EC3.1 Describe one of your team’s largest or most important projects or activities and how you managed it, from start to finish. Use a project or activity where others were doing the work, but you were overseeing it. (Maximum 500 words.) [10 marks] – What was the vision for this project/activity? – What was the outcome? How do you know this was the outcome? – What was your role in reaching that outcome? – Looking back, what would you have done differently? Why?

Please provide the contact information for someone that can corroborate your response.

After working at Accuracy Environmental Laboratories at Kirkland Lake, ON, for two and half years, the owner sold the business to Testmark Laboratories. The goal was to transform the facility into a sample depot by maintaining the minimum analysis and ship most of the samples down to the Testmark facility in Sudbury, ON, as soon as possible. I was promoted to laboratory manager to lead the team through the transition process.

The first challenge was to reform the team and reorganize the activities. The number of staff was downsized from 10 to 3. Here is what I did:

• I redeployed one staff from lab operation to customer service. The new job made the staff motivated
• I hired seasonal workers to cope with the high volume of samples.
• 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. I always stayed late to ensure samples got sent down by Purolator or Greyhound bus.
• I asked the new owner for a monetary incentive to schedule staff for work on weekends. With the new owner’s approval, the staff coming to work on weekends for a couple of hours got the whole day’s pay.

The second challenge was to implement Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS). We were requested to use it even though the new features were kept added to the LIMS. Here is what I did:

• I managed to train staff with patience understanding their frustration dealing with ongoing change.
• I coordinated with the vendor of LIMS to provide feedback and help to install new updates for glitches.
• I worked with the financial director to sort out financial features on the LIMS.

We got the transition done within about one year. I handed over the smooth lab operation to the new lab manager.

Looking back, one thing I could do differently was to get collective input on planning and organizing for some situations. It was when I joined AECL that I started to do so. It could be a way to motivate staff and uplift team morale.

Contact: RZ