Excellence Everywhere - National University of Ireland, Galway

Policy on letting projects leave the labYou should develop a clear policy concerning whether you will allow scientists who train in your lab, andthen leave to establish their own research programs, to take their projects with them. Communicatethis policy to all scientists who join your lab. Some heads of laboratories let scientists who trained intheir labs take whatever they had worked on during their stay, with no strings attached. Others will letthem take only portions of a project. When you develop your policy, think about how you would want tohandle a situation in which the research results are different from what you anticipated, or a situation inwhich the results lead to interesting new avenues of research. If you have a small research group and afocused area of research, you may not be able to allow departing researchers to take their projects withthem. In that case, you might need to develop some alternatives to benefit them.n Recognition. You need to provide continuousfeedback to those who work with you. Criticism,comments, and suggestions should be providedin the context of the given expectations. Specialaccomplishments, such as publishing a paper orgetting a difficult technique to work, require specialrecognition, such as a lab outing.n Feeling Comfortable. To be able to focus ontheir work, people must feel comfortable in theirenvironment. One example is that some lab memberslike to play music in the lab, while others aredistracted by it. The working environment needsto be safe and, if possible, comfortable, so thatyour lab members look forward to coming to workevery day and enjoy conducting research in yourlab with their colleagues.n Progress. Satisfaction from achieving goals shouldnot be in the distant future. It is a good idea toschedule individual meetings as often as once aweek to set deadlines, solve problems, and planfuture experiments. A paper is a big goal but maybe several years into the future. But getting anenzyme to work correctly or processing a givennumber of samples can be goals that are attainablemuch sooner, and are encouraging.n Enthusiasm. You undoubtedly love science forthe thrill of discovery, of finding the answer to animportant scientific question that has never beenanswered before, or helping find solutions to anintractable health problem. Share your enthusiasmand passion and soon others in the lab will followyour lead.Unless also wrestling with personal problems,poor health, or family problems, when thesefactors are in place, people should feel motivatedto work. A lack of motivation may manifest itself asa decrease in productivity. For example, someonewho was productive will stop producing resultsconsistently week after week. You will first needto determine the cause for this decrease. Is it aninterpersonal problem in the lab, an experimentalobstacle, or a personal crisis? Discuss the problemwith the lab member and see whether you canjointly develop a strategy to address the issue orminimize the impact of the lab member’s actionsor distress on others.66 excellence everywhere