TBD

Abstract

The discussion concerning possible future directions for the ISSS have continued since the 2015 Conference in San Diego, California. This discussion centers around the question of whether, in this time of dwindling membership and financial resources, the ISSS should continue to operate as it has during the past three or four decades, or try something new and bold for the future.

It is my opinion that now is a great time to strive for something new and bold. Since I joined the Society in the 1980s, it has always been my contention that this organization promotes the most important approach to ensuring the safety of systems and products, large and small. The founders and members of the Society have crafted a spectacularly successful approach for the identification and mitigation of potential hazards and risks early during the design and development process where appropriate and cost-effective solutions can be integrated into the overall design under consideration. As I have mentioned on numerous occasions, it is my observation that there is a tendency for industries and organizations to begin to implement system safety principles in standards, requirements and processes — only to eventually change direction back toward their old ways of depending upon compliance to detailed design-based standards. This is done, rather than trusting the analysis-based approach that we have proven effective on literally trillions of dollars of programs spanning from small and relatively simple systems, to the most complex and innovative projects in the world.