCOSE Secretary within two (2) weeks following the Board of Directors decision.
Recognition
The Pioneer award will be made at the annual International Symposium with a reading of the citation and the presentation of an appropriate memento of recognition. Recipients of the Pioneer Award shall be granted for their personal use free registration for life to both the annual INCOSE symposium and the annual workshop. The recipient shall receive one additional free dinner ticket for the banquet at the annual INCOSE symposium.
Reference: INCOSE Policy
REC-106: Pioneer Award
View Past Fellows Recipients
INCOSE Fellows are individuals with significant verifiable contributions to the art and practice of Systems Engineering in industry, government or academia. This award recognizes practitioners from government and industry applying knowledge and contributing to the practice of systems engineering in designing and acquiring systems, researchers developing new knowledge and advancing theory, and teachers disseminating knowledge and developing the next generation of successful systems engineers.
INCOSE Fellows are expected contribute to the goals of the Fellows as a body, and attend Fellows meetings at the annual International Symposium and at the annual International Workshop.
Eligibility
Candidates must have been INCOSE members for a minimum of two (2) years. This eligibility requirement is not subject to waiver.
Criteria
Fellow awards are based only upon significant verifiable contributions to the art and practice of Systems Engineering, and only upon evidence of same provided by their nominators in written form to the Fellows Selection Committee. It is recognized that systems engineers come from different domains, e.g.: industry, government and educational organizations. They also are engaged in different areas of practice, including, research, application and teaching. In some cases, national security or company policy inhibits accessibility of supporting materials. Therefore, varied verifiable evidence of contributions to the state of the art and practice are expected to be submitted. An INCOSE Fellow should have had a significant influence on others that has resulted in noticeable improvement of the practice of systems engineering in an industry or on major national or international efforts, and/or made significant advances in the theory/science of systems engineering; in other words, the nominee should be a thought leader in systems engineering.
Nominators should identify their candidate's primary strength as that of either a practitioner (applies knowledge), or a researcher (develops new knowledge), or a teacher (imparts knowledge to others). For a practitioner, the criteria are satisfied by providing evidence about programs that he/she has personally led and/or advanced by means of significant application of the systems engineering art. This evidence should be supported by publications -- ideally in refereed journals or conferences where possible -- or other suitable means.
For a researcher, the criteria are satisfied by providing evidence about research personally conducted or advanced as a consequence of the researcher's effort. This evidence should be supported by patents, patent applications, books authored and those to which contributions have been made, and publications in refereed journals or conferences. For teachers, evidence is provided by advances made in the state of the art in systems engineering education such as new books, courses, curricula and refereed publications.
Some nominators may wish to submit their candidates for consideration in more than one category. In this case, evidence must be provided as above for every applicable area.
Nomination Process
Each candidate will have a nominator other than him- or herself.
The nominator will provide a package to the Fellows Selection Committee that will consist of the following:
Candidate Profile (Fellows Guidance Form)
- Name of Candidate
- e-Mail Address
- Year of Birth
- Primary Contribution
- Secondary Contributions (if applicable)
- Citation (to be used on certificate)
- Educational Background
- Professional History (Employer, Years of Employment, Duties, Accomplishments)
- Accomplishments vs. Fellows Criteria
- Letters of Support - Fellows Support Form
Letters of Support must be provided by at least three (preferably 5) people recommended by the nominator. At least 3 letters must be from active members of INCOSE, one or more from a current INCOSE Fellow, and no more than two from the candidate’s own immediate organization. It is recommended that letters of support come from people with detailed knowledge of the significant impact of the systems engineering contributions of the nominee. Those writing letters of support should have the candidate's resume available to them, but each letter of support should be independently written. Nominators should provide selected (no more than five) papers as part of the nomination package for nominees whose papers are published in obscure journals, if the nominee’s papers are an important criterion for Fellow selection. (The intent is to provide papers for those candidates whose papers were published in obscure journals where the authorship of papers is presented by the nominator as a qualification for selection of the nominated Fellow; not to require the authorship of new papers).
Letters of Support should use the standard form provided on the Fellows page. Letters of Support should be included in the nomination package and the nomination package should be received by the INCOSE Central Office by before December 1st. Nomination packages should be emailed to info@incose.org.
Selection Committee Members whose terms are ending in 2023
- Duncan Kemp (1 Dec. 2020 to 30 Nov. 2023)
- Sarah Sheard (1 Dec. 2020 to 30 Nov. 2023)
- Eileen Arnold (1 Dec. 2017 to 30 Nov. 2023)
Selection Committee Members continuing
- Olivier de Weck (1 Dec. 2021 to 30 Nov. 2024)
- Dan DeLaurentis (1 Dec. 2021 to 30 Nov. 2024)
- Scott Jackson (1 Dec. 2021 to 30 Nov. 2024)
- Judith Dahmann (1 Dec. 2019 to 30 Nov. 2025)
- David Long (1 Dec. 2019 to 30 Nov. 2025)
- Ariela Sofer (1 Dec 2022 to 30 Nov. 2025)
Recognition
The Fellow Awards will be presented at the annual INCOSE Symposium with a reading of the citation and presentation of an appropriate memento of recognition.
Reference: INCOSE Policy
REC-101: Fellows Award
View Past Founders Award Recipients
One (1) Founder's Award will be presented annually at the International Symposium. The Founder's Award is a highly prestigious award intended to recognize an individual INCOSE member who has made major contributions to INCOSE.
Criteria
The Founder's Award is intended to recognize outstanding individual contributions to INCOSE, be they a single event or significant events over sustained period of service. Contributions should be of a highly significant nature and contribute positively to the advancement of INCOSE or an INCOSE Chapter. A few examples of such contributions would include, but not be limited to; extending INCOSE’s international growth, developing new Chapters, significantly advancing INCOSE’s professional status and making significant personal commitments to INCOSE such as long-term service in a leadership role.
Nomination Process
Any INCOSE member in good standing may initiate a Founder's Award nomination but they may only nominate or provide a letter of reference for one (1) Founder per year. The nominator shall prepare a nomination letter describing the nominator’s qualifications for making the nomination and the contributions made by the nominee that qualify them for consideration for this award. The nomination letter must be accompanied by a minimum of three (3) detailed letters of support, each letter from a different INCOSE member other than the nominator, who are also members in good standing. Each letter of support shall state the supporter’s qualifications for supporting the nomination and why they believe the nominee is qualified for consideration for this award.
The nominator shall assemble the nomination letter and letters of support into a nomination package and submit the nomination package electronically to the Chair of the Honors and Awards Committee not later than 28 February for consideration. Nomination packages received after that date may not be considered.
The Honors and Awards Committee (see CMT-100; Committees) shall evaluate the Founder's Award nomination packages and make a rank-ordered recommendation to the Board of Directors with a maximum of three (3) candidates for the Founders Award. The Board of Directors shall select the Founder's Award recipient at the Second Calendar Quarter Board of Directors Meeting by voted resolution.
Once the Board of Directors decision is made, the Chair of the Honors and Awards Committee shall prepare the citation for the Award and provide the Citation to the INCOSE Secretary within two (2) weeks following the Board of Directors decision. Nominators will be notified of the Board decision by the end of April.
Recognition
The Founder's award will be made at the annual International Symposium with a reading of the citation, the presentation of an appropriate memento of recognition and the presentation of a red sweater. Recipients of the Founder's Award shall be granted for their personal use free registration and one additional free dinner ticket for the banquet at the annual INCOSE symposium in the year of award.
Reference: INCOSE Policy
REC-105: Founder's Award
View Past Outstanding Service Award Recipients
Purpose
Awards for outstanding service are presented to recognize INCOSE members who have contributed significant volunteer effort on behalf of INCOSE.
Eligibility
Nominees for the Outstanding Service Award must have been INCOSE members for a minimum of five (5) years. Under exceptional circumstances, the Board of Directors may waive this requirement. Candidates must have volunteered significant and arduous effort on behalf of INCOSE either in one act of outstanding service or through extended contributions in one (1) or more of the following three (3) areas:
Service at the international, national, or local level in an elected office as a chair, or as a leader of a task force, advisory group, or working group;
Service at the international level as an editorial, publication, or symposium leader; or
Service at the international level as an advocate or liaison with other professional, scientific, public, or humanitarian organizations.
Nomination
Nominators must be INCOSE members and may not self-nominate.
Posthumous nominations will not be accepted.
The nominator shall assemble the nomination package - that consists of the following:
Completed Nomination Form (MS Word or PDF):
- Name of candidate
- Accomplishments vs. Outstanding Service Award Criteria
- Proposal for the citation
- List of letters of support to match the criteria
Letters of Support provided by the nominator and at least two (2) other people. These letters are limited to two (2) typewritten pages, and should provide:
- Name of Supporter,
- Basis of knowledge about the candidate, which provides substantiation for the award,
- Evaluation of the candidate against the Service Award Criteria.
Those writing letters of support should have the candidates information and qualifications available to them, but all letters of support should be independently written.
The nominator shall assemble the nomination package and submit the complete nomination package electronically to the Chair of the Honors & Awards Committee not later than 28 February for consideration. Nomination packages received after that date may not be considered for this award. Nomination packages that are not awarded in the year they are submitted may be resubmitted for consideration the following year if the nominator so desires.
Reference: INCOSE Policy
REC-102 Outstanding Service Award
View Past Working Group Award Recipients
Eligibility
All Working Groups that have approved charters under Technical Operations are eligible to receive awards under the Working Group Awards and Recognition Program. Not all awards are awarded every year. The Awards recognise exemplary Working Group activities in specific areas:
All Working Groups that have approved charters under Technical Operations are eligible to receive awards under the Working Group Awards and Recognition Program. Not all awards are awarded every year. The Awards recognise exemplary Working Group activities in specific areas:
- Product of the Year award is presented to the Working Group that, either independently or working in collaboration with other Working Groups and/or other INCOSE stakeholders, has developed and published the product which is considered to provide the most significant value to INCOSE's stakeholders,. This award may be shared between two or more Working Groups.
- Sustained Performance award is presented to an individual Working Group that has provided exemplary value to INCOSE stakeholders over a multi-year period.
- Collaboration award is presented to the leadership of the Working Groups that have demonstrated the most exemplary collaboration in working with other Working Groups and/or other INCOSE stakeholders.
- Outreach award is presented to the Working Group, or combination of Working Groups, that has made the most significant contribution to the development of INCOSE in a non-aerospace/defence domain, and/or outside of the USA.
- Achieving the Systems Engineering Vision award is presented to the Working Group that has made the most significant contribution toward achieving the Systems Engineering Vision 2020.
View Past Systems Engineering Influencer Award Recipients
Purpose
INCOSE recognizes efforts and achievements of a person(s) who has been instrumental in influencing the acceptance, adoption, and implementation Systems Engineering.
Eligibility
Candidates must have had a significant effect on influencing decision-makers, markets, industries and/or cultures to recognize the value of systems engineering and adopt or significantly increase the usage of Systems Engineering. The candidate does not need to be a systems engineer themselves, but must clearly see and communicate the value of systems engineering. They should have a demonstrated track record of successfully making the business case for the application of systems engineering in areas in which it is not currently being applied or areas in which it is not being as fully applied as would be appropriate
Nomination Process
Any INCOSE member in good standing may initiate a nomination, but they may only nominate one (1) SE Influencer per year and provide letters of support for at most two (2) nominees per year. INCOSE members may not self-nominate. The nominator shall prepare a nomination letter describing the nominator’s qualifications for making the nomination and the contributions made by the nominee that qualify them for consideration for this award. The nomination letter must be accompanied by a minimum of three (3) detailed letters of support, each letter from a different INCOSE member other than the nominator, who are also members in good standing. At least one letter of support shall be from a member of the INCOSE Board of Directors, an INCOSE past President, an Associate or Assistant Director, an INCOSE Fellow, a working group Chair/Co-Chair, or a Chapter President or President-Elect. Each letter of support shall state the supporter’s qualifications for supporting the nomination and why they believe the nominee is qualified for consideration for this award. The letter of support should be limited to no more than two (2) pages.
Posthumous nominations shall not be accepted.
The nominator shall assemble the nomination letter and letters of support into a nomination package and submit the nomination package to the Chair of the Honors and Awards Committee no later than 28 February for consideration. Nomination packages received after that date will not be considered, unless an extension has been formally announced
Recognition
One (1) SE Influencer Award shall be presented annually at the International Symposium. Under special circumstances, the Board of Directors’ may approve more than one award recipient in any one year.
This award shall be announced at the annual International Symposium. INCOSE shall prepare a press release to coincide with the ceremonial presentation of the SE Influencer Award. The recipient shall be asked to keep the information confidential until presentation.
Recipients of the SE Influencer Award shall be granted for their personal use, free registration to the annual International Symposium in the year of their award. If at this event a social evening is offered, two (2) complimentary tickets shall also be offered.
Reference: INCOSE Policy
REC-113 Systems Engineering Influencer Award
View Past Certification Champion Award Recipients
Purpose
The Certification Champion Award is intended to recognize sustained individual or group contributions to the INCOSE systems engineering professional (SEP) certification program, which directly supported the INCOSE certification or professionalization process or directly contributed to equivalent recognition in other countries.
Eligibility
Nominees for the Certification Champion Award shall meet one or more of the following requirements.
- Contributions should be deemed to be of a highly significant nature and contribute positively to the INCOSE SEP program, over a sustained multi-year period of service of no less than 3 years total within a 5-year period.
- Contributions should be deemed to be of a highly significant nature and contribute positively to country certification or professionalization of systems engineers and recognized by INCOSE.
- No current CAG member is eligible to receive this award, although they may submit nominations for the award. The contribution of any former CAG member shall have been outside of the performance of their CAG responsibilities and evidence of their service shall be documented outside the time of their CAG term(s).
Examples of worthy contributions could include one or more of the following: significantly increasing the total number of SEPs in any category; directly contributing to equivalent country recognitions recognized by INCOSE; an ESEP supporting an academic equivalency program; volunteers who contribute to maintaining the knowledge exam item bank.
Service compensated by INCOSE or performed to retain certification status may not be used as qualification for this award.
Nomination Process
Any INCOSE member in good standing may initiate a Certification Champion Award nomination but they may only nominate one (1) champion per year. The nominator shall prepare a nomination letter describing the nominator’s qualifications for making the nomination and the contributions made by the nominee that qualify them for consideration for this award, and a recommended citation.
Posthumous nominations are not eligible.
Posthumous nominations will not be accepted. A recipient may receive this award multiple times, but each award must be sufficient on its own merit.
The nominator shall assemble the nomination package that consists of at least three (3) detailed letters of support. Each letter shall be written by a person other than the nominator, who is familiar with and can give evidence of the service performed by the nominee.
- At least one letter of support shall be from a current or former INCOSE CAG member (not a candidate awardee).
- At least one letter from the INCOSE SEP Certification Program Manager.
- Each letter of support shall state the supporter’s qualifications for supporting the nomination and shall include:
- Name of Supporter, INCOSE Membership number (if any), SEP status (if any)
- Basis of knowledge about the nominee, which includes substantiation for the award, e.g. evidence of services provided that qualify the nominee for consideration for this award.
- Those writing letters of support should have the nominee’s information and qualifications available to them, but all letters of support should be independently written.
The nominator shall assemble the nomination package and submit the nomination package to the Chair of the CAG not later than the first week of September for consideration. Nomination packages received after that time will not be considered for that year. Nomination packages that are not awarded in the year they are submitted may be resubmitted for consideration the following year if the nominator so desires.
Selection
The CAG shall evaluate the Certification Champion Award nomination packages and make a rankordered recommendation to the Board of Directors. The CAG may decide not to recommend the award in any given year. Each Certification Champion Award recipient shall be approved by the Board of Directors at the Q4 BoD meeting
Presentation
The Certification Champion Award will be presented annually at the International Workshop. The approval and notification process shall ensure confidentiality pending final notification as follows: The CAG chair will notify nominators of those who did not receive an award. Award nominators and recipients shall be notified within one month after approval. Citations will be provided by the chair of the Honors & Awards Committee to INCOSE Admin concurrently, to support preparation of plaques. The recipient will be asked to keep the information confidential until presentation.
Reference: INCOSE Policy
REC-115 Certification Champion Award
View Past Presidential Benefactor Award Recipients
Purpose
The Presidential Benefactor Award is intended to recognize an individual member or group, who by their actions and personal generosity has contributed uniquely to the enhanced reputation and recognition of systems engineering in society-at-large, and directly to the advancement and betterment of INCOSE.
Eligibility
Contributions should be of a highly significant nature in systems engineering and contribute positively to society at large and to the advancement and betterment of INCOSE. Some examples of such contributions include, but not be limited to: monetary contributions toward the education of students, or the emergence of a new chapter; use of systems engineering to the betterment of a humanitarian effort (such as community rebuilding); elevation of systems engineering to a national or international attention (such as publication of a Foresight Report).
Nomination Process
Any INCOSE member in good standing may initiate a Presidential Benefactor Award nomination but they may only nominate or provide a letter of support for one (1) individual or group for Presidential Benefactor per year. The nominator shall prepare a nomination letter describing the nominator’s qualifications for making the nomination and the contributions made by the nominee that qualify them for consideration for this award. The nomination letter must be accompanied by a minimum of three (3) detailed letters of support, each letter from a different INCOSE member other than the nominator, who are also members in good standing. At least one letter of support shall be from a member of the INCOSE Board of Directors, an INCOSE past President, an Associate or Assistant Director, an INCOSE Fellow, a working group Chair/Co-Chair, or a Chapter President or President-Elect. Each letter of support shall state the supporter’s qualifications for supporting the nomination and why they believe the nominee is qualified for consideration for this award.
Posthumous nominations shall not be accepted.
The nominator shall assemble the nomination letter and the letters of support into a nomination package and submit the nomination package to the INCOSE President not later than 28 February for consideration. Nomination packages received after that date will not be considered.
Recognition
The Presidential Benefactor Award shall be limited to a maximum of one (1) per year. It is anticipated that this award will not be granted annually.
This award shall be announced at the annual International Symposium. INCOSE shall prepare a press release to coincide with the ceremonial presentation of the Presidential Benefactor Award. The recipient shall be asked to keep the information confidential until presentation.
Recipients of the Presidential Benefactor Award shall be granted for their personal use, free registration to the annual International Symposium in the year of their award. If at this event a social evening is offered, two (2) complimentary tickets to this function shall also be offered.
Reference: INCOSE Policy
REC-111 Benefactor Award
View Past Joint ASEE SED/INCOSE Outstanding Systems Engineering Educator Award Recipients
Purpose
The Joint ASEE SED/INCOSE Outstanding Systems Engineering Educator Award recognizes an individual, who provides/provided outstanding contributions in the field of systems engineering education and/or the education of systems engineering.
Eligibility
This award is open to any individual that has contributed to the field of systems engineering education. The awardee must demonstrate outstanding contributions in one or more of the following criteria: 1. Significant contribution to the creation/development of a SE academic program of long-lasting impact. 2. Development/promotion of innovative SE instructional approaches that have long sustained effective learning and that others have potentially adopted widely. 3. Research in SE education that others have widely adopted with effective results. 4. Infusion of SE education in non-traditional settings (e.g., K12, systems engineering for non-engineers, systems engineering for all, etc.). 5. Long-term sustained education of effective systems engineers. 6. Outstanding service to promote research in systems engineering education and the outreach and adoption of SE education.
Nomination Process
Any ASEE SED or INCOSE member in good standing may initiate a Joint ASEE SED/INCOSE Outstanding Systems Engineering Educator Award nomination but they may only nominate or provide a letter of reference for one (1) Educator per year. The nominator shall prepare a nomination Policy_REC-114 Page 2 of 3 letter describing the nominator’s qualifications for making the nomination and the contributions made by the nominee that qualify them for consideration for this award, as well as a CV of the nominee highlighting their contributions to the field of systems engineering education and/or the education of systems engineers. The nomination letter must include a minimum of three (3) detailed letters of support, each letter from a different ASEE SED or INCOSE member other than the nominator, who are also members in good standing. At least one letter of support must be from a current or former ASEE SED officer and/or member of the INCOSE Academic Council. Each letter of support shall state the supporter’s qualifications for supporting the nomination and why they believe the nominee is qualified for consideration for this award. In addition, the letters of support shall include or point to evidence of fulfillment of one or more criteria defined in the Eligibility section.
Posthumous nominations are not eligible.
The nominator shall assemble the nomination letter, nominee’s CV, and letters of support into a nomination package and submit the nomination package to the Joint ASEE SED/INCOSE Award committee no later than January 1 for consideration. We will not consider nomination packages received after that date.
Recognition
The Joint ASEE SED/INCOSE committee will give one award per year. Under special circumstances, the Joint ASEE SED/INCOSE Committee may approve more than one award recipient in any one year. The Joint ASEE SED/INCOSE committee can declare the award for a given year canceled if no suitable candidates apply or receive nomination. The Joint ASEE SED/INCOSE committee will present the award at the ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition.
Recipients of the Joint ASEE SED/INCOSE Outstanding Systems Engineering Educator Award shall receive two (2) complimentary tickets for the SED Banquet at the ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition in the year of their award.
Reference: INCOSE Policy
REC-114 Joint ASEE - INCOSE Educators Award