In the intricate tapestry of project execution, two fundamental pillars stand resolute: Systems Engineering and Project Management. These disciplines, while distinct, are symbiotically intertwined, each playing a crucial role in navigating the labyrinthine journey of a project’s lifecycle.

Systems Engineering
Nasa: “Systems engineering is defined as a methodical, multi-disciplinary approach for the design, realization, technical management, operations, and retirement of a system.”
The role and responsibilities of systems engineers can vary significantly depending on the project’s size, type, and their position within it. If the project is relatively small, the tasks of a systems engineer could even be handled by the project manager of the team. In general, the role of a systems engineer is both straightforward and complex as they’re responsible for ensuring the fulfillment of the imposed needs and requirements whilst coordinating and overseeing the project tasks.

The main role of systems engineering within a project organization is managing the 3 main aspects of the project: The Technical aspect, the project team, and the scheduling. The management of these aspects results in the Engineer carefully balancing the Organisation, cost and technical interactions in a complex system. These engineers usually play key roles during the concept design phase, the defining of the engineering boundaries, and much more.

Project Management
Project management comprises a set of skills, principles, methodologies, and tools to manage the planning, execution, tracking, and completion of a project within a team. The team is led through a series of steps called a project lifecycle during the duration of a project.
Throughout a project, a project manager needs to maintain a balance between scheduling, cost, quality, and resources while also mitigating any potential risks. The Project manager will in cooperation with his team(s) create a framework to allow for flawless cooperation between the different project teams or members and effectively communicate with them and any potential stakeholders.

Similar yet different
Even though Project manager and systems engineer are two different positions their roles have a few similarities between them when it comes to management. The responsibilities within a team or project will vary between different teams and companies depending on the way they handle their projects.
The difference between these roles lies in their primary focus areas. Where systems engineers will put more emphasis on technical performance the project manager’s center of effort is balancing the quality, cost, and schedule, and ensuring customer satisfaction.
Generally, if these roles are clearly defined, they will complement each other and greatly increase the work efficiency of a project or project team. In smaller projects or when the project manager possesses the technical expertise, they might be capable of fulfilling these roles independently

At MareVisie we have the experience to assist you with any of your project management needs. Whether it involves the integration into ongoing projects or guiding you through the entire project lifecycle, our experienced project managers will ensure a successful execution!

Sources
1. https://www.nasa.gov/reference/2-0-fundamentals-of-systems-engineering/#:~:text=At%20NASA%2C%20%E2%80%9Csystems%20engineering%E2%80%9D,required%20to%20meet%20a%20need.
2. https://www.projectmanager.com/guides/project-management
3. https://www.pmi.org/about/learn-about-pmi/what-is-project-management
4. https://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2224-78902021000300018#:~:text=Systems%20engineers%20focus%20more%20on,schedule%20to%20satisfy%20the%20client.