Technical Leadership Institute

TLI_Logo

A global learning network
of active INCOSE members
seeking to improve
their leadership skills
in an open, collaborative environment

Global network of learning leaders

 

Established in 2015, the Technical Leadership Institute (TLI) is a global learning network of INCOSE members committed to improving technical leadership skills to better address today's product, enterprise, and societal complexity. Following nomination by an INCOSE leader, participants embark on an initial two-year experience designed to increase their self-awareness, improve their understanding of complexity, and provide experience in leading through influence in the presence of ambiguity and uncertainty.

Throughout the experience, coaching and mentoring help participants maximize the benefits derived from their experiences. Upon completion of the initial two-year experience, participants are inducted as full members of the TLI, after which they continue their journey of learning together, making their own contributions as members of a vibrant, diverse and growing network for the benefit of their organizations, INCOSE, and the world at large.

Nomination and Selection

The TLI is a cohort-based program emphasizing learning together across organizational, national, and cultural boundaries. New cohorts are formed each year, and the cohort begins their journey with a kickoff workshop in June.

Nominations for Cohort 11 are now closed. Members of the new cohort will be announced in May.

Participants in the TLI must be nominated by a formal INCOSE leader (Board Member, Director, Assistant Director, Chapter President, or member of the Corporate Advisory Board) and must be full members of INCOSE or agree to become full members upon selection.  Nominees are chosen based on:

  • Proven aptitude in both systems engineering and technical leadership
  • Comfort working in an uncertain world and ability to tackle wicked, messy problems
  • Demonstrated interest in and commitment to enhancing their personal growth in systems engineering leadership
  • Potential for assuming positions of greater leadership in the future

Nominating letters must describe a specific instance of the candidate demonstrating one or more of the following technical leadership behaviors described in Building a Technical Leadership Model published at the 2016 INCOSE International Symposium, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK, July 18-21, 2016:

Once nominated, candidates must submit an application package that includes:

  • A copy of the nomination letter from the INCOSE leader
  • A letter of recommendation and support from the candidate’s home organization, including recognition of the required two-year commitment
  • A personal statement describing the benefits for participation the candidate expects will result for themselves, their sponsoring organization and INCOSE
  • A resume describing not only positions the candidate has held but also specific systems engineering results and accomplishments produced

Application packages are due at the end of March and both should be sent to [email protected].  Applicants will be notified of their selection by the end of April and will join the new cohort in July.  Interested members should discuss their interest with their Chapter President, Sector Director, CAB Representative, or other INCOSE International Leader.

Resources for Nominators and Applicants

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Meet the Coaches

Suja Joseph-Malherbe, South Africa

Suja Joseph-MalherbeSuja has a passion for leadership and systems engineering and as such she is quite active in INCOSE. She is a member of the inaugural cohort of the INCOSE Technical Leadership Institute and became a coach in 2020. She served as the President of INCOSE South Africa from January 2017 to December 2018.

Suja is an INCOSE Certified Systems Engineering Professional (CSEP) and a Solution-focused Brief Coach (ICF-ACSTHs training). She provides training and consultancy services in systems engineering and leadership development to individuals and organisations through Letter27. She is also a sessional lecturer at the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment at the University of the Witwatersrand delivering post-graduate courses on systems engineering.

Suja has a bachelor's degree in engineering from the University of Witwatersrand and a master's degree in engineering from the University of Johannesburg. She is a doctoral candidate, and her research proposal is titled “A holistic leadership framework for systems engineering practitioners”.

David Long, United States

David LongDavid has spent over 30 years helping organizations assess, adopt, and deploy methods to increase their systems engineering proficiency while simultaneously working to advance the state of the art. David founded and led Vitech where he developed innovative, industry-leading methods and software to engineer next-generation systems. Today, he is the Chief Engineer for Digital Engineering at the Systems Engineering Research Center working to coordinate and advance their digital portfolio. He co-authored A Primer for Model-Based Systems Engineering and frequently delivers keynotes and workshops around the world.

An INCOSE Fellow and Expert Systems Engineering Professional (ESEP), David was the 2014/2015 President of INCOSE. David joined the TLI as a coach in 2019 and currently serves on the INCOSE Board of Directors as the Director for Strategic Integration.

 
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