From the Director: What You Told Us

(Photo by Harvey Lynch.)

by Persis Drell

In November, 722 of you on the site filled out a survey on the organizational culture at SLAC. This was part of the information gathering effort of "Team 2" and we in lab management expect their full report soon. When we have the report we will share it with you. However the survey itself contained a tremendous amount of valuable information that I want to share with you now, even in advance of the Team 2 recommendations.

I want to say from the onset that having 722 respondents was tremendous. It is striking how the strongest messages came uniformly from the staff of the laboratory, independent of directorate, job classification or length of employment at SLAC.

I also want to acknowledge up front that no survey tool is perfect, including this one. You made many comments that you were frustrated that the survey focused too much on safety and not on broader cultural issues and you were frustrated that you couldn't respond "does not apply" to some of the questions. However, despite some shortcomings, strong messages came through very clearly and I want to share those with you. In addition to my analysis here, I encourage you to look first hand at the full analysis.

I was thrilled to have more than 90 percent of the staff take ownership of their safety and the safety of their colleagues, as well as being clear that safety was more important than "getting the job done." Most responses showed that you trust your colleagues to work safely, you feel you get adequate training, and you feel that significant accidents are investigated and corrective actions taken. The lab has made a lot of progress in both our attitude toward safety and in our performance. This was extremely encouraging to hear. Read more...

Welcome New SLACers!

from the Human Resources Department

Yesterday, SLAC welcomed 11 recent hires at New Employee Orientation.

(Photo by Barbara Hemstad.)

They are, from left:
Jeff Neilson
Wilfred Ghonsalves
Roger Boyer
Lori Zscherpel
DeAnna Ashorobi
Suresh Acharya
Robert Pierson
Timothy Hovanis
Laura Burns-Wood
Not pictured: Vinod Bharadwaj and Larry Dardzinski

Welcome to SLAC!

(Photo - Homestead High School Science Bowl 2009 team)

Last year's victors at SLAC, the Homestead High School Science Bowl team. (Photo by Lauren Schenkman.)

Science Bowl Call for Volunteers

by Shawne Workman

The regional Department of Energy Science Bowl at SLAC is coming soon—Saturday, February 27. There are still a few spaces open for volunteers to act as moderators, judges, scorekeepers and timekeepers. Come help us show these bright local kids a fun time with competitive rounds of science questions and answers, as they compete for a spot at Nationals in Washington, DC. Volunteer training will be provided on February 18 and 23 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. in Panofsky Auditorium. For more details, please contact Thanh Ly or Farah Rabhar.

Events (see all | submit)

Today (12:30 p.m.) Theory Seminar: Disentangling Dark Matter Dynamics
Feb 8 (4:15 p.m.) SLAC Colloquium: Taking Measure—Evolution of a Tools Maker

Access (see all)

Heat Outage Update - Loop Road Closure

Announcements
(see all | submit)

Lab Announcements

Community Bulletin Board

Training ((see all | register)

Lab Training

Calendar
Registration

Feb 8 (9:00 a.m.)
Control of Hazardous Energy
Feb 8 (1:00 p.m.)
Fire Extinguisher Training

Upcoming Workshops & Classes

Online Tech Training Opportunities

News (submit)

'Quantum Logic Clock' Based on Aluminum Ion is Now World's Most Precise Clock Physorg
Graphene Transistor Breaks New Record Physicsworld
Madly Mapping the Universe Science Daily
WMAP: New Look at Big Bang Radiation Refines Age of Universe Wired

<% Response.AddHeader "Last-modified", getArticleDate() 'Response.AddHeader "Last-modified","Mon, 01 Sep 1997 01:03:33 GMT" 'Monday, December 06, 2010 %>

View online at http://today.slac.stanford.edu/.

From the Director: What You Told Us (Photo by Harvey Lynch.) by Persis Drell In November, 722 of you on the site filled out a survey on the organizational culture at SLAC. This was part of the information gathering effort of "Team 2" and we in lab management expect their full report soon. When we have the report we will share it with you. However the survey itself contained a tremendous amount of valuable information that I want to share with you now, even in advance of the Team 2 recommendations. I want to say from the onset that having 722 respondents was tremendous. It is striking how the strongest messages came uniformly from the staff of the laboratory, independent of directorate, job classification or length of employment at SLAC. I also want to acknowledge up front that no survey tool is perfect, including this one. You made many comments that you were frustrated that the survey focused too much on safety and not on broader cultural issues and you were frustrated that you couldn't respond "does not apply" to some of the questions. However, despite some shortcomings, strong messages came through very clearly and I want to share those with you. In addition to my analysis here, I encourage you to look first hand at the full analysis. I was thrilled to have more than 90 percent of the staff take ownership of their safety and the safety of their colleagues, as well as being clear that safety was more important than "getting the job done." Most responses showed that you trust your colleagues to work safely, you feel you get adequate training, and you feel that significant accidents are investigated and corrective actions taken. The lab has made a lot of progress in both our attitude toward safety and in our performance. This was extremely encouraging to hear. Read more... Welcome New SLACers! from the Human Resources Department Yesterday, SLAC welcomed 11 recent hires at New Employee Orientation. (Photo by Barbara Hemstad.) They are, from left: Jeff Neilson Wilfred Ghonsalves Roger Boyer Lori Zscherpel DeAnna Ashorobi Suresh Acharya Robert Pierson Timothy Hovanis Laura Burns-Wood Not pictured: Vinod Bharadwaj and Larry Dardzinski Welcome to SLAC! Last year's victors at SLAC, the Homestead High School Science Bowl team. (Photo by Lauren Schenkman.) Science Bowl Call for Volunteers by Shawne Workman The regional Department of Energy Science Bowl at SLAC is coming soon—Saturday, February 27. There are still a few spaces open for volunteers to act as moderators, judges, scorekeepers and timekeepers. Come help us show these bright local kids a fun time with competitive rounds of science questions and answers, as they compete for a spot at Nationals in Washington, DC. Volunteer training will be provided on February 18 and 23 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. in Panofsky Auditorium. For more details, please contact Thanh Ly or Farah Rabhar.	Events (see all \| submit) Today (12:30 p.m.) Theory Seminar: Disentangling Dark Matter Dynamics Feb 8 (4:15 p.m.) SLAC Colloquium: Taking Measure—Evolution of a Tools Maker Access (see all) Heat Outage Update - Loop Road Closure Announcements (see all \| submit) Lab Announcements SLAC911: Don't Miss an Emergency Alert E-Verify: Staff Requirement Community Bulletin Board Bike Safety for Anyone on Wheels Chinese New Year Lunch Banquet Feb 17 Training ((see all \| register) Lab Training Calendar Registration Feb 8 (9:00 a.m.) Control of Hazardous Energy Feb 8 (1:00 p.m.) Fire Extinguisher Training Upcoming Workshops & Classes Online Tech Training Opportunities News (submit) 'Quantum Logic Clock' Based on Aluminum Ion is Now World's Most Precise Clock Physorg Graphene Transistor Breaks New Record Physicsworld Madly Mapping the Universe Science Daily WMAP: New Look at Big Bang Radiation Refines Age of Universe Wired
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<% Response.AddHeader "Last-modified", getArticleDate() 'Response.AddHeader "Last-modified","Mon, 01 Sep 1997 01:03:33 GMT" 'Monday, December 06, 2010 %> View online at http://today.slac.stanford.edu/.