Generation Y: Communication in engineering project teams

Abstract

Generation Y engineering students use e-techniques very efficiently both in personal communication and professional engineering work. This paper will discuss some of the modern techniques used by engineering students in project communications as well as the advantages and disadvantages of these methods. For the investigation, a group of approximately 60 third year, final year and graduate engineering students have been questioned, and the answers have been statistically analysed. The results show that a generation Y student is able to more quickly and effectively establish contact with peers for discussing project work and that the modern techniques are used to supplement and not replace face-to-face meetings. It is also evident that the engineering curriculum needs to more readily incorporate these e-techniques into the subject structure as well as continue to promote effective group meeting techniques.