Collaborative engineering is an important subject that is currently missing in schools, although some courses include a few of its aspects. I doubt I can cover it all at once, but I will try my best to integrate development technology and the development process under one roof, where integration-ready systems can be created.

Technology tends to fragment: to focus on pieces and omit the glue. The development philosophy that I associate with the terms of collaborative engineering helps keep a better balance between a narrow focus on particular components and their multiple connections to the rest of the world. The practice of collaborative engineering also assists in establishing a repeatable—yet flexible and constantly improving—development process. This is the foundation for integration-ready systems development.

What is collaborative engineering all about? It is about the development process in its organization, management, and methodology, integrated with innovative development technologies. I have had the privilege of teaching corporate developers and architects in the United States and overseas. Many times, I have had the amazing feeling that some of my brightest students, experienced developers, knew all the pieces of the puzzle and still could not start putting them together.

For example, almost every programmer knows one of the main design rules: Separate business from presentation logic. However, there are still more cases that break this rule than cases that follow it. One of the hardest questions is how to apply the rule properly.