"Policymakers, universities, and employers should work together to speed the development of professionally oriented master's degree programs in the natural sciences. Graduates of these programs -- which build both scientific knowledge and practical workplace skills -- can make a strong contribution to the nation's competitiveness." – The National Research Council, July, 2008
For many, "project management" means graphs, charts, and procedures, often implemented through a software package, designed to plan and guide to completion repetitive and highly predictable work. If that's what it means, does it have a place in today's research lab?
All generations are not created equal nor are they motivated the same way. How much attention do you pay to the personality characteristics that differentiate boomers from Gen Xers from Generation Ys?
When interviewing a job candidate, do you adhere strictly to a grading scale or do you sometimes modify the job requirements based on the unique qualifications of the candidate?
How the technical or lab manager anticipates and responds to the constant and turbulent change that envelops an organization is frequently the difference between commercial and personal success and failure.
Most technical and business people dislike uncertainty. Uncertainty breeds distrust, fear, loss of confidence, anger, rumors, and all the attributes that complicate and usually retard progress and success in the lab or the office. Therefore, the first priority for the manager should be to reduce uncertainty in the workplace and replace the undesirable attributes mentioned above with facts, sensitivity to employee concerns, and clarity of the group goals and objectives. Here are four managerial guidelines to follow at all times, especially in times of uncertainty and turbulence:
How does your research facility deal with uncertainty and turbulence?
I'd like to hear from you.
Based on some cursory research (visit: http://www.epa.gov/sbo/labguide.htm), the following areas seem most challenging for small labs:
If you run a small lab, does this list ring true? Are there other, more important issues? Please share your insights in order to foster some shared solutions.
Your colleagues would like to hear from you.
