PROFESSIONAL PRACTICES
Lecture 1
Profession: A paid occupation, especially one that involves prolonged training
and a formal qualification.
Professional: A professional is a member of a profession or any person who earns
their living from a specified professional activity. The term also describes the
standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with
the particular knowledge and skills necessary to perform their specific role within
that profession.
Professional Responsibilities: With reference to Information Technology,
Computer Science or Software Engineering, the responsibilities of working
professionals in this area include network administration, software development
and installation, and the planning and management of an organization's
technology life cycle, by which hardware and software is maintained, upgraded
and replaced.
Engineering Council states that other than professional Knowledge, an Engineer
must know:
Technical decision making and its commercial and economic
implementation;…knowledge of government legislation affecting work, e.g.
safety, health, environmental requirements; an understanding of the principles of
management and industrial relations; some knowledge of trade unions and their
organization; an understanding of the engineer’s responsibility to the profession,
to the community and to the environment
The Professionalism:
A profession isn’t just what you do, it’s who you are.
Professionalism is a way of thinking and living rather than an accumulation
of learning.
Traits of a Profession:
Four Traits of Profession
1. Varied activities requiring special skills
2. Society-centric motivation
3. Personal standards of excellence
4. Giving back to society
A professional behaves ethically:
Ethics means something more than ‘law’ and ‘morals’.
It carries an additional connotation of ‘rightness’.
Breaking the law: can earn a fine or jail time
Breaking a moral: can ruin your reputation
Breaking an ethic: can ruin your conscience
It’s possible to break all three, simultaneously!
Traits of a Professional:
Being a professional means that they are certain traits which are expected
from you.
We will go through Each of them
Trait # 1 of a professional: Seriousness
Serious about job
The job is only a job. A means to an end
Trait # 2 of a professional: Wanting to do better:
Exhibit a never-ending quest to improve their performance in every
variable, every project, every relationship, and every detail.
Trait # 3 of a professional: Dealing with the Unexpected
Stuff happens, things change, and the true professional rises to the occasion
Trait # 4 of a professional: Communication Skills:
Clear
Concise
Confident
Trait # 5 of a professional: Enthusiasm:
Attitude is everything. Those who exhibit enthusiasm for what they do and
greet each day with a positive attitude inevitably become a leader
Trait # 6 of a professional: Helpfulness:
Understand that real success in the workplace requires teamwork
Always ready to lend a hand
Make a suggestion
Offer a compliment when it’s deserved
Trait # 7 of a professional: Taking the Initiative:
Takes the initiative to get things done
Trait # 8 of a professional: Cool under Pressure:
Level headed and calm
Cheerful demeanor-even under stressful times
Trait # 9 of a professional: Remains Focused:
Stay focused on the task at hand and the goal ahead
Navigate through obstacles or setbacks but never lose sight of where they
headed
Trait # 10 of a professional: Don’t Follow, Lead:
True Professionals aren’t faint of heart
Analyze the situation and willing to take new paths and try new solutions
That’s why they call it LEADERSHIP!
Applying Professionalism in Real Life:
Scenario #1
You are the owner of a software engineering company. Your employees
(engineers) want you to pay for them to attend training.
How would you respond in a way that is legal, moral, and ethical?
Scenario #2:
You are the owner of a software engineering company. Your employees
(engineers) want you to let them do pro bono work for a local non-profit
organization on company time.
How would you respond in a way that is legal, moral, and ethical?
Scenario #3:
You are a software engineer at a company where management routinely
encourages you and your colleagues to use pirated software.
How would you respond in a way that is legal, moral, and ethical?
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