Resumen de Client interaction tools: supporting student professionalism on client-based capstone design projects
John K. Estell, Susannah Howe, B. Kris Jaeger Helton, Shraddha Sangelkar, Kristoph Dietrich Kinzli, Dustin Rand
Effective communication between project teams and client sponsors is an essential skill for engineering students and practitionersalike. This paper outlines the three phases of the development, implementation, and assessment of two Client Interaction Rubricsand a subsequent Client Interaction Checklist to guide and support student-client interaction at the outset and throughout theduration of capstone projects. The developed resources were tested in multiple capstone design and project-based courses over threeyears at a total of six academic institutions. Both formal and informal assessments were conducted regarding the use of these threetools. Students were surveyed following their use of the tools and data were collected on several aspects of instrument use, content,and design with a mix of Likert and open-ended questions. These methods yielded predominantly positive feedback referencing thevalue of the tools in effectively preparing for, conducting, wrapping up, and following up after client meetings. Constructivefeedback was used to inform and revise subsequent versions of the interaction tools for functionality and usability. All of thematerials developed through this research are freely available via download, easily editable, and adaptable for use in whole or inpart for capstone and similar project-oriented courses. Through the use of such tools, student engineers are better prepared andpositioned for success in their interactions with clients. Likewise, effective professional interactions with project clients can buildand strengthen relationships between the clients and the associated academic programs, leading to future opportunities andpartnerships.
