Higher Education Academy Engineering Subject Centre

Mike Pilbeam (VP. Cisco Systems) talks to Professor Fred Maillardet about issues and challenges of industry and academia working more closely together.

Education Working Better with Employers from Engineering Subject Centre on Vimeo.

Video Index

0.00: Introduction and Background
 - Mike Pilbeam's background
 - CISCO history, product range and marketplace

2.32: Future nature of industry
 - Relevance of company growth
 - Relevance of ICT technology

04.30: The value and usage of Web 2.0 technology within Cisco

06.32: Falling numbers of UK graduates and international competition
 - Less technical graduates in the developed world
 - The developing world: India and China. Cost effective and motivated.

8.46: Web 1.0 and Web 2.0
 - Young people's expectations
 - Unlocking closed systems, global collaboration
 - Relevance of ICT technology

10.45: What corporations require of graduates
 - Capturing young people's imaginations
 - What do undergraduates have to learn?
 - What transferable skills do graduates have to have?
 - Necessity of in-house assessment and the 'maturing' process

18.55: Support and the importance of continuing professional development

19.01: Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
 - everyone is different copying good habits

21.58: - Blended learning at CISCO
 - Use of video and web 2.0 to support

24.00: - Industry qualifications
 - Industry qualifications as final year modules
 - university training courses, meeting half way
 - speed and flexibility

28.48: - How can universities create opportunities
 - Understanding the marketplace and speaking the same language
 - being customer focused; barriers into universities
 - a lot of money available for the right training provision
 - training is a competitive environment
 - courses don't have to be perfect vs. quality assurance

36.00: - Creating live documents to hold knowledge using web 2.0

37.45: - Placing university staff and students into industry

40.18: - Academic vs. vocational, a false dichotomy in engineering?
 - importance of sandwich education

42.53 - Finish.

Available formats, licencing and download options

This video is also available in DVD format on request.

Download an ISO copy of the DVD (3.7Gb) here. This can be used to burn an exact copy of the DVD.
To download a Windows Media Audio/Video file (.wmv version 9 format) of the interview, right-click this link. When the menu appears select "Save Target as..", or "Save Link As..." or the equivalent operation for your web browser.

This video and DVD have been released under a Creative Commons UK usage licence and Scottish usage licence to encourage use by engineering academics, students, industry and others with an interest in the skills of engineering graduates.

Project Background

This DVD has been produced as part of the Engage Project, "Facilitating dialogue between employers and engineering, physical sciences and materials academics". The project brought together partners from 13 organisations encompassing higher education, Sector Skills Councils (SSCs), professional bodies, industry, careers services and other interested groups to develop a common understanding of the skills agenda.

This DVD develops the themes that Mike Pilbeam of Cisco Systems summarised in his thought-provoking presentation at the final conference outlining why academe and industry find difficulty in working more closely together. It attempts to draw out the key messages that both sides need to consider seriously.

Biographies and Acknowledgements

We are particularly grateful for the support of Professor Fred Maillardet from the Engineering Professors' Council and Mike Pilbeam of Cisco Systems who have both given their time freely to make this DVD. The production of the DVD has been managed by Rob Pearce, Engineering Subject Centre.

Mike Pilbeam

Mike Pilbeam is a Fellow of the Institute of Engineering and Technology and has worked in the networking industry for over 26 years.
Mike's career path in Cisco started in 1998 as the Technical Director for the UK & Ireland. He then led the Sales Technical team for the UK/Nordics and then the EMEA technical sales organization. In 2006, Mike assumed responsibility for Worldwide Technical Operations in Cisco, leading a community of over 5,000 of the world's top Information & Communication Technologies (ICT) engineers.
You can read more about Mike here on the Engage conference website

Professor Fred Maillardet BSc PhD CEng FIMechE FIMA MISPO FRSA

After taking his first degree in Mechanical Engineering followed by a PhD, Fred worked as a Design Engineer in industry working on the design of large structures in the marine and nuclear fields. He then entered Higher Education to teach Engineering Design. He became Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and then Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering at the University of Brighton, retiring from this post in 2003. He has served on the Engineering Professors' Council for many years, becoming President for 2003-05.