Meet a #futureshaper: Joseph Felix

Joseph Felix is an engineering fellow at Honeywell. He has been with the company for 24 years and still gets excited about coming to work every day.

He works with smart engineers who are passionate about how cutting-edge technology can solve customer problems.

“I have been given the opportunity to work on multiple innovative products, from concept to release, solving challenging and interesting problems along the way,” he said. “My time at Honeywell has never been boring. As someone with a software background, I am also excited by Honeywell’s transformation into a software-industrial company.”

Based in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania; here is his #futureshaper story.

When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
My parents were both college professors, and even as a child, I could see the influence they had on their students’ lives. I wanted to follow in their footsteps and be a teacher.

What brought you to Honeywell?
I joined Honeywell as an intern while I was still a master’s student at Drexel University. I was a member of a team working on a new hybrid control system. I was able to experience the excitement, and challenges, that go into creating a new product from the ground up, and I was hooked. When I was offered a permanent position a couple of months later, there was no looking back.

Did you ever imagine you would end up in the job you are now?
I realized in school that I loved to solve problems. My interest in mathematics led me to algorithms, and subsequently to software. However, I never expected that I would get to work in a company like Honeywell, with its global presence and impact on so many different industries.

What do you do?
I help with the architecture and design of control systems in the process automation space. These systems are used to control and operate industrial plants and ensure that they run more efficiently and safely.

If you were a fortune reader, what would you predict as the future of your industry?
The process automation space is already being transformed by the Industrial Internet of Things and its enablers – ubiquitous connectivity, big data and analytics, artificial intelligence and machine learning. With the addition of robotics, the industrial plant of the future could very well be autonomous with minimal human oversight.

In your eyes, what qualities does a #futureshaper possess?
Intellectual curiosity. Empathy to understand the customer’s pain points. Creative innovation and the ability to think outside the box.

What advice would you give someone who wants to follow in your footsteps?
Never stop learning. Always be willing to step out of your comfort zone and accept new challenges.

When you are not working, what do you do for fun?
I enjoy traveling and seeing new places, reading, do-it-yourself electronics and watching British crime shows.

Learn more about what it is like to be a #futureshaper.