Delegate the Outcome, Not the How — Driving Change in Manufacturing with Benjamin Moses

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 ran through circuit breaker design, aerospace machine shop floors, and one-touch gauging fixtures for jet engine components. That cross-functional journey is precisely what makes his perspective so sharp. He didn't just learn to create drawings; he stood next to the operators reading them and felt firsthand where design intent gets lost in translation. In this conversation, Brandon and Chad dig into:

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 perspective that engineering leaders can't afford to ignore. He's the engineer rebuilding a Volvo five-cylinder engine in his garage, converting 1970s aerospace drawings into 3D models for a machine shop, and running a thousand-person car club — all while finishing his degree. He's not waiting to "get experience." He's already in it. In this conversation, Ryan and Chad explore:

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, talks about what it takes to stand up software engineering competencies in complex, regulated industries where those capabilities don't exist yet. She draws on a career that spans consumer packaged goods, fashion, healthcare, commercial real estate, e-commerce, and logistics to explain why the most valuable skill a change agent can develop isn't technical at all—it's the ability to sit between the deeply technical and the deeply human sides of an organization and make each one intelligible to the other. The conversation covers the practical mechanics of building teams: when to hire fresh graduates versus experienced engineers, how to convert mechanical and electrical engineers who already have software foundations, and why a hybrid agile-waterfall approach works better than imposing any single methodology on a team that's never used one. But the real value is in the strategic thinking underneath those decisions—how to evaluate whether an initiative is worth pursuing, when to push for innovation versus when to accept that the math doesn't work, and why iterative rollouts beat wholesale transformation every time. Marilyn also takes a grounded, cautious stance on AI-assisted development. She's seen the productivity gains, but she's equally clear about the risks: hallucinations, security exposure, and the "garbage in, garbage out" problem that surfaces when organizations skip the discipline of code review and governance. Her position is that AI should free engineers to focus on architecture and design, not replace the judgment that keeps systems safe. For engineering executives building new capabilities and change agents navigating cross-functional integration in regulated environments, this conversation delivers field-tested guidance without the hype. Topics covered:

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. Vijay brings a rare 360-degree view of the product development ecosystem, and he doesn't hold back on what it actually takes to move organizations forward. Vijay and Chad dig into the evolution of simulation-driven design — from the days when CAE was treated as offshore "extra work," to today's world where AI-assisted tools can optimize a design in real time without a human ever pushing a button. Vijay explains how the value proposition for simulation has fundamentally shifted, and why today's engineering leaders are far more prepared to invest in digital twin technologies than they were even a decade ago. But this episode is just as much about people as it is about technology. Vijay shares his framework for what makes a change agent effective — from winning stakeholders without authority, to building cross-functional innovation forums, to knowing when to call an initiative a silo and when to reframe it as a stepping stone. In this episode, you'll hear:

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. Tracy brings a rare combination of technical depth and leadership instinct, and she's unambiguous about where most initiatives go wrong: the moment a team loses sight of the people they're asking to change. Tracy offers a distinction that every engineering leader should hear—the difference between problem-solving and change agency. Solving a problem gets you to the finish line once. Change agency gets everyone else there too, and makes the path easier for everyone who comes after. She illustrates the difference with a story from early in her career and traces how that mindset shaped everything she's done since. The conversation covers MBSE with unusual clarity and practicality. Tracy advocates for it—but not as a mandate. Her argument is that systems engineers have an obligation to translate, not dictate: converting model insights into language that mechanical engineers, quality engineers, and program managers can actually act on. It's a refreshing take in a field that often treats tool adoption as the goal rather than the means. You'll also hear her perspective on building change coalitions—what she calls the "village" of visionaries, builders, and early adopters that every transformation needs—and her unconventional approach to design reviews that closes 80% of action items before anyone leaves the room. For engineering executives navigating digital transformation and the change agents fighting for it from inside their organizations, this episode is dense with hard-won, practical wisdom. Topics covered: