SYSTEMS ENGINEERING – BEYOND MIL-STD-499B OR THE BRILL PARADIGM OF SYSTEM ENGINEERING

This paper goes beyond the systems engineering construct of MIL-STD-499B and suggests private and public enterprises would benefit from viewing systems engineering as a “system.” The suggested paradigm (model) synthesizes the author’s original concepts, portions of MIL-STD-499B (Draft, May 1992) and proceedings of the 23–25 October 1992 NCOSE sponsored committee meeting on a systems engineering capability maturity model. The model’s concentric design incorporates the system elements and system primary functions of MIL-STD-499B, but moves the “customer” bulls-eye to an outer-ring labeled “Business Environment,” and identifies people, process, and technology as the three key components of systems engineering.