Lab Manager January 2013

8/15/2019 Lab Manager January 2013

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Jun 2013 Volum 8 • Num 5

ASK THE EXPERT:SETTING UP A NEXT-GENERATION MICROBIOLOGY LAB

PERSPECTIVE ON:A PERSONAL CARE LAB

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20 Negotiating SalariesFiguring out what to pay someone for the work they do is an age-old question, and it never seems to get anyeasier despite all the metrics, data, and real-life anecdotes we acquire along the way. Practically every industry,corporation, and small business will struggle with the issue of pay at some point.

All ison Kerska

LEADERSHIP & STAFFING

28 Effective Laboratory OnboardingOnboarding is a series of initial steps aimed at helping new workers become integrated into the laboratory wo rk fo rc e. Wh il e th is pr oc es s ap pe ar s de ce pt iv el y simp le , comp le te wi th co rd ia l fi rs t- da y introductions andnice team lunches, when not executed adeptly, onboarding commonly fails to deliver on a central objective:the retention of good workers.

Bernard Tulsi

TECHNOLOGY

32 The Next Wave in Lab ServicesDiminishing returns despite spiraling R&D costs, major patent expirations, austerity measures and regulatorypressures, in addition to poor investor confidence, have made the pharmaceutical industry an increasingly chal-lenging environment. As a result, the industry is being forced to reorganize and rethink its business model.

Maurizio Sollazzo and John Wilkinson

HEALTH & SAFETY

40 Blood, Sweat, and Fears (Part II) The fi rs t pa rt of our ser ie s o n bl ood -bo rn e p atho gen s c ove red th e bas ics , endi ng by to uch ing on Un iversal Pre-cautions and minimum personal protective equipment or PPE. Part two picks up where we left off a nd delves intothe OSHA BBP standard a little further by examining the elements of an Exposure Control Plan more closely.

Vince McLeod

Calculating Workplace Tragedy A predominant perception among too many workplaces is that safety is expensive. That it costs too much to comply with all thepersonnel training, hazard assessments, workplace surveillance, medical evaluations, record keeping, etc. But accidents can bemuch more costly. This article takes an in-depth look at the big picture and reveals a di sturbing trend.

Vince McLeod

16

The 4th Annual Laboratory Safety Survey Last year we happily reported that “despite continuing economic pressures that might have made lab health and safety a ‘ni ce tohave’ rather than a ‘must have,” there had been substantial improvement in lab health and sa fety practices. Unfortunately, wecannot report the same trend this year.

Pam Ahlberg

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POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Lab Manager Magazine ®, PO Box 2015, Skokie, Il 60076.

PERSPECTIVE ON: 64 A PERSONAL CARE LAB Personal care laboratories face a variety of challenges, keeping up with the competition, meeting governmentregulations, and staying educated on the changing techniques and capabilities available to test and develop theirproducts. We talk to vendors on the some of technologies used in these types of labs and how they help usersovercome these issues. Rachel Muenz

ASK THE EXPERT 38SETTING UP A NEXT-GENERATION MICROBIOLOGY LABGary W. Procop, MD, MS, chair of the Department of Molecular Pathology, section head of molecular microbiology,

and director of mycology and parasitology at the Cleveland Clinic, discusses the clinic’s $75 million state-of-the-artmedical testing laboratory that opened in 2012. Tanuja Koppal, PhD

LAB MANAGER ACADEMY 24RESILIENCY LESSONS FROM THE CHILEAN MINE TRIUMPH Eileen McDargh

SCIENCE MATTERS: 26A BETTER WAY TO ONBOARD Mark Lanfear

PRODUCT FOCUSFUME HOODS 44LIMS 47PARTICLE SIZING 48

CHROMATOGRAPHY DATA SYSTEMS 50HPLC SYSTEMS 52

TIME TO UPGRADE? 70PIPETTES

INSIGHTS ON 54DATA MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS Angelo DePalma, PhD

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EDITOR’S NOTEEDITOR’S NOTE

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Contributors anglo DPlm, PD

Mk Lnf

S Goudz

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ronld b. Pktt

bnd Tuls

Mk My, PD

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What Cost Safety?

We’ve all done it. Either in a rush, under pressure, or trying to save money, we’ve gambled with oursafety. Opting not to wear the bike helmet for a quick ride around town; skipping the sunscreen since it’sreally not that sunny; not flossing, despite the dental hygienist’s threats and pleas. While these examplesare fairly trivial and affect only oneself, other safety gambles have much more serious consequences.

The question I posed to my children when they were risk-taking adolescents, “What do you winwhen you win? What do you lose when you lose?” is the same question lab managers need to askthemselves everyday when they consider their safety practices. And based on this month’s cover storyas well as the results of our 2013 Lab Safety Survey, the time for asking that question is now.

This month author and safety expert Vince McLeod describes three recent headline-makingindustrial accidents and examines the organizational and technical failures behind them. Regarding

the recent West Chemical and Fertilizer Company disaster, McLeod asks, “How much would it havecost to write a safety plan, prepare a true and complete emergency response plan, and conduct arisk assessment? Would these have prevented the disaster? Maybe, maybe not, but surely theywould have helped lessen the severity.” Most troubling is McLeod’s suggestion that such failuresare increasing. “Too often we are seeing similar failures or safety-averse decisions in recent times.And the disasters are not only increasing in numbers but becoming more serious,” he says.

Supporting his observation are the results of this year’s Lab Safety Survey, in which we found acrossthe board declines in lab safety practices throughout all types of labs—academic, medical, industrial,and government. Turn to page 16 for the particulars.

In addition to lab safety, our June issue focuses attention on two other important aspects of lab man-agement, namely onboarding and negotiating salaries. In “Effective Laboratory Onboarding,” (page 28)

author Bernard Tulsi discusses the increased attention being given to the onboarding process as a way toretain your best employees. “The most urgent corporate goal now is to use onboarding as an effectiveemployee retention tool. To accomplish this, onboarding must be perceived as an ‘ongoing conversation’and not just a week or two of front-end induction and orientation.” He also makes the case that labmanagers need to focus as much on their relationships with employees as they do on their technicalability, especially with regard to the next generation. “From a new employee standpoint, the incominggeneration of new technicians in labs want an environment that is more interactive, conversational, andinformal, so that they can have a voice that management must respond to.” Additional tips and insightsinto the onboarding process can be found in Mark Lanfear’s Science Matters column on page 26.

As for negotiating salaries—always a difficult and sometimes confusing part of the hiring process—turn to Allison Kerska’s article on page 20 in which she demystifies the process with informationabout the new global workforce. “First and foremost, as the world has morphed into a truly global,connected economy, we’ve seen that salaries do not exist in vacuums anymore. They involve realpeople, demonstrated skills, supply and demand, and a whole host of other highly nuanced factors.”

Technology news this month covers INSIGHTS on laboratory data systems and product focuses on LIMS,fume hoods, HPLC systems, particle sizing and chromatography data systems. If you’re in the market forany of those technologies, check out the appropriate pages for the latest product trends and developments.

In the meantime, here’s to safety!


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apredominant perception among too many work-

places is that safety is expensive. That it costs too

much to comply with all the personnel training,

hazard assessments, workplace surveillance, medical evalu-

ations, record keeping, etc. But have you ever really stopped

to consider the full cost of a workplace mishap? Even a

“minor” one? What about a serious or catastrophic accident?

What would that end up costing? This article takes an in-

depth look at the big picture and reveals a disturbing trend.

Is there a pattern emerging in American business?At about 7:30 p.m. on April 17, 2013, a fire started at

the West Chemical and Fertilizer Company plant in asmall town 75 miles south of Dallas, Texas. Just 20 min-utes later the fertilizer plant blew up. The blast flattenedhomes within a five-block radius and destroyed a nurs-

ing home, an apartment complex, and a nearby middleschool. The explosion was so powerful that the UnitedStates Geological Survey registered it as a 2.1-magnitudeearthquake and it shook houses as much as 50 miles away.According to one New York Times article, the blast left acrater 93 feet wide and 10 feet deep.1

The detonation killed at least 15 people, most of themfirefighters and other first responders, and injured almost200 others. West, Texas, has a population of only 2,800people, so chances are good that if you live there youknow someone who was killed or injured. A whole com-munity was devastated in an instant.

It will take months or maybe years to piece togetherthe chain of events that led to this disaster. But somebasic facts are evident. This plant chose to ignore manyenvironmental and safety regulations including the lackof an adequate risk assessment, apparently deciding thatcompliance was more costly than paying fines if andwhen inspections found issues serious enough to warrantthem. Here are some of the facts so far:

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration(OSHA) had not inspected the fertilizer

plant since 1985.The plant stored more than 270 tons of

ammonium nitrate. After the attacks of Sep-tember 11, 2001, Congress passed legislationthat any plant storing more than 400 pounds

of ammonium nitrate is supposed to report it to theDepartment of Homeland Security. The West Chemicaland Fertilizer Company did not report the ammoniumnitrate even though the plant had more than 1,350 timesthe reportable quantity on hand.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

requires companies that store high-hazard chemicalsto prepare an emergency response plan. In 2011 WestChemical and Fertilizer Company filed its emergencyresponse plan with the EPA. The company reportedone-tenth of the amount of ammonium nitrate on-siteand indicated that the facility did not pose an explo-sion or fire hazard. Why? Since 1995, when TimothyMcVeigh bombed the Federal Building in OklahomaCity using this same chemical, everyone knows howdangerous it is under the wrong circumstances. AndWest Chemical and Fertilizer Company had more than135 times the amount McVeigh used.

CALCULATING WORKPLACE TRAGEDY

WHAT RECENT INDUSTRIALDISASTERS CAN TEACH LABMANAGERS ABOUT THECOST/BENEFITS OF SAFETY by Vince McLeod

“This plant … [decided] that compliancewas more costly than paying fines.”

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West Chemical and Fertilizer Company was fined by the EPA $2,300in 2006 and $5,250 in 2011 for failing to have a safety plan for thelarge, 12,000-gallon pressurized cylinders of anhydrous ammonia on-

site.2

Investigators suspect this dangerous chemical may have played arole in the explosion.

How much would it have cost to write a safety plan, prepare a trueand complete emergency response plan, and conduct a risk assessment?Would these have prevented the disaster? Maybe, maybe not, but surelythey would have helped lessen the severity. What are the costs facednow by West Chemical and Fertilizer Company?

West Chemical and Fertilizer Company is just one very recent cata-strophic accident among U.S. businesses. Too often we are seeing simi-lar failures or safety-averse decisions in recent times. And the disastersare not only increasing in numbers but becoming more serious. Anotherexample is the 2005 Texas City refinery explosion where 15 workerswere killed and 170 injured.3 According to the U.S. Chemical Safety andHazard Investigation Board, an independent federal agency chargedwith investigating industrial chemical accidents, a production tower(technically the isomerization tank) became over-pressurized, discharg-ing fuel into the blowdown drum, overwhelming the system, and forcing

liquid and vapors up the 120-foot stack. As the petroleum rained to theground, it was ignited, resulting in an explosion powerful enough to ripthe roof off a benzene storage tank three football fields away.

Blowdown tanks are a common feature at petroleum refineries, asare stacks used to release gases and vapors. However, safe stack ventsinclude a flare system—a sort of pilot light that burns potentiallyhazardous vapors as they exhaust out. In 1992 OSHA mandated that theTexas refinery switch to a flare system. Amoco, which merged with BPin 1998, appealed and OSHA withdrew the request. The refinery con-tinued to use stacks without the flare system, which allowed explosivefumes to escape.

How much would it have cost to install a flare system in the stack?Would a flare system in place have prevented the explosion? Probably,but even if it didn’t, it would have given plant personnel more time torespond to the situation and control it. What costs has BP incurred as aresult of this disaster?

And yet another example: In 2008 an explosion at the Imperial DixieCrystal sugar refinery in Port Wentworth, Georgia, killed 14 workersand injured 42 others. This blast resulted from an over-accumulationof combustible dust, in this case sugar dust, which was most likelyignited by an overheated bearing on a loading conveyor. The explo-sion originated in the basement of one of three 100-foot-tall storage

“The company reported one-tenth of theamount of ammonium nitrate on-site.”

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silos holding refined sugar. Poorly designed dust collectionsystems, antiquated construction, and inadequate housekeep-ing practices allowed the dust and spilled sugar from conveyors

and handling equipment to build to dangerous levels. Once anignition source was introduced, the first explosion, or “primaryevent,” occurred. This set off a powerful cascade of secondaryexplosions as sugar dust and spilled sugar on equipment, floors,and horizontal surfaces were dislodged, producing an ever-expanding cloud of explosive dust.

The Chemical Safety and Hazard InvestigationBoard indicated in its 2009 report that “Impe-rial’s management as well as the managers at the

Port Wentworth refinery did not take effectiveactions over many years to control dust explo-sion hazards—even as smaller fires and explo-sions continued to occur at their plants and othersugar facilities around the country.”4 In fact, thesugar industry was very familiar with the dangersof sugar dust explosions dating as far back as1925. The Port Wentworth refinery was built in1916 and much of the equipment and machinerywere more than 28 years old.

Obviously, the cost to upgrade dust collection

equipment and handling/loading machineryand conveyors would have been a major expensefor Imperial. But hadn’t the company recoveredthe initial cost of investment many times overduring the previous 28-plus years? Was the deci-sion to put off the needed safety and equipmentimprovements worth the consequences?

Let’s take a quick look at one final example— probably the most expensive of all those givenso far. On April 20, 2010, an explosion on theDeepwater Horizon semi-submersible mobileoffshore drilling unit killed 11 workers andinjured 16 more. The subsequent fire causedthe $500 billion MODU, or drilling rig, to sink,resulting in a massive offshore oil spill. When

the drilling platform sank, the deep water wellcasing broke off near the sea floor and gushedfor 87 days before a temporary cement cap couldbe installed to plug the flow. It is considered thelargest marine oil spill in the world and was thelargest environmental disaster in U.S. history.

The explosion and fire that sank the Deep-water Horizon drilling rig were basically theresult of a blowout—which is “the uncontrolledrelease of crude oil and/or natural gas from anoil well or gas well after pressure control systems

have failed.”5

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methane gas escaped the wellhead and blowout preventer and expandedrapidly as it shot up the well casing. Upon reaching the top of the cas-ing, it engulfed the platform and exploded as the large diesel generators

provided the ignition source. The subsequent fire could not be extin-guished and the Deepwater Horizon MODU sank on April 22.

Blowouts are, in fact, a fairly common occurrence while drilling for

oil. Usually there are many warning signs leading up to a blowout, andif they’re heeded, a blowout may be prevented. There was a historyof previous fires on the Deepwater Horizon. The U.S. Coast Guardinvestigated 16 fires and other incidents between 2000 and 2010. InMarch 2010 the rig experienced problems that included sudden gasreleases and at least three occasions of the blowout preventer leakingfluid. The MODU’s head mechanic stated that the well had problemsfor months and that the drill repeatedly kicked due to high gas pres-sure providing resistance.6

Despite the many problems encountered with drilling this particularwell on the Deepwater Horizon, there were at least six major opera-tion, test, and equipment failures that led to the massive blowout and

explosion. (These are detailed in the technical investigation reportcompiled by BP and released in September 2010.7) Two of the mostpublicized are the improper cement used to plug the well and failureof the blowout preventer. But perhaps the most important one, whichmay have prevented the explosion even after all the other failuresallowed the blowout, was that had the diesel generator engines been fit-ted with automatic combustion inlet shutdown valves, Pyroban kits, orgas detection systems that shut down generator room HVAC systemsautomatically, the ignition source could have been eliminated, thusbreaking the fire triangle.7

In May 2011 BP estimated that the total costs from the spill, property

loss, environmental cleanup, and subsequent lawsuits would top $41 bil-lion. What would it have cost to install shutoff valves and gas detectionsystems in the generator rooms?

Changing our safety cultureGranted, the extreme disasters mentioned above do not represent the

average research or production laboratory. But the point we are tryingto make is that more and more large U.S. businesses seem to be decid-ing that safety and regulatory compliance are too costly. And that it isbetter business to run the risk of fines or accidents than to spend moneyon proper safety controls, safety equipment, and risk assessments. Will

“The total costs from the spill, property loss,environmental cleanup, and subsequentlawsuits would top $41 billion.”


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small businesses and other sectors follow the big boys’lead? We want to ask the decision makers: Is the devas-

tation of local communities and economies worth theprice of operating safely? Are the costs of the medicaland life insurance claims, property damage, loss of prod-uct, loss of production, workers’ compensation claims,regulatory fines and penalties, and years of lawsuits lessthan the cost of running a safe facility or business?

There are many similar failings identified in thefollow-up investigations of these catastrophic indus-trial accidents. In-house as well as independent units,such as the Chemical Safety and Hazard InvestigationBoard, usually find numerous technical and organiza-

tional problems. Organizational flaws include corporatecost cutting, failure to invest in plant infrastructure, andlack of corporate oversight and major accident preven-

tion programs, among others. Too often the focus is onoccupational safety while process safety is overlooked.

Inadequate training of personnel and a lack of compe-tent supervision combined with poor communicationand perhaps the use of outdated or ineffective work pro-cedures are a recipe for disaster. Technical failings arefacility and task specific but would include insufficientdesign of safety systems; lack of preventive mainte-nance, especially on safety-critical systems; nonexistentor inoperative alarms; and the continued use of out-dated technology when replacement with available, saferequipment is feasible.

How do you calculate the true, full cost of a workplace

tragedy? Is the company bottom line our raison d’être?What should be our holy grail? Do we ignore and avoid

safety no matter the ultimate costs or consequences?

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References

1. “Texas Fertilizer Plant Fell through Regulatory Cracks,” MannyFernandez and Steven Greenhouse, New York Times . April 24,2013. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/25/us/texas-fertilizer-plant-fell-through-cracks-of-regulatory-oversight.html?ref=us&_ r=2&pagewanted=all&

2. “West Fertilizer Plant's Hazards Eluded Regulators for Nearly 30Years,” Caroline Fairchild, Huffington Post, April 22, 2013. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/22/west-fertilizer_n_3134202.html?utm_hp_ref=tw

3. “What Went Wrong: Oil Refinery Disaster,” Tom Price, Popular

Mechanics , September 14, 2005. http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gadgets/news/1758242

4. “Final CSB Report on Imperial Sugar Disaster Concludes InadequateEquipment Design, Maintenance, and Housekeeping Led to MassiveSugar Dust Explosions,” Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation

Board, Washington, D.C., 2009. http://www.csb.gov/final-csb-report-

on-imperial-sugar-disaster-concludes-inadequate-equipment-design-

maintenance-and-housekeeping-led-to-massive-sugar-dust-explosions/

5. Blowout (well drilling), Wikipedia.org, April 2013.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blowout_(well_drilling)

6. Deepwater Horizon explosion, Wikipedia.org, April 2013.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deepwater_Horizon_explosion

7. “Deepwater Horizon Investigation,” British Petroleum, Septem-ber 2010. http://www.bp.com/liveassets/bp_internet/globalbp/globalbp_uk_english/incident_response/STAGING/local_assets/downloads_pdfs/Deepwater_Horizon_Accident_Investigation_ static_presentation.pdf

Vince McLeod is an industrial hygienist certified by the American Board ofIndustrial Hygiene and the senior industrial hygienist in the University of

Florida’s Environmental Health and Safety Division. He has 22 years of occupa-

tional health and safety experience at the University of Florida, and he special-

izes in conducting exposure assessments and health-hazard evaluations for the

university’s 2,200-plus research laboratories.

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LAB SAFETY SURVEY

by Pam Ahlberg

RESULTS INDICATE SIGNIFICANT

BACKSLIDING IN LAB HEALTH AND SAFETY PRACTICES

THE FOURTH ANNUAL LABORATORY SAFETY SURVEY

Last year we happily reported that “despite con-tinuing economic pressures that might have madelab health and safety a ‘nice to have’ rather than a‘must have,’” there had been substantial improve-

ments in lab health and safety practices. Unfortu-nately, we cannot report the same trend this year.In fact, what we learned from this year’s survey isthat there has been a significant across-the-boarddecrease in all aspects of laboratory safety prac-tices, which begs the question “Why?”

DemographicsThis year 579 lab professionals participated in the

survey, compared with 464 last year. Most of therespondents—43 percent—were again from thesupervisor, director, or manager levels. Their areas ofwork were distributed fairly evenly among the envi-ronmental, chemical, microbiology, biotechnology, cellbiology, food & beverage, forensics, and energy indus-tries. A slightly smaller percentage of respondents wereinvolved in cancer/oncology, clinical, immunology,pharmaceutical, genetics, neuroscience, and “other.”

As for the types of research organizations re-spondents worked in, the majority were universityor college (25 percent), clinical or medical (21percent), industry (14 percent), and government(8 percent). The balance of respondents, at muchsmaller percentages, worked in contract labs, pri-vate research, and manufacturing. These numberswere fairly similar to last year’s with one excep-tion. The number working in “other” types of labsincreased from 2 percent to 17 percent. However,nearly identical to last year’s results was the size of

respondents’ labs, with almost half (42 percent)working in labs with ten or fewer people. Only 12percent worked in labs with 101 or more people.

Safety and hygieneThis year we found that laboratory safety andhygiene practices from 2012 to 2013 had takena serious turn in the wrong direction. For example,this year 59 percent of respondents said their labshave designated chemical hygiene officers compared

to 75 percent last year. And 4 percent fewer respon-dents said that their labs had a designated safetyofficer (77 percent versus 81 percent last year.) Butthese are just two examples of this downwa rd trend.

Equally troubling were reported declines in labo-ratory recordkeeping practices. This year’s surveyreports a 15 percent decrease in the number ofrespondents current in their annual chemical andhygiene planning and training (71 percent versus86 percent), an 8 percent decrease in those hav-ing a complete and current chemical inventory (83

percent versus 91 percent), and a whopping 17percent fewer labs having a current biological safetymanual (56 percent versus 73 percent). As formaterials safety data sheets and the UF LaboratorySafety Manual being available to lab personnel,both remained constant year over year.

Health and safety In basic laboratory health and safety manage-

ment practices, we also saw consistent declines.Eleven percent fewer labs reported that hazards

identified by previous safety audits had been abated(81 percent versus 92 percent). Ten percent fewerrespondents said that workers using biohazards, tox-ins, and regulated carcinogens had received special

training (80 percent versus 90 percent). There wasa 5 percent drop in the number of labs reportingthat current chemical and lab safety manuals wereaccessible to every worker in the lab and that work-ers had been trained in how to respond in the eventof an accident such as a chemical spill (both 91

percent versus 96 percent). Another5 percent fewer respondents saidthat standard operating procedures(SOPs) had been written for eachlaboratory task (76 percent versus81 percent). Smaller percentage de-

clines (2 percent) were reported for workers beingproperly trained in chemical safety, physical hazards,and laboratory safety; instructed in laboratory emer-gency action/fire prevention plan procedures; andperforming periodic laboratory safety inspections.

InspectionsWhen it came to laboratory safety inspections,

the same number of respondents (32 percent)said that their labs conducted those annually. Alsoconstant was the number who said they conductedinspections every two years or more (4 percent)and biannually (13 percent). Drops in inspectionintervals were reported for those who perform in-spections monthly (26 percent versus 30 percent)and those who perform inspections quarterly (14percent versus 17 percent).

General safety practicesWhen asked eighteen questions concerning gen-

eral safety management practices, such as labeling,clutter, lighting, first aid kits, and protective clothing,

“There has been a significant across-the-boarddecrease in all aspects of laboratory safety practices.”



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the answers also indicated a negative trend. While most of the re-ported declines were relatively insignificant, a few were notable andtroubling. For example, the largest drop in compliance was to the

statement “Sinks are labeled ‘Industrial Water—Do Not Drink,’”with yes answers down 21 points, from 50 to 29 percent. To thestatement “All shelves have lips, wires, or other restraints to preventitems from falling,” the yes answers were down twelve points, from65 to 53 percent. Another notable decrease was the response tothe statement “The furniture is ergonomically adequate,” with 13percent fewer yeses (70 percent versus 83 percent). When askedwhether there was adequate noise control in their labs, respondentsanswered in the negative, with 80 percent yeses compared to 87percent last year and 90 percent in 2011—a full 10 percent dropover the past three years. Possible explanations might include more

open floor plans or greater use of personal electronic devices.

Hazardous materials

Of the nine statements concerning hazardous materials man-agement in the lab, declines over 2012 numbered six, no changewas indicated for one, with only two statements showing improve-ment. Those statements that had the only jump in yes answerswere “Hazard evaluations and exposure assessments have beenconducted for high-hazard/low-PEL material use in the lab,” mov-ing up ten points from 82 to 92 percent, and “Chemicals are in-ventoried (chemical name, quantity on hand, amount used peryear),” moving up six points, from 87 to 93 percent. Besidesthe same year-over-year response to the statement “All regulatedcarcinogens are handled safely to reduce employee exposure” at

96 percent, the balance of statements all showed a decline in yesresponses. The most significant had to do with chemical manage-ment, with a troubling 27 percent fewer respondents saying yesto the statement “Chemicals are separated by hazard class andstored to prevent spills (acids, bases, oxidizers, flammables, etc.)”(68 percent versus 95 percent) and 12 percent fewer yeses to thestatement “Chemical waste containers are properly segregated,sealed with tight-fitting caps, and stored with EH&S HazardousWaste labels attached to the containers” (81 percent versus 93percent). Four remaining statements all shared a reduced percent-age of yeses in the three- or four-point range for issues concerningchemical labeling, showers, eyewashes, and sharp objects.

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“Eleven percent fewer labsreported that hazardsidentified by previous safetyaudits had been abated.”

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LAB SAFETY SURVEY

Fire and electricalIn the category of fire and electrical safety, we saw a very similar downward trend, though nothing too dramatic. Of the eight statements, all responses indicated

declines in fire and electrical safety practices, with the average overall drop being 3.6 percent. The greatest was to the statement “All circuit breakers are labeled

to indicate what equipment is served by each,” with 7 percent fewer respondents answering yes (72 percent versus 79 percent).

Laboratory equipmentOf all the categories, laboratory equipment safety represented the greatest and most disturbing decline in laboratory safety practices, with an average drop of

nine points across all twelve statements. This category covered BSCs, fume hoods, and gas cylinders. And as you can see in the chart below, every single yes answershowed a decline, with the most dramatic being to the statement “Non-spark-proof refrigerators (household types) are labeled ‘Unsafe for Flammable Storage,’”dropping a full 20 points, this after a six-point increase the year before. Other significant drops in safety practices concerned gas cylinders.

So as this year’s lab safety survey reveals, lab safety practices have declined significantly from last year and hopes for continued improvement from the yearbefore have been seriously dashed. Whether we can attribute this to economic pressure, lax management, or lack of regulatory or enforcement muscle is anyone’sguess. We can only hope that whatever is creating this distressing trend improves over the next 12 months.

2013 2012 2011

Please respond to the following Laboratory Equipment safety statements. Yes Yes Yes

All biological safety cabinets and chemical fume hoods have been tested within the past year. 82% 92% 89%

Test labels are properly affixed to the fume hoods and biological fume cabinets tested. 83% 93% 90%

Storage in fume hoods and biological safety cabinets is kept to a minimum and is placed so asto not impede proper airflow. 89% 93% 93%

All rotating or movable parts and belts are properly guarded with screens. 79% 90% 89%

All refrigerators/freezers used for storage of flammables (non-sparking/laboratory safe) areproperly labeled. 83% 90% 92%

Non-spark-proof refrigerators (household types) are labeled "Unsafe for Flammable Storage." 52% 72% 66%

All gas cylinders are chained to an immovable object to prevent tipping or falling. 91% 93% 96%

Valves of gas cylinders are capped when not in use. 87% 91% 94%

Gas cylinders are stored with other compatible gases. 87% 93% 95%

Gas cylinders are not emptied completely, but left with 25 psi to prevent backflow. 59% 73% 73%

Empty cylinders are marked "MT" or "EMPTY" and stored separately. 77% 86% 87%

Rooms containing compressed gases have a sign outside the room stating COMPRESSED GASand the name of the gas and hazard class. 57% 69% 67%

Changes in Lab Safety Practices from 2011 to 2013

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BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

Figuring out what to pay someone for the work theydo is an age-old question, and it never seems to getany easier despite all the metrics, data, and real-life

anecdotes we acquire along the way. Practically every in-dustry, corporation, and small business—in other words,practically all of us around the globe—will struggle withthe issue of pay at some point, whether we’re onthe giving or receiving end. And even in indus-tries or particular jobs where it would seem morecut and dried, there are many factors to consider.

In a particular lab, for example, where 50people might do the exact same job, how manysalaries do you think are going to be exactly thesame as well? In fact, most of them probably are not,and it can confound a hiring manager who no doubt onlywants to get it right for both parties involved.

So how, exactly, are we supposed to approach the issueof pay? That’s a good question—but it’s not necessarilythe right question. First and foremost, as the world hasmorphed into a truly global, connected economy, we’ve

seen that salaries do not exist in vacuums anymore. Theyinvolve real people, demonstrated skills, supply and de-mand, and a whole host of other highly nuanced factors.And while isolated salary “data” may indeed help a hir-ing manager make an informed decision in one instance,there are some pretty big examples lately in the scienceworld of what can happen when the larger picture of afully integrated workforce plan is not considered.

Take, for instance, the assumption that a particular place

has exactly the right type of talent that you need. Re-

cently, a large pharmaceutical company decided to build

a huge research and development facility overseas. This

decision was based largely on the belief that the particular

global city they had chosen already had a wealth of highly

trained talent that the company would be able to eventu-ally tap to make their operation successful. Research and

data, after all, had shown that within this city, there was

plenty of talent to fill all the jobs.

Unfortunately, it hasn’t turned out that way. The datathe company initially used to analyze talent supply nodoubt might have been relevant at one time. But in thelast couple of years, market forces had driven someof the country’s best talent to other locations. Surpris-ingly, many of them had chosen the U.S. to pursue theircareers. And yet, these were the exact kind of employees

that the U.S.-based company would need to work in itsnew facility in the workers’ home country.

All of a sudden, the pharmaceutical company had amajor dilemma on its hands that it had never thoughtit would have to consider. How was the company goingto lure these workers back? How was it going to get thisR&D facility fully functioning without the right sup-ply of talent? With the help of a workforce solutionscompany, the organization is in the process of doing justthat. But a major consequence of not having an initialworkforce plan is that these workers now might be in a

position to command much higher salaries. Clearly, there

NEGOTIATING

SALARIESFACTORS TO CONSIDER WHENDETERMINING THE RIGHT PRICE FORTHE RIGHT PEOPLE by Allison Kerska

“Workforce planning can affect the typesof salaries involved in hiring new talent.”



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Luckily, not every situation has to turnout this way—and even small labs canbenefit from the kind of workforce plan-

ning that will help ensure that an organi-zation is using all its resources effectivelyto set the right salaries. In fact, the tide isjust now turning, and we are starting to seecompanies that are coming to understandhow much workforce planning can affectthe types of salaries involved in hiring newtalent. And as human resources become per-haps the single most important componentof an organization’s competitive strategy ina highly competitive global market, we will

see workforce planning become increasinglymore critical.But what if a company is ahead of the

game and already has a good workforce plan

in place? Often, with the help of work-

force solutions companies, organizations

are starting to really be on top of the latest

data and statistics when it comes to setting

salaries. Unlike in the example above wherea company was misinformed about the talent

supply in a particular location, knowing and

truly understanding the workforce market of

a particular place is often the most importantkey to setting a level playing field when itcomes to salaries.

Once a company understands that criticalworkforce market terrain, it will often trulycome down to supply and demand. Andunfortunately, we’ve seen in STEM profes-sions that demand across the board is stilloutstripping supply. This is why people withhighly coveted skills are often in a betterposition to negotiate for more pay. This is

something that we may not always be able tocontrol—that’s economics 101, after all, andif your organization badly needs certainskills, you’ll probably have to pay more forthem.

But there are certain things that a com-

pany can control. For instance, in the world of

laboratory science, the talent supply and the

talent demand has actually remained pretty

steady over the past year, according to severaloutlets like CareerBuilder that compile and

report such statistics. This means that there’s

are hidden costs—such as a higher price tag for talent—when com-panies forget that workforce planning is just as important as findinga seemingly good location for a new operation.

In another high-profile example, a different pharmaceutical com-

pany decided to move its drug development operation to Europe

in order to take advantage of a production facility that had gone

unused because of prior cutbacks. It seemed like a good idea—why

let a perfectly good infrastructure go to waste? But here again, therewas a major problem. In the city where the production facility

was located, there was a complete shortage of key talent that the

company needed for its drug development. The company, in fact,

never even looked at whether there was talent to support the majormove to this particular facility. And because they never looked at the

people component of their operation, this company is dealing with

the same ramifications as in the first example—they’ll have to deal

with those hidden costs of finding the right talent because of a lack

of proper planning beforehand.

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BUSINESS MANAGEMENT


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BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

a nice balance for both job seekers and hiring

managers for a variety of positions in the lab.

Hiring managers aren’t calling all the shots. But

neither are the job seekers. Both parties, there-fore, are likely to be satisfied with the outcomeof salary negotiations. But, of course, hiring

managers need to be aware of these current con-

ditions to make the situation work for them—

they need to know that they are in as good a

position to negotiate as are the job seekers.

Another interesting and current dynamicthat hiring managers may not be aware of isthat they are currently in a position to controlthe level of education and experience with

regard to lab technicians. This is because datashows that there is not a huge differential insalaries between people with a little experienceand those with a lot. For example, technicianswith two years of experience are now com-manding close to what those with, say, 10 to15 years of experience are commanding. Thisbodes well for hiring managers if they arelooking for someone to hit the ground running.They’ve got the leeway they need to hire some-one with more experience, without sacrificinga majorly higher amount of funds to get that

level of talent.Ultimately, it’s a combination of all these

things—data and real knowledge—that is go-ing to make the most of salary negotiations foryour organization. Whatever you do, however,don’t make the mistake of thinking that work-force planning and salaries are not linked. Theyare, and the sooner an organization developsa workforce plan, the sooner that organiza-tion will be negotiating the right salaries andbenefits for all involved.

Allison Kerska serves as vice president of Global

Solutions Life Sciences at Kelly® and is currently

engaged as the global client relationship leader. Allisonis responsible for engaging with global clients as a

strategic advisor, addressing total workforce needs

within the life sciences industry. Allison holds a Bach-

elor of Arts degree from the University of Michigan

in organization design and previously served as chieflearning officer for Kelly. She can be reached at

[email protected] or 248-244-4569.

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RESILIENCYLESSONS FROM

THE CHILEANMINE TRIUMPHBy Eileen McDargh

Be sure to attend Eileen McDargh’s Lab Manager Academy webinar “Radical Resilience,” on Wednesday, July 10(or afterward at www.labmanager.com/resilience, to watch the archived video).

YOU REMEMBER! A worldwideweb of viewers watched 33 minersbeing pulled to the surface followinga 600,000-ton cave-in that happenednearly one-half mile below theground on a barren plain in southernChile. Besides showcasing the tenac-ity of rescuers and the miracle oftechnology, the miners themselvesoffered dramatic lessons in resiliencythat can teach everyone.

Lesson one: Hope relies on pos-sibility, not certainty. Shift foremanLuis Urzua practiced intelligent op-timism when he reframed the eventand steadfastly refused to give up. Hemaintained his leadership positionand convinced the miners to eat onlyevery 48 hours for 17 days. Withoutoptimism, it could have been anarchyin that dark hole. When the probereached the men, Urzua’s note that

came to the surface expressed thathope: “We are fine in the shelter, the33 of us.” This is not a note of des-peration, but one of optimism.

Lesson two: Action is the antidote

to anxiety. The miners stayed busy,

continually clearing away rubble,

monitoring gas levels, praying, and using

the materials and medicine that eventu-

ally were sent down the shafts. In short,

they controlled what they could control.

Lesson three: Play to your strengths.

Reports indicate that different menserved different roles. Victor Rojas

kept a journal throughout the ordealand became the writer who sent up-

dates to the rescuers. Yonni Rojas used

his experience in nursing to serve as

the chief paramedic. Mario Heredia

and Jose Gonzalez became the spiri-

tual leaders, with Mario even request-ing that a crucifix be sent down so he

could erect a shrine. Edison Villaroel

led the group in song, requesting that

Elvis Presley songs be sent down.

Imagine Elvis the Pelvis gyratingmore than a half-mile into the earth!

Lesson four: Laughter lightens the

load. Surely bringing a load of rocksto the surface as a memento for res-cuers showed a sense of humor. Sing-alongs, as described by reporters, didnot appear to be funeral dirges.

Lesson five: Faith can move moun-tains. Many of these miners ex-pressed a deep religious conviction

through their Catholic faith. Faith,however, is not the sole property ofone religious group. To have a senseof a power beyond one’s human limi-tations is to tap into a wellspring ofconfidence and courage.

Lesson six: Don’t bounce back. Growthrough. After 69 days, many of theminers expressed finding anotherside to themselves and their lives.Changed men rose from the earth— men who vowed to live differently.Whether marrying a longtime girl-friend, finding new comfort in family,or advocating for changes in miningoperations, each of the 33 now has

the possibility for becoming betterthrough his ordeal.

So it is for all who face events thatmight seem as dark and crushing aswhat happened on a cold day in Co-piapó, Chile. The lessons offered by33 miners might spark a chord to helpmany discover personal resiliency.

Known as a powerful presenter and facili-

tator, Eileen McDargh , CSP, CPAE, hasbeen creating conversations that matter and

connections that count since 1980. Execu-tive Excellence Magazine ranks her

among the top 100 thought leaders in lead-

ership development. She’s the author of five

books, including The Resilient Spirit.

“Many of the miners expressed finding anotherside to themselves and their lives.”

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There is no making up for a firstimpression, especially when therelationship starts online. After

so much time and effort is taken to at-tract the right person, you want to besure to put your best foot forward at

that first face-to-face meeting.Now you may think that I’m talkingabout social media or relationshipsites. But the match I’m talking aboutis your onboarding process. If you oryour company isn’t ready for that firstdate (the start date), you may be leav-ing the wrong impression with thetop talent you’ve recently hired. Andjust as with social media or real-lifedating, word gets around.

So let’s talk about what it really takesto lead a successful onboarding pro-cess and how it can build your overalltalent pool—leading to a deep pipe-line of top talent that can help youweather whatever workforce storm ordrought you may face in the future.

First, dare to be different. Sure, on-

boarding is about standard operat-

ing procedures, technology hardware

and software, safety rules, and OSHA

regulations. But let’s get creative. Youonly have one chance to make a first

impression. Use your creativity to get

the foundational messages out in the

best possible orientation an employee

can have. Your goal is to get the newemployee hooked right away so that

he or she can start contributing as

quickly as possible. Consider tech-

niques such as prehire orientation,

which helps prospective employees

understand your company and see

how their skills and talents comple-

ment the organization. You may want

to consider hiring a company that will

produce orientation videos that aredifferent and that can communicate

your message in a highly creative way.That said, your second goal is to besure to cover the basics and to lay asolid foundation for an employee’snew role, so get it all out there! On-boarding can be an overwhelmingprocess for new employees, but pre-senting a methodical written plan

will put their minds at ease so theyknow exactly what the expectationsare for their roles and for their par-ticipation in orientation. Do them abig favor and get rid of electronicdistractions like email and mobilephone use, and make sure everyoneis properly introduced to all par-ticipants, opening the door for gooddialogue. Finally, make sure that alladministrative forms, from direct de-posit applications to health benefitsand emergency contacts, are availableand ready to be completed. Getting

these foundational but highly impor-tant items taken care of right awaywill provide relief and allow for newemployees to focus on the unique in-formation that you and your team arepresenting, which is what’s at the core

of importance for your company.Another critical “do” for the onboard-

ing process is spreading it out over

time. It’s been misrepresented for

years that a short onboarding process,

such as a standard one-day orienta-tion, is a successful one. I remember

many orientations that I attended

where the instructor “hoped” to get

finished an hour or two early; how-

ever, this is one time that winning the

race against time is not a positive. Thethought that all onboarding needs to

be completed in a day or so just isn’t

the right fit for the employees of this

generation, or for the highly special-

ized and complex work that we do nowwith the additions of technology and

transformational work environments.

A successful onboarding process is one

that does not bombard new colleagues

in one day with all the informationthey’re going to need for their career.

Getting foundational information to

the employee up front is what he or

she really to needs—and allowing for

additional information down the linewill give everyone the time they need

to acclimate to the new corporate en-

vironment they have entered.

This “additional information” can bedelivered in the form of a mentor ora group of experienced employees

assigned to the new team member in

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“Make sure everyone

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order to foster a continual link to institutional knowledgeand experience. Although this could be seen as a drain onresources, in fact, a mentoring program has been shown

to make the onboarding process smoother and quicker forthe new employee in leading him or her to become moreproductive. Ultimately, these relationships lead to a deep-er employee connection to the corporation and a deeperunderstanding of the corporate culture—and hopefully,long-term retention.

All too often the organization puts so much time and ef-fort into the recruiting process—as it should. And thereseems to be a collective sigh of relief when the right per-son finally accepts the job. I would warn that that’s notthe end of the race but only the beginning. The most

important window of opportunity to influence a newemployee is during the orientation process, when he orshe is wide-eyed and enthusiastic about coming on board.

The benefits to an organization that has a great onboard-ing program will be increased employee engagement, re-duced turnover costs, and a more successful and produc-

tive organization as a whole as colleagues come to trulyunderstand their roles.

And finally, don’t forget that a successful onboarding pro-gram is there to serve the individual, but ultimately, it’syour organization that reaps the true and long-term ben-efits of a great program and a great launch to these newcolleagues’ careers.

Mark Lanfear is a global practice leader for the life science

vertical at Kelly Services, a leader in providing workforce solu-

tions. He has operated clinical trials around the world for almost

two decades. In addition, Mark is a featured speaker at many life

science industry conferences and a writer for life science peri-odicals. He can be reached at [email protected] or

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EFFECTIVE LABORATORYONBOARDING

Onboarding is a series of initial steps aimed athelping new workers become integrated intothe laboratory workforce. While this process

appears deceptively simple, complete with cordialfirst-day introductions and nice team lunches, when notexecuted adeptly, onboarding commonly fails to deliveron a central objective: the retention of good workers.

Of necessity, onboarding incorporates a numberof “the way things are done here” routine operational

details, including human resources (HR) proceduresor how to access information repositories or order newsupplies, much of which is provided via canned ori-entation presentations, the corporate intranet, or both.Sometimes, attempts are made to discuss the prevailingcorporate culture and explain where new workers’ rolesmay be situated in the overall schema.

While these are important features typically promi-nent in HR playbooks, the most urgent corporate goalnow is to use onboarding as an effective employeeretention tool. To accomplish this, onboarding must

be perceived as an “ongoing conversation” and not justa week or two of front-end induction and orienta-tion, according to Dr. Edward G. Verlander, chairman,Verlander, Wang & Co., LLC, who provides consultingservices and training in leadership, change manage-ment, and professional development.

Proper onboarding remains urgent, says Verlander,who adds, “Employee retention is critical for managingand lowering operational costs in the whole process offinding, hiring, placing, promoting, and rewarding work-ers. If you can keep good people around longer, thatwill, in fact, lower costs.”

Amid the staffing tumult in the lab sector, exacerbatedby waves of consolidation and outsourcing to lower-costoperations overseas, “the urgency is as great today as ithas ever been,” he adds.

“There is probably a greater emphasis today to move to

further lab consolidations,” says Dr. Martin Evans, former

associate director of the Public Health Laboratory ofthe City of New York and a member of the Board for

Clinical Laboratory Technology of the New York State

Department of Education. The focus of these consolida-tions is to improve the return on investment and reduce

the unit cost of testing as well as turnaround time.

The goal of consolidation is to become “faster, bigger,better, and cheaper, and much of the success of this ap-proach depends on the ability to attract and retain goodpeople,” Verlander says.

Despite the current higher unemployment rate in theU.S., Evans says, “There is still what many term a crisisin employment in laboratory staffing,” alluding to thedifficulties in recruiting qualified lab staff.

“If you look at the staff needs projections in many labdisciplines, the current training systems cannot matchthose needs over the next ten years,” says Evans. Theproblem is compounded by the “out flux” of retiring

AN ONGOING CONVERSATION THAT GOES WAY BEYOND FIRST-WEEKORIENTATION by Bernard Tulsi


“The most urgent corporate goalnow is to use onboarding as aneffective employee retention tool.”



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baby boomers. Statistics from the As-sociation of Public Health Laboratoriesindicate that 15 to 50 percent of all

laboratory personnel are slated to retirewithin the next ten years. “In light ofthis, it becomes really important to re-tain the people you have,” says Evans.

He adds, “So the question really be-comes, when you have good people, howdo you keep them?” Evans cites severalways to keep lab personnel interestedand motivated. These include sendingstaffers to national scientific meetings,cross-training them, and publicly ac-

knowledging and recognizing their work.He explains that in cases when managerscannot increase salaries, sending workersto such meetings could be a good way tomake their lives more interesting in theworkplace. Cross-training also has thateffect, “while increasing workers’ futureviability and employability, because itgives them a broader range of capabilityand experience.” As for employee rec-ognition programs, he says, “If you can’tpay them more, at least you can publicly

thank your workers.”There are three main categories among

the general principles for laboratory per-sonnel motivation, Verlander says. “Peo-

ple are motivated and can be retained

when they work with people they respect

and like and enjoy being with.” Since the

workplace is such a social environment,“the quality of the people you bring in is

important,” he adds.

He says the work itself is a key moti-

vator. “Are workers allowed to performthe tasks they were trained or licensedto do? And is it challenging enough forthem so that over time they can growand develop?”

The third category is the culture ofthe laboratory enterprise. “Managementmust give employees a voice in how thelaboratory is run and in decisions thataffect the people in the workplace,”Verlander says.

Turning to the interests of the newest workforce entrants, Verlandersays, “With the newest generation of employees going into the labs,given their great interest in technology and what that leads to in terms

of social media networking, it is clear that the onboarding processcould be facilitated if the networking aspects of these young peoples’interests could be capitalized on.

“These new employees will be naturally interested in the socialaspects of the work environment so that they can socialize and networkwith other people in their laboratory workplace. Management that en-courages this will increase the likelihood of retention,” Verlander says.

But changing the culture in the laboratory organization will require aconcerted effort. Evans says, “Most of management tends to be old-

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school in their values, and there has been little effort onthe part of senior managers to adjust, fully interact andengage with, and capture and maintain the interest of

the young, newer generation of employees coming in.”Verlander notes that in general “there is a natural ten-

sion in the management of laboratories that is driven bycontrol and safety versus the empowerment of people.Such tension between control and empowerment is animportant factor, one that requires management to care-fully think through the kind of organizational style andculture it wishes to foster in the workplace.”

He concedes that allowing for both is a substantial chal-

lenge. “Labs typically deal with sensitive work, sometimes

highly toxic substances, and issues

that impact the lives of people.They need to be safe, well man-aged, and efficient. They must be

stable, orderly, and controlled, and

yet they also need a culture and

environment that is also organic,

changing, and learning over time.”Evans notes that in the midst of

large-scale and rapid consolida-

tion, “Little attention is paid to

culture and core values. Even if

they are thought about, they are often secondary or ter-

tiary matters. The greater focus is always on efficiency ofutilization, consolidation of computer systems, and other

technical and financial issues; not much attention is paid

to culture, and that is a mistake.”

Considering the potential consequences of not gettingonboarding right, Verlander says, “You may have work-ers joining a lab organization and after a while start-ing to seriously question their decision.” He says thatto overcome this, “People need to feel connected anddevelop an identity with the place, and those who raisesuch questions may not be getting the personal attention

they need and want.”He says that when the traditional onboarding process

is computer-driven it is not nearly as effective as theface-to-face version. Without such personal interaction,“there could be a number of unanswered questions thatmay lead to uncertainty, confusion, and ambiguities.”

Evans says there are many ways to get onboarding right.

“When new workers come in the door, take the time to get

to know them, establish a relationship, and really care—

and show that you care—about them.” Research data sug-

gests the main reason people choose to stay in their jobs

involves the relationship they have with their boss, he adds.

Verlander concurs. “The manager must pay attentionto the psychological contract that new employees havejoining an organization. By this I do not mean the forms

they fill out in the HR department.” The psychologicalcontract is “the identity formation process,” he explains.

“Fundamentally, this is the assessment that employeesmake about what they are giving to an organization intime, expertise, ideas, work, labor, and effort in relation-ship to being cared for, looked after, and networked bythe organization—not only in terms of having a goodjob but also opportunities for promotion and, over time, aworthwhile, paying career,” Verlander says.

The relationship between what the employee offers the

organization and the available re-

ward structure forges that psycho-logical contract. “Managers must

absolutely be careful about what

they say in this process; they must

make sure that they are managing

expectations and not overpromis-ing and under delivering.”

He says that over time, disrup-tions can occur, such as when payincreases and training opportuni-ties do not materialize. “This could

lead to distortions in the psychological contract and cre-

ate problems with morale, motivation, and productivity.”Evans notes that in general laboratory managers and

supervisors, whose emphasis is on technical trainingand expertise, are not trained in the area of employeerelationships. There is a need for managers to show theycare. “Give your employees a comprehensive perfor-mance review each year, which is typically a require-ment. Really sit with them and say, ‘What do you want todo this year? How can we work on this together?’

“When the supervisor and employee sign the review,that’s really a contract. There is a need to make it sub-

stantive, honor it, and check in and review it periodically,perhaps monthly,” says Evans.

Verlander says that the review process is essential. “Man-

agement must think through and deploy a performance management system, which involves setting up specificperformance goals and objectives with the employees,irrespective of their roles in the lab.”

He adds that management must monitor and trackemployees’ progress and ensure that the resources are inplace to enable the employee to perform the expectedtask. Supervisors and managers must coach new employ-

ees, providing guidance, help and support, new skills,


“When the traditionalonboarding process iscomputer-driven it is notnearly as effective as theface-to-face version.”



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and additional instruction aimed at helping them over-come any knowledge and performance deficiencies.

Onboarding is an ongoing conversation where managers dis-

cuss employees; inform and give them ideas about operations,

missions, strategies, forthcoming changes, new rules, proce-

dures, standards, and requirements; and how such changes may

impact the organization and staff, according to Verlander.

He says during the initial onboarding employees are

more receptive and willing to learn, but interest starts

to wane as work becomes routine, more predictable, and

well-understood. “Management must supply the learning

and ensure that an ongoing conversation takes place.”

Turning to likely future trends, Verlander says, “Froma new employee standpoint, the incoming generation of

new technicians in labs want an environment that is more

interactive, conversational, and informal, so that they can

have a voice that management must respond to.”

“Social networking may be the avenue that helps to getto that—that is a part of the new generation’s world, andthey want that experience on the job.”

Bernard Tulsi is a freelance writer based in Newark, DE. He may

be contacted at [email protected] or by phone at 302-266-6420.

“When you have good people,how do you keep them?”

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TECHNOLOGY

Over the past decade, the pharmaceuticalindustry has experienced a period of unprec-edented change driven by both internal

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