系統工程是工程和工程管理的一個跨學科領域，關注于如何設計和管理復雜系統的生命周期。系統工程的核心是利用系統思維原則來組織這一知識體系。這些工作的單個結果，即一個工程系統，可以定義為協同工作以共同執行有用功能的組件的組合。在處理大型或復雜的項目時，諸如需求工程、可靠性、物流、不同團隊的協調、測試和評估、可維護性以及許多其他成功的系統開發、設計、實現和最終退役所必需的規程等問題變得更加困難。系統工程處理此類項目中的工作流程、優化方法和風險管理工具。它與工業工程、機械工程、制造工程、控制工程、軟件工程、電氣工程、控制論、組織研究、土木工程和項目管理等以技術和人為中心的學科交叉。系統工程確保考慮到項目或系統的所有可能方面，并將其集成到一個整體中。系統工程過程是一個發現過程，它與制造過程非常不同。制造過程的重點是重復的活動，以最低的成本和時間實現高質量的輸出。系統工程過程必須從發現需要解決的真正問題開始，并確定可能發生的最可能的或影響最大的故障——系統工程包括找到這些問題的解決方案。

Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering and engineering management that focuses on how to design and manage complex systems over their life cycles. At its core, systems engineering utilizes systems thinking principles to organize this body of knowledge. The individual outcome of such efforts, an engineered system, can be defined as a combination of components that work in synergy to collectively perform a useful function.Issues such as requirements engineering, reliability, logistics, coordination of different teams, testing and evaluation, maintainability and many other disciplines necessary for successful system development, design, implementation, and ultimate decommission become more difficult when dealing with large or complex projects. Systems engineering deals with work-processes, optimization methods, and risk management tools in such projects. It overlaps technical and human-centered disciplines such as industrial engineering, mechanical engineering, manufacturing engineering, control engineering, software engineering, electrical engineering, cybernetics, organizational studies, civil engineering and project management. Systems engineering ensures that all likely aspects of a project or system are considered, and integrated into a whole.The systems engineering process is a discovery process that is quite unlike a manufacturing process. A manufacturing process is focused on repetitive activities that achieve high quality outputs with minimum cost and time. The systems engineering process must begin by discovering the real problems that need to be resolved, and identifying the most probable or highest impact failures that can occur – systems engineering involves finding solutions to these problems.