Excellence Everywhere - National University of Ireland, Galway

n Convey your commitment to training.Let potential staff know if they will be workingdirectly with you and that you have an interest inhelping them in their careers.n Offer flexibility where you can. Flexibility,especially about assignments or researchdirections, is attractive to most job applicants.n Provide a realistic level of reassuranceregarding the stability of your funding.Potential staff members are likely to be aware thatthe money to pay their salaries may be comingfrom your research grants, or other sources thatmay increase or decline over time.In Sierra Leone and more so in Papua NewGuinea, members of your extended familybelieve they are entitled to large parts ofyour time and attention. This is an enormouschallenge for every working person in SierraLeone. You are likely to face requests foremployment. My advice is that you avoidseeing extended family members at your workplaceand ensure hiring is a very transparentprocess that is handled only by the appropriatestaff in the administration section.”Moses Bockarie, Papua New GuineaWhat They Are Looking ForLab Technicians. Technicians may be attractedto a beginning laboratory because they are eagerfor the opportunity to work closely with the headof the lab and are interested in learning newtechniques and being included on papers. Goodsalaries and status (related to publishing papers)may be of prime importance to more experiencedlab technicians. Inexperienced technicians mayplace more value on the opportunity to gain experience,especially experience that will help themdecide whether to continue with their studies.Students. Students may want to work in your labbecause they want to pursue a career in science,or perhaps they are curious about research andwant to find out whether they should considera career in this area. On the other hand, theymay be looking for academic credit, funding,or recommendations for further training. Try toselect students who are motivated to contributeto the productivity of your lab. Students areoften attracted to new labs because, like labtechnicians, they are eager for the opportunityto work directly with the person who is directingthe research. Educating these students in how towork in the lab can be time-consuming, especiallyfor the first few months. Therefore, you maywant to sign up your first student when your labis running well and you have time to work witheach student properly. At a university, thoughtfullyworking with students early in your career willhelp you develop a positive reputation and willincrease your ability to attract other students. Onthe other hand, if your first students have negativeexperiences in your lab, they will quickly share thiswith their peers, and your ability to recruit goodstudents will suffer greatly.Scientists Training in your Lab. It may taketwo to three years for you to recruit a scientist,for example a postdoctoral fellow, who wantsto train in your lab before establishing his or herown lab. Most scientists in training are attractedto more established labs because they are usuallybetter launching pads for their careers—the bossis more famous and the publications may comefaster. Nevertheless, some might be attracted byyour research area, your concern for furtheringtheir careers, or your institution’s reputation andgeographical location. If you have a good reputationfrom your own work, you may be able torecruit highly qualified individuals right away.I would encourage policies to hire realpostdocs, i.e. people who really want to doa postdoc in your lab and not people who forfamily reasons or else could not go abroadand seek your lab as a second option.”Alberto Kornblihtt, Argentina36 excellence everywhere