Change by Design: Engineering Transformation with Chad Jackson

What separates change initiatives that stall from the ones that actually ship value? Benjamin Moses, Manufacturing Engineering Manager at L3Harris, has spent 26 years on both sides of that question — designing and building hardware at Eaton, then spending a decade at AMT researching which manufacturing technologies are real and which are hype. In this conversation with host Chad Jackson, Benjamin...

What does it take to drive model-based definition adoption inside one of the world's most demanding aerospace environments? In this episode, Chad Jackson sits down with Brandon Paré, Senior Engineer in the Drafting and Product Definition group at Pratt & Whitney, where he specializes in MBD adoption and 2D-to-3D workflow transformation. Brandon's path to MBE didn't follow a straight line — it...

What does the future of engineering look like from the perspective of someone just entering the field? In this episode, Chad Jackson sits down with Ryan Botzbach — a final-year mechanical engineering student at UC Riverside with a computer science minor, a passion for aerospace and defense, and the kind of hands-on instincts that most companies spend years trying to cultivate. Ryan brings a perspe...

What does it look like to build a software engineering function from scratch inside an aerospace and defense organization that has never had one? Marilyn Arceo has done it—more than once, across industries—and her answer might surprise you: the hardest part isn't the technology. It's the translation. In this episode of Change by Design, Marilyn, an enterprise architect in aerospace and defense, ta...

What does it take to transform the way a major automaker designs and validates its products — and who really drives that change? In this episode, Chad Jackson sits down with Vijay Sanikal, a seasoned automotive engineer and proud self-described change agent who has worked across OEMs including GM and Stellantis, tier one and two suppliers, and Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) software providers. V...

Engineering transformation programs fail all the time—and Tracy Rupp has a clear diagnosis: we keep treating them as technology problems when they're really people problems. In this episode, Chad Jackson sits down with Tracy Rupp, Program Chief Engineer and Systems Engineer at L3Harris Technologies, to talk about what it actually means to be a change agent in a complex engineering enterprise. Trac...

What does a youth minister turned Boeing AI engineer have to teach engineering executives and change agents? As it turns out, quite a lot. Dr. Ryder Dale Walton has spent the last decade driving two of the most consequential transformations in aerospace engineering: the shift from waterfall to Agile, and the integration of AI and large language models into engineering workflows. In this conversati...

When engineering transformation initiatives stall, it's rarely the technology that's to blame. In this week's roundup, Chad and Josh dig into why people resistance, not process gaps or technology issues, consistently ranks as the top challenge in MBD and MBSE initiatives, and why that resistance runs deeper than most change leaders expect. We're talking about identity, competency, and the very rea...

Marshall Hulbert has done what most engineers only talk about — he's actually replaced the drawing. A veteran change agent now leading Model-Based Definition (MBD) and Model-Based Enterprise (MBE) adoption at Oshkosh Defense, Marshall joins host Chad Jackson to share what it really takes to drive a transformation that reaches far beyond the engineering department. The first half of the conversatio...

Research says engineering leaders expect a lot from Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) — improved reliability, better traceability, fewer integration failures. So why are those benefits so hard to actually realize? In a recent Lifecycle Insights study, fewer than 30% of teams reported achieving the outcomes they set out to get from MBSE. That's the gap this episode confronts head-on. Host Chad...

In this episode, Chad Jackson sits down with Ebele Okochar and Pete Oliver-Krueger, co-founders of Organizational Mindset Mapping (OMM), a coaching and training firm specializing in transformation for manufacturing and hardware companies. Together, they make a compelling case that Agile isn't just for software — and that the biggest breakthroughs in hardware development come from applying its core...

Chad Jackson digs into the growing gap between hardware and software development in engineering organizations — and why the industry's biggest solution providers may be running out of time to close it. Chad also reflects on his recent conversation with Anand Rangaramu of The Shyft Group, an automotive software supplier applying MBSE to software development rather than hardware. Anand's team works...

Lifecycle Insights CEO and Chief Analyst Chad Jackson sits down with Joseph Laurine, PhD, AI Governance Lead at a major healthcare organization and former head of AI Governance and Assurance for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA). Joseph's career spans cryptologic intelligence, applied statistics, data science, and executive coaching — an unconventional path that's made him one of t...

Are AI virtual companions the future of engineering work? Chad Jackson shares his takeaways from 3D Experience World, where Dassault Systèmes unveiled three AI assistants—each with distinct personalities tuned to different work modes. But what happens when exploration, execution, and expertise each demand a different interaction style? The conversation then takes a turn into new research revealing...

What does it take to transform aerospace innovation from concept to reality? In this episode, we explore the critical role of systems engineering in modern aerospace through a conversation with Sindhu Belki, a graduate research assistant at Georgia Tech’s renowned Aerospace Systems Design Lab (ASDL).   Systems engineering bridges the gap that often derails complex projects—the disconnect between s...

Can a lack of systems engineering really cost a program $68 million? Absolutely, according to Laura Otero, Director of Digital Engineering at Leidos. In this episode, Chad Jackson and Laura explore the trenches of digital engineering, where culture wars between document-based and model-based are still being fought every day.   Topics covered: The Unpaid Labor of Change: Why change agents are essen...

Complexity is rising, timelines aren’t getting longer, and organizations can’t afford “set the stack once and never change it” thinking anymore.  In this episode, Chad Jackson sits down with Branden Ramsey to unpack what it really takes to lead change—especially in aerospace/defense and systems engineering environments where integration, interfaces, and risk are everything.   Topics covered: Choos...

In this episode, we sit down with McKray Jones, a Technical Program Manager and Deputy Director of Engineering, to explore the evolving role of the “Change Agent” in modern engineering organizations. McKray shares his unique journey from the Marine Corps to leading complex hardware integration teams, offering a fresh perspective on why the engineering industry is facing a leadership vacuum and how...

This week, Josh Corman and Chad Jackson explore AI-assisted workflows in engineering, break down how internal resistance can actually improve improve transformation outcomes, and dig into the pain points associated with MBSE adoption.   In this episode, we discuss: AI-Native Workflows: We deconstruct the concept of “AI Scaffolding”—a method to provide engineering models with a “memory” by using do...

In this episode, Chad sits down with Guy Zur, Director of Test Systems and Automation at CARIAD (Volkswagen Group). A self-proclaimed “change agent” born with a soldering iron in his hand, Guy shares his fascinating journey from designing thermal imaging for defense to developing AR glasses for pilots and now revolutionizing automotive testing.   We dive deep into the philosophy of the “Change Age...

Is the “Digital Thread” a utopian dream or a practical reality? In this week’s episode of Change by Design, Josh Corman and Chad Jackson explore the tension between the technology that can capture everything and the engineering reality where critical context often lives in spreadsheets and hallway conversations.   We discuss why “hiding” work-in-process data might be efficient for humans but disas...

Why do 42% of organizational change initiatives face extreme resistance? Often, it’s not the technology—it’s the human element.   In this episode, Chad Jackson sits down with Nikki Maginn, an engineer-turned-educator who teaches emotional intelligence (EQ) to technical professionals. Nikki shares her personal journey from receiving 199 job rejections after the Fukushima nuclear disaster to managin...

In this first episode of the new year, Josh Corman and Chad Jackson kick off 2026 by breaking down the engineering implications of the latest innovations from CES, including advancements in physical AI, autonomous sensors, and next-gen processors.   The conversation then shifts to exclusive new research findings on engineering change initiatives. Chad reveals data showing a surprising mix of high...

In this episode of Change by Design, host Chad Jackson interviews Greg Livelli, Senior Vice President of Innovation at Harvey Performance Company. Livelli shares his non-linear career path from business development in Asia to leading global transformation initiatives, offering a unique perspective on how curiosity and a “love for transformation” drive engineering success. Their conversation center...

In this episode of Change by Design, host Chad Jackson sits down with Alex Atala (Amazon, formerly of Stryker) to explore the human side of engineering transformation. They discuss why technical expertise alone isn’t enough to drive change and how “soft skills” like transparency, negotiation, and psychology are the true differentiators for success.   Alex shares candid insights from his career, br...