26 ISE Magazine | www.iise.org/ISEmagazine

IISE Body of Knowledge

Work Systems and the BoK

By Dave Hampton and Laila Cure

Industrial and systems engineering is a

broad and diverse discipline concern-

ing the design and integration of hu-

man, physical and virtual systems. To

navigate these dynamic waters, the IISE

Body of Knowledge (iise.org/bodyofknowl-

edge) is a repository of information in 14

key knowledge areas. The ﬁrst chapter

is Work Systems Design and Mea-

surement.

A work system involves humans

interacting with other humans, ma-

chines and information to produce

goods efﬁciently and effectively

or provide services for customers. ISEs

design work environments that create

stakeholder value by minimizing non-

value-added activities while maximiz-

ing worker well-being. This capability

is made possible through the integration

of knowledge areas, combined with the

foundation of performance management.

There are two key elements to a suc-

cessful work system:

• Work measurement covers the tools

and techniques used to establish key

“input parameters” for ISE knowl-

edge areas. This includes cycle times

and other productivity measures for

the time workers need to carry out

tasks. Data collection and analysis

techniques range from traditional

stopwatch and spreadsheets to novel,

passive big data-driven systems.

• Work design involves the decom-

position, development, integration

and veriﬁcation of human-machine

systems. This includes the methods,

equipment, technology and environ-

ments required to execute productive

activities. In addition to input from

work measurement, work design also

leverages operations research models,

human factors ﬁndings and engineer-

ing economic analysis, among other

concepts, to inform the work system.

An example of how work system de-

sign and measurement integrates with

other BoK areas is the design of an or-

der fulﬁllment system: Orders can be

fulﬁlled anywhere from 100% manually

to 100% automated. Work measurement

provides detailed input of fulﬁllment

time based on varying manual/automa-

tion mixes. Knowledge areas like opera-

tions research, human factors, engineer-

ing economy and facility design leverage

the input and evaluate alternatives. ISEs

put it all together to maximize value.

As the demands for efﬁciency and ef-

fectiveness climb to new levels, time has

become our new currency. Work mea-

surement is a fundamental ISE building

block that enables engineers to under-

stand the impact of time on any system

and build solutions that optimize around

it. New technologies and capabilities have

made data collection more agile, granular

and accessible. ISEs are in the sweet spot

as businesses convert data to information

used to improve and measure processes.

The IISE Work Systems Division

has launched an “It’s All About Time”

campaign with benchmarking work

measurement in academia and industry

to share learnings across a multichan-

nel communication and educational

plan. Recent ISE articles “Setting Time

Standards for Last Mile Delivery” (link.

iise.org/isedecember2020_lastmile),

and “It’s All About Time” (link.iise.

org/iseaugust2020_aboutime) explore

how work measurement continues

to modernize.

IISE industry-based members can

beneﬁt from the BoK to research differ-

ent work design methods and/or work

measurement techniques. Academicians

can use it as a guide for curriculum devel-

opment, ensuring future ISEs know how

to apply concepts from all areas of our

profession to the design of work. They

can also leverage it as a state-of-the-art

source to identify opportunities to ex-

pand boundaries of the types of work that

can be measured and designed. 

Dave Hampton recently retired after 32 years

with Frito-Lay Inc. where he led the Go-To-

Market Organization. He is a member of the

IISE Work Systems Division Board and IISE

Industry Advisory Board. Contact him at

ideas@allabouttime.org. Laila Cure, Ph.D.

is an assistant professor in the Department of

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering at

Wichita State University. She is a member of

the IISE Work Systems Division and chair of

the Work Systems and Services track for the

IISE Annual Conference & Expo 2021 at

iise.org/Annual.

Time has become our

new currency.