Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2015. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 98-104). / The purpose of this thesis work is to explore what specific aspects or attributes of a leader (in a broad definition) contribute positively (or negatively) to the happiness of workers. In order to do so, happiness at work is defined based in constructs used in past researches such as well-being, affect, job satisfaction, engagement, job involvement, etc. These constructs were categorized in three levels of happiness. Firstly, the transient level, which measures short-term moods and emotions lived by the individual. Secondly, in a more long term, the person level measures duration or stability of happiness over time. Finally, the unit level measures happiness of teams, units or organizations. On the other hand, 34 attributes of a leader which are representative of a good leader were chosen from literature review. Afterwards, data was collected through an electronic survey that asked respondents to assess how each of the 34 attributes affected the constructs that compose each level of happiness. The results show that all 34 attributes affect the transient, person and unit level of happiness. However, respondents thought that for the transient level of happiness a leader affects more through attributes that are visible and flow from the leader to their followers, while in the person level attributes related to their personal character (more abstract) were balanced with the more visible ones. On the other hand, in the unit level, value-oriented attributes were thought to be important as well. In addition to this, factors such as gender, work experience, and the size of the unit can change the attributes that affect the most happiness at work of the group in its different levels. In conclusion, depending on the level of happiness and the type of people that compose a group, different attributes of a leader will be needed to increase the desired level of happiness. / by Miguel A. Musa. / S.M. in Engineering and Management

Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2015. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 106-115). / Healthcare is undergoing a digital revolution. In Singapore, business-friendly policies, strong information technology capabilities, and a world-class healthcare system seem to provide the necessary ingredients for digital health businesses to thrive. However, the depth of digital health start-up activities still pales in comparison with more mature ecosystems like Boston. Some challenges of the digital health sector include requiring an understanding of a wide set of stakeholders, facilitating cross-disciplinary innovation across patient care and digital technologies, and propagating innovation in hospital environments. The digital health innovation-driven enterprises ecosystem in Singapore is explored through an in-depth analysis of Singapore hospitals as a key stakeholder and an assessment of healthcare hackathons' suitability in addressing the present gaps. A set of recommendations are presented that could help to promote activities conducive to digital healthcare innovation and entrepreneurship in Singapore, which include extending key stakeholders' networks as well as enhancing access to key human resources and mentoring during the early stages of start-up formation. / by Shirlene Nepacina Liew. / S.M. in Engineering and Management

Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, System Design and Management Program, 2015. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 59-61). / Cloud computing has enabled the deployment of systems at scale without requiring deep expertise in infrastructure management or highly specialized personnel. In just a few years, cloud computing has become one of the fastest growing technology segments in the Information Technology industry and it has transformed how applications are created and how companies they manage their growth. The cloud market has quickly become one of the most competitive industries with companies committing their efforts to the creation of cloud platforms and aggressive pricing strategies in an attempt to gain market dominance. This work shows the origins of the Infrastructure-as-a-Service industry and an analysis of the market dynamics by looking at the portfolios and strategies of the top competitors in this space. Also, this report shows what are the developments that will drive the innovation in the cloud industry years to come. / by Ari Liberman García. / S.M. in Engineering and Management

Thesis (S.M. in System Design and Management)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, System Design and Management Program, June 2010. / "May 2010." Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 77-80). / A student group at MIT in cooperation with the MIT Department of Facilities is currently working to install a Skystream 3.7 wind turbine on MIT's campus. This has raised several questions about how to best develop small wind projects in urban environments. The best wind resources in the country exist in relatively remote locations and require large investments in electricity transmission infrastructure to be effectively utilized. In the meantime, several large and small projects have been developed in the Boston area. The urban environment presents many challenges to development including the interaction of urban buildings with wind flow, concerns from neighbors and government over the aesthetics and safety of turbines that are installed near human populations, environmental effects including wildlife, noise, and shadows. There are also many opportunities including the ability to use net metering, little or no transmission infrastructure costs, and the ability to build on existing wind resource data and project assessments to develop a large number of installations. This document presents an overview of how the challenges of small wind turbine development in urban, suburban, and rural neighborhoods are currently being addressed by research in new and improved technology for turbines and siting, business strategies of existing companies, financing, and government policy. It looks at the strategy options available to businesses involved development of small wind turbines and evaluates the relative strengths and weaknesses of these strategies in a rapidly changing marketplace. / by Kevin Ferrigno. / S.M.in System Design and Management

Thesis (S.M. in System Design and Management)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, System Design and Management Program, 2010. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 72-74). / This thesis explores the technology and market evolution of FT-IR spectroscopy over its nearly forty year history to aid in determining future product design and marketing strategies for an industry-leading firm, Bruker Optics. As a benchmark, a universal performance metric was developed that combined key specifications applicable to all FT-IR spectrometers. By researching a selected set of Bruker Optics' spectrometer systems, this performance benchmark was calculated along with each instrument's weight, volume, power consumption, and cost. The universal performance curve displayed an exponential increase from 1974 to 1988, but the rate of improvement has since decreased dramatically to incremental increase in the last twenty years. Using Design Structure Matrix analysis, the architectural trends of the same instruments were traced to discern the impact an instrument's overall design had on its performance. This analysis resulted in no definitive correlations between a spectrometer's performance and its architecture. Rather the overall instrument performance increases were attributable to individual component performance increases. However, with respect to volume, power consumption, and cost, there were clear correlations to instrument architecture. While spectrometer weight was fairly consistent over the years, decreasing instrument volume coincided with decreasing part count. Likewise, power consumption decreases over the past twenty years corresponded with decreasing energy and informational links within each instrument's architecture. The most striking correlation was the nearly perfect linear relationship between decreasing cost and decreasing instrument matter/spatial link count. Over the past fifteen years, incremental performance increase coupled with exponentially decreasing cost has resulted in FT-IR spectrometers becoming more and more commoditized. Consumers expect high performance at low cost which jeopardizes future profitability and growth for companies in the increasingly competitive FT-IR market. Bruker Optics must look to capture greater market share in segments outside of the research segment it currently dominates. By shifting from their historically product-oriented culture to a more market-oriented one, and by specifically targeting the near Infrared scanner segment, Bruker Optics will be primed for future success. / by Thomas Higdon. / S.M.in System Design and Management

Thesis (S.M. in System Design and Management)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2010. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 60). / Mobile application ('apps') development is a recent pandemic phenomenon; companies that are not associated with mobile technologies are noticing it and want to develop their own mobile apps. However, these companies do not realize that they need to have a mobile strategy in place, just like their IT strategy. Mobile technology is a new paradigm for businesses. The mobile device is emerging as a powerful sales channel and marketing medium, which these businesses must strategize and plan for. Companies need to be equipped with a framework within which they can develop marketing initiatives through mobile technologies. The world is reaching a point where developing a viable mobile strategy is an imperative for small and large businesses to enable their long term growth and sustenance. Recently, the iPhone and its app store have created a vibe in industry with almost 1 billion mobile apps being downloaded from the iphone app store by July 2009. However, many marketers still doubt iPhone's reach to a larger, and, more importantly, a targeted audience. Also, there is increasing complexity with a variety of architectures, platforms and processes being adopted by each player, for example: iPhone App store, Blackberry App world, Palm's App Catalog, Microsoft's Windows Mobile Marketplace, Nokia's ovi, Google Android Market and more in the pipeline by various players in the market ecosystems, mainly device manufacturers-Samsung, LG, Motorola-as well as service providers - AT&T, T-Mobile and 02, to name a few. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the mobile application development framework and its implications for marketers, and try to answer some of the questions regarding mobile application development strategy. The author will attempt to address the lack of knowledge that companies have available today when deciding whether to develop mobile applications for marketing and how to choose which platform(s), and provide a reference document that companies can use in order to be successful. / by Samir Sawant. / S.M.in System Design and Management

Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2014. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (page 64). / Enterprises involved in research and development are often confronted with making decisions for allocating resources between multiple programs and projects. This work addresses the problem of managing research projects and programs in such organizations. This work presents how to allocate resources among the competing projects, whose properties are only partially known initially and better understood as time passes. This work presents a system theoretic program level management tool customized for research and product development organizations. Good practices from Systems Engineering, Product Development and Project Management are included in the analysis. This work also presents an implementation framework with a real case example with supporting quantitative results at an Engineering Product Development Organization. / by Jyotirmay Gadewadikar. / S.M. in Engineering and Management

Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, System Design and Management Program, June 2013. / "May 2013." Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 85-86). / This research demonstrates through a comprehensive case study, the application of Lean manufacturing techniques, specifically Value Stream Mapping, to a product development organization in the mass consumer products industry. With the guidance of a methodology for Value Stream Mapping adapted to Product Development by Dr. High McManus (McManus, 2005), I map specific processes related to the approval of tests and spending R&D funds. This mapping allows the identification of wastes and improvement in cycle time and in productivity of the process under study. In order to achieve the results above, a precise definition of value and productivity was needed. I derived this from the combination of R&D productivity concepts extracted from the literature that were useful in this application (Tipping, Zeffren, & Fusfeld, 1995), (Steven, Mytelka, & all, 2010), (Meyer, Tertzakian, & Utterback, 1997). Value Stream Mapping also requires the process under study to be precisely bound. In order to narrow the scope of study form the overall product development process to something more manageable, a combination of qualitative interviews with employees and quantitative data from seven past projects was analyzed. This analysis yielded that a significant amount of time was spent by the organization on approval processes. Additionally, procurement processes were highlighted as needing potential improvements. An important conclusion of the work is that approval processes, which are meant to manage and maximize the returns on variable R&D spending, might be counterproductive if we consider their impact on cycle time and the utilization of fixed R&D assets. / by Armando Miguel Hurtado Schwarck. / S.M. in Engineering and Management

Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, System Design and Management Program, 2015. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 96-99). / Two trends have emerged where technology plays a dominant role in aiding organizations to meet their goals. The first is a trend where organizations are engaging customers in developing business strategy. The second is a trend where organizations are discovering, promoting, and adapting to process efficiencies. These two trends have influenced the creation of new collaborative technologies that encourage knowledge sharing. Also known as social software, these technologies have been adopted by organizations aiming to better connect with external stakeholders and communicate business practices organization-wide. Organizations have also invested in their own social platforms, enabling them to host conversations, gather ideas, and communicate messages, among other capabilities. Organizations are making investments in social technologies to support their goals. However, many organizations struggle to understand the impact of these investments in practice. There are two challenges that organizations typically face when understanding the impact of social technology. One challenge is that they often struggle with user adoption, and as a result, there is insufficient usage to demonstrate improvement or impact. Another challenge is that there is no existing basis upon which the organization can compare performance with and without social technology. / by Suzanne O. Livingston. / S.M. in Engineering and Management

Thesis (Nav. E.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering; and, (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, System Design and Management Program, 2008. / Vita. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 57-58). / Early stage ship design and assessment continues to be a challenge for naval architects and ocean engineers. The complex and multifaceted interactions between the different components of the ship and the broad spectrum of disciplines required in ship design make it difficult to fully realize the effects of any one change on the entire system. The initial design of smaller patrol craft is especially difficult due to the lack of design tools able to deal with ships of small size operating in the semi-planing region. This paper puts forth a method for narrowing the design space for patrol craft design. Using a systems approach, a Patrol Craft Assessment Tool (PCAT) was created and tested to aide designers in the initial design and assessment of patrol craft of < 200 ft. PCAT is an open source MATLAB code that incorporates resistance, engine selection, structures, and mission profiles into one design program to aide a designer in optimizing a patrol craft. / by Andrew J. Gillespy. / S.M. / Nav.E.