Navigating Non-Determinism: The New Engineering Reality
Engineering is entering an era where predictability is no longer the norm but the exception. Changing markets and increasingly individualized customer requirements demand systems that are adaptive rather than predefined. At the same time, a new workforce of digital natives reshapes how engineering knowledge is created and applied. Advances in AI, simulation, and automation are no longer optional—they become essential tools to manage complexity and non-linearity. The future of engineering lies in embracing non-determinism as a design principle, leveraging data-driven and self-learning systems to deliver scalable, resilient solutions.
Elena Cortona joined Belimo Automation AG as CTO in June 2021. She is a member of the Group Executive Board and heads the Group Divison Innovation (R&D).
From 2001 to 2021, she held various positions at the Schindler Group.
Most recently, she was responsible for digital transformation across the entire value chain and defined strategic goals, methodologies, and the IT/IoT tool landscape for the design, production, installation, and maintenance of elevators. From 2007 to 2017, she served as Technical Director at Schindler 7000. In this role, she led the development of elevators with a height of up to 500 m for the global market and propelled Schindler to the top of this product segment. From 2005 to 2007, she headed the research and development team at Atlas Schindler in São Paulo, Brazil, and was involved in the strategic planning of the Schindler Group’s R&D globalization.
She holds a Ph.D. from ETH Zurich and a degree in mechanical engineering from the Politecnico di Torino in Italy.