Note:
The courses for the specialization must be acceptable and must have been taken at a recognized post-secondary institution, but not necessarily within a degree program in the required specialization.
If you answer YES : Please describe your education.

I possessed a BSc degree in Chemistry in 1989 from Sun Yat-Sen University in China and a MSc degree in Chemistry in 1992 from Sun Yat-Sen University in China.
A copy of the Canadian equivalent credential evaluation report was granted by World Education Services, Toronto, ON.

If you answer YES: Please describe the number of staff, their position/job titles/relationship to your position, along with the years and location where you supervised these staff.

Testmark Laboratories (formerly Accuracy Environmental Laboratories) #

Kirkland Lake, ON

Feb. 2007 - Nov. 2008

I took responsibility for managing the operation when Testmark acquired Accuracy in 2007. There were ten staff before the acquisition. During the transitional change, I was involved in the lay-off, disciplinary, and redeployment processes. The team was downsized to four permanent staff under my management.

The business activities were reoriented, and new expectations were laid out. As a result, I motivated the team, reassigned tasks, trained staff on the new Lab Information Management System (LIMS), hired seasonal workers, and evaluated their performance.

I take pride in what I have achieved in supervision at Testmark because I overcame the language barrier and culture shock on top of business challenges and made the transition smoothly in a short time.

Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (formerly AECL) #

Pinawa, MB

2011 - 2015

In the leadership academy at AECL, a facilitator introduced the story of Beowulf as inspiration because the supervision journey ahead would be challenging. Through three increasingly difficult conflicts with monsters, Beowulf exemplified strength, courage, and commitment that are still valuable to me.

Time proved that the journey was bumpy. In 2011, my branch manager had so many responsibilities that she delegated me to look after routine lab operations. Six technologists were under my supervision at the beginning and four at the end. There were moments when I implemented unpopular policies, dealt with challenging situations, or worked with unions. The story of Beowulf always encouraged me to lead by example, build trust in the relationship and achieve deliverables as a team. I also give credits to some of the section heads/managers. They were great leaders. It was such a privilege for me to work alongside them and observe how they approached situations. As iron sharpens iron, I want to become one of them.

It has always been the goal to achieve the results. It could be categorized as an “Urgent-and-Important” item on Stephen Covey’s Time Management matrix. It attempts to draw our efforts. On the contrary, Covey got my attention to a “Not-urgent-but-Important” item - people. I put this principle into my supervision. A technologist struggled with GC/MS method. As his mentor, not only did I adjust the means of training for him, but I also knew him more. He was undervalued. Therefore, in one year, I prepared a letter of recognition for him to the branch manager. He received the “above the average” on his performance appraisal. That has motivated him since then. This case made me believe in that “build up people, and the score will take care of itself.” When the team was laid off due to the strategic business change, he asked me to be his reference for the new job. That was a highlighted moment in my supervision journey.

Although I had many scars in the supervision journey, I could not imagine I had made positive marks on others' careers. It is well worthy of putting effort into supervision.

If you answer YES: Please describe the type of planning and managing of staff work that you performed. Please indicate the number of staff for which you did this work, as well as the period of time you planned and managed their work tasks.

Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (formerly AECL) #

March, 2011 - December, 2015

I did this work for four staff.

There were three types of planning and managing of staff work.

The first one was done on an annual base. I set up performance expectations using the S.M.A.R.T. principle for the following year. I discussed with staff expectations on deliverables, cross-training, quality assurance, quality control, health and safety, standard operating procedures, etc. There were 5 KPIs for a year. Their performance was reviewed in the middle of the year.

The second one was done on a routine base. It usually came with informal conversations or huddle meetings. It covered subjects on health and safety, lab operation, analysis, operating documents, cross-training, P.T. tests, and so on.

The third one was about remediation of the unexpected. There was a time when a lab technologist had an injury and broke his Achilles tendon. He had to take sick leave, and the team was down to three lab technologists. I had to come up with a short-term plan to cover the tasks. I looked into some data, such as time sheets, sample volumes, and the workload of each technologist. I met with the team brainstorming solutions. I also reached out to the technologist union president, discussing the possibility of me doing bench work. Afterwards, I submitted my findings and proposal to my manager. We ended up getting a helper from a sister lab for the time being and preparing a contract with a retiree. We managed to get the results out.

Testmark Laboratories (formerly Accuracy Environmental Laboratories) #

Feb., 2007 - Nov., 2008

I did this work for four staff.

After Testmark acquired Accuracy business, the team was downsized and restructured. The tasks were reassigned accordingly.
Besides routine analysis, sample shipment became the top priority - samples were sent out the same day we received them. We needed to log in samples, confirm sampling requirements, make sub-samples, and prepare documents before shipments.

I had a meeting at the very beginning with three staff, one lab technician was responsible for microbiological tests, one lab technician was responsible for chemical tests, and another staff was responsible for customer service. I set up the expectations, laid out the workflow, listed to-do items, and opened the floor for discussion. At the end of the meeting, we came up with a plan, and everyone was clear about their tasks. I then summarized it with meeting minutes. During the routine, I followed up with them on a regular base and made adjustments accordingly.

During the peak seasons, I hired a seasonal worker to help us.

If you answer YES: Please describe the type of performance assessment, performance management, and performance development you performed. Please indicate the number of staff, as well as the period of time, you managed, assessed, and developed staff performance.

Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (formerly AECL) #

March, 2011 - December, 2015

Number of staff: 4

There were performance management policies at AECL. The S.M.A.R.T. principle was also introduced to prepare performance expectations for the coming year. The performance expectation was set at the beginning of the fiscal year, was reviewed in the middle of the fiscal year, and was assessed at the end of the year.

I was involved in setting performance expectations by following the S.M.A.R.T. principle for a year. I set up five KPIs for the team and listed specific expectations for every staff. Every staff and I agreed upon the performance expectations. In the middle of the year did I review the performance. The performance was assessed at the end of the year.

When the staff did not meet most of the expectations, disciplinary action was taken into place. I did not activate the disciplinary action; however, I observed one case, so I understood the process, the requirements, the parties involved, and the documentation.

The performance management was not just above documentation on paper. It was a guide to managing performance on a routine base as well. One example at AECL was the Observation and Coaching moment. The supervisor took any opportunity to stand beside the staff, watching their bench work, recognizing what they did right, and providing constructive feedback on room for improvement.

Writing a letter of recognition to the branch manager was a way of motivating staff. I used it a couple of times.

When a conflict in performance management arose, I took the initiative and dealt with it one-on-one first. When needed, I leveraged coworkers’ support occasionally and sought support from the branch manager.

Testmark Laboratories (formerly Accuracy Environmental Laboratories) #

Feb, 2007 - Nov, 2008

Number of staff: 4

When we reconstructed the team, I redeployed one staff from the labs to the customer service because the person had experience in tests and had great potential to serve clients. The person shined in the new position. It turned out to be an excellent motivation for the person.

A new Lab Information Management System was put in place. I was involved in implementation, provided training, and managed frustration in change.

*Significant is defined as 1 or more years in duration.
If you answer Yes: Do you have experience preparing (ie. extracting, cleaning extracts, concentrating, diluting, etc.) complex matrices such as food, biological materials, or soil for the analysis of organic contaminants? In this context, preparing means extracting, cleaning, concentrating, or diluting sample extracts.

If you answer YES: Please describe the types of matrices you have prepared, the preparation techniques you have experience with, as well as the period of time you have used these techniques to perform sample preparation.

I had 12 years of experience with lab quality assurance and quality control procedure.

Quality assurance is about the lab quality management system. There are management requirements, such as preventive action. Give you an example: A preventive actions database was implemented at AECL. The root cause analysis reports on PT failure were documented in the database. There are technical requirements, such as method validation and traceability.

Quality control is about tools to control the quality, such as quality control samples added to a sample batch and control charting to monitor the instrument performance.

I worked with urine and serum samples for steroid profiles analysis. Samples were extracted and cleaned in a 96-well SPE plate and eluted to a 96-well collection plate followed by dry-out and reconstitution.

If you answer Yes: Do you have experience operating and maintaining liquid chromatographic-mass spectrometric instrumentation for the analysis of organic contaminants in complex matrices?
If you answer YES: Please describe the specific instrumentation that you have operated and maintained, the period of time you operated and maintained the instrumentation, the organic contaminants you analyzed, as well as the ionization and ion monitoring mode(s) you used and the specific maintenance tasks you performed.

I had hands-on experience with Agilent 6470 and 6490 Triple quadrupole mass spectrometer coupling with 1200 UHPLC. 6470 has an ESI source equipped with Jetstream Technology, and 6490 has an ESI source equipped with iFunnel technology.

I did maintenance by following the maintenance schedule. It includes: 1) cleaning up the ion source prior to the run, 2) emptying the waste solvent container, 3) replacing the pre-column every 100 samples, 4) checking the back pressure, and 5) Back-washing the column if needed. Change a new column when back pressure is still beyond the upper limit we set after back-wash.

I went above and beyond the routine maintenance requirement. I built a proactive maintenance program for GC-MS/MS with R application. I could build a similar one for LC-MS/MS.

If you answer YES: Please demonstrate clearly how, when and where you gained this experience and provide concrete examples.

LifeLabs #

May, 2021 - Nov., 2021

Due to the supply chain issue, we ran out of enzymes used to hydrolyze steroid conjugates. We had to find solutions to put the analysis back to production as soon as possible.
I started by understanding the time frame I had to finish the method development and validation and the cost of testing( such as labour and time). The requirements of regulatory compliance (such as detection limit) were not required in this case.
I then read journals and prepared proposals for experiments. I revised the proposals with other scientists and the team lead through brainstorming.
There were three options to cleave steroid conjugates: enzymatic hydrolysis, solvolysis, and acid hydrolysis. The hydrolysis reaction conditions needed to be investigated.
We also decided to switch the manual solid-phase extraction to the automated solid-phase extraction. I needed to look into cartridge sorbent, washing solvents, eluting solvents, and automation conditions.
I designed the experiments to achieve the goal by following the Design of Experiments principles. After sample preparation, samples were analyzed on LC-MS/MS and GC-MS/MS.
Regarding the analyte setup on the LC-MS/MS, I tuned the analyte(s) first, chose the correct ion monitoring mode(s), and optimized the collision energy. I then worked on selecting an appropriate column and optimizing pH and components in two mobile phases and the ratio between two mobile phases along the run.
Regarding method validation, we replicated runs to get the method detection limit of analyte, limit of quantitation, linear calibration range, intra-day precision and accuracy, and sample stability study.
The experiment data were populated with Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), R, and PivotTable. I then interpreted data with modelling and ANOVA. Each experiment was reported to the team lead. My team lead commented “your ability to effectively present data was far better than mine or most people’s.” I took it as a compliment.

** Extensive experience will be evaluated in terms of the depth, breadth and complexity of activities as well as the level of autonomy demonstrated, normally acquired over a period of five (5) years, continuously.

LifeLabs #

May, 2021 - Nov., 2021

There were four medical lab technologists under my technical supervision.

AECL #

March, 2011 - December, 2015

There were six technologists under my supervision at the beginning and four at the end.

Testmark #

Feb. 2007 - Nov. 2008

Ten technicians were under my supervision at the beginning and four at the end.

The depth, breadth and complexity of activities #

Technical personnel could be determined and take pride in their work. Some senior lab technologists were the Know-It-All, and some junior technologists were the Think-They-Know-It-All in my teams. My tips are: 1) Gain credibility in teams; 2) Get the best out of them and cope with differences; 3) Respect, listen, and involve them in group decision-making.

If you answer Yes: If you answer YES: Please describe your responsibilities and role, time period, and location working within an ISO17025 system.

I had 12 years of experience with lab quality assurance and quality control procedures.

Chemist #

Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (formerly AECL)

Pinawa, MB

October 2009 - October 2016

• Reviewed quality documents.
• Authored and revised Quality Manual.
• Led the revision and implementation of the Quality Manual by collaborating with corporate and local quality specialists.
• Enforced lab accreditation requirements through activities such as Observation and Coaching and monthly lab inspections.
• Addressed non-conformance issues to responding findings of self-assessments and audits.
• Participated in annual management review.
• Participated in PT program provided by CALA (aka CAEAL before).
• Reviewed preventative actions and corrective actions in the company-wide quality database.
• Participated in external audits.

Chemist / Quality Manager / Lab Manager #

Testmark Laboratories (formerly Accuracy Environmental Laboratories)

Kirkland Lake, ON

September 2004 - Nov. 2008

• Trained to be an internal auditor.
• Performed internal audits.
• Participated in external audits.
• Authored quality documents.
• Conducted self-assessment and led the team to create action plans to mitigate audit findings, reducing potential non-compliance and risks.
• Coordinated within the lab and with the lab accreditation agency to achieve successful audits.
• Participated in PT program provided by CALA (aka CAEAL before).

• Significant experience will be evaluated in terms of the depth, breadth and complexity of activities as well as the level of autonomy demonstrated, normally acquired over a period of two (2) years, continuously,
  If you answer Yes: If you answer YES: Please describe the specific organic contaminants and matrices that you have extensive experience with, your specific role in their analysis, as well as the time period of your experience, and the ionization and ion monitoring mode(s) you used.

Lab scientist #

LifeLabs

May, 2021 - Nov., 2021

I was the scientist in charge of steroid profiles (over 40 steroids) in urine and serum using LC-MS/MS and GC-MS/MS. The ionization technique was electrospray ionization. Some analytes were detected in positive mode, and other analytes were detected in negative mode.

The challenge of sample matrices is the presence of proteins and phospholipids because they can create ion suppression and therefore need to be removed.

The sample preparation was labour-intensive and time-consuming. Samples had to be hydrolyzed, cleaned up with solid-phase extraction, and derivatized.

Other than solid-phase extraction, I have knowledge of liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) and QuEChERS.

With regards to quality control, I created a dashboard of analysis data with a shiny application. It helped me review analysis results and visualize the quality trend and instrument performance.