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Unusual DNA and Medicinal Chemistry Memories of Cambridge in the 1950S Bioinorganic Studies and Teaching Duties a Chat With

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Unusual DNA and Medicinal Chemistry Memories of Cambridge in the 1950S Bioinorganic Studies and Teaching Duties a Chat With Spring 2012 Unusual DNA and medicinal chemistry Bioinorganic studies and teaching duties Memories of Cambridge in the 1950s A chat with the department’s deputy heads As I see it... When Daan Frenkel became head of department in October, it was with the help of two deputy heads of department – Jane Clarke and David Wales. Sarah Houlton talks to them about their roles, and what they involve Why does the new department struc - ture have this ‘triumvirate’ headship? David: Quite simply, because there is so much work involved – I don’t know how Bill Jones could possibly have done this on his own! I’ve worked here for more than 20 years and I really had no idea what lay underneath the tip of the iceberg in terms of the amount of organisation and administration the department needs. The only way to do this and keep people sane is with a hierarchical structure, with layers of committees and delegated authority, which is what we now have. I think it’s working quite well – we’ve had a reorganisation in terms of administrative staff, which has saved money while being more efficient. So Daan is the out - ward face of the department, I look after sup - port and resources, and Jane is responsible for staffing issues. t t i P n It does sound like rather a large task a h t for one person! So, Jane, what are a N your responsibilities? : o t o Jane: I’m responsible for all sorts of personnel h issues in the department. More than 900 people P are employed within the department, including sidering setting up a mentoring team, with a when fume cupboards return to the pool. I had PhD students, postdocs, assistant staff, aca - group of individuals who are prepared to offer to consult very widely with my experimental demic-related staff and academics, and my role different kinds of support, and people can go to colleagues about all the things that, as a theoreti - includes overseeing all the human resources different members of the team depending on cian, I don’t usually have to think about – stor - issues. This includes employment contracts, what they are looking for. One might think age, equipment and health & safety issues, for training, probationary procedures, career devel - career and work mentoring might best be done example. The quality of the space itself is very opment, dignity at work, equality, bullying – all through their supervisor, who knows that area heterogeneous, and there are plenty of issues those sorts of issues fall under my umbrella. of science best, but if there are personal or per - that might catch us out, but I think they have Any disciplinary issues that come up would also sonnel issues they could very well go to some - now been covered. An initial problem we faced be under my remit. one else for advice and support on how to deal was an absence of fundamental data – we didn’t I’m really well supported by support services with a tricky situation. know who was occupying which desk or fume manager Marita Walsh and welfare training and cupboard, or even office! These data should now development advisor Victoria Blake, who are David, what are your responsibilities? be online with automatic updates, so when stu - responsible for most of the personnel issues on David: I chair the support and resources, dents arrive and depart the data can be fed from a day-to-day basis, with academic secretary finance, and equipment and services commit - the administrative office into the system. Howard Jones dealing with recruitment issues tees within the department. Daan, Jane and I It will also help us think ahead so we can for the academic staff. We’ve also been creating also meet together at least once a week, and make realistic offers to new academic recruits – career development reviews for postdocs and consult with the senior administrators on a reg - we can’t offer them space that does not exist. academics, to make sure they all get what used ular basis, too. We have delegated authority as We have earmarked, for example, part of the to be called an appraisal. We now have a system far as possible down the committee structure, basement for the new Herchel Smith professor, that is appropriate for scientists, trying to give which is actually quite far! What has occupied and of course the new Melville professor’s postdocs and young scientists the opportunity most of my time recently is the new space group will go into the Melville lab. We’re also to reflect on what they can do with their careers, guidelines. Space is one of the biggest chal - starting to fund-raise for a new building on focus on what they need to move on to the next lenges the department faces, and with the Union Road ( for more about this, see the news step, and identify their training needs. change in administrative structure there was no story on page 5 ). There are other issues that have space management plan at all. There was no for - to be taken into account – for example we can’t How well do you feel it’s working? mal system for requesting space, or giving it create more fume cupboards on certain sides of Jane: Sometimes it feels very much like manag - back when it was no longer needed. We will be the building because the plant is maxed out. ing cats! It’s very difficult, as we appoint aca - implementing the new space guidelines via a Of course we don’t want anyone to be lim - demics because they are fantastic scientists, but web-based interface, and it is being trialled on ited by space, but in order for that to happen we very few have any training in management, the third floor. need to use what we’ve got more efficiently and leadership skills or leading groups. Some flexibly, and perhaps instil a new ethos that peo - groups can expand rapidly, and for a young, So how does it work? ple don’t own space, but get to use what they enthusiastic scientist this can prove challenging. David: It’s simply a procedure that allows people need at the time, which needs to be reviewed They may need help to be good at the ‘people’ to request more space if they need it after a grant periodically. If someone gives space up when side of the job, so we need to have proper, rig - has been awarded. The system is warned in their group decreases, they can expect to get it orous mentoring schemes. Every student and advance that a grant application has been made back if the group increases in size again. Of postdoc who comes in is assigned a mentor, but and what extra space might be needed if suc - course, we can understand people being nerv - this isn’t necessarily the most appropriate per - cessful, and it also contains a list of who is ous about this! So we have to make sure that ­ son to help them with everything. We are con - working with whom, who finishes when, and continued on page 13 2 Chem@Cam Spring 2012 Reluctant reactions Letters Colleague spotted crocodile, I think, of a famous story Dear Chem@Cam book written in Sanskrit entitled In response to Byomkesh Biswas in the Panchatantra of Vishnu Sharma of India. eChem@Cam Summer 2011 issue of Chem@Cam , I am very interested to know the Chem@Cam is now being sent out by email to those third from the left on the middle row is source of the image, and whether it has who have asked for a pdf version rather than a hard Peter Dawson, who both demonstrated any connection to the book. copy in the mail. to undergraduate classes in Lensfield Thanking you If you would like to swap your paper magazine for an Road and sang with me in the Sunday Abhilash M. e-version, then please send an email with the subject line evening University services instituted by email ‘eChem@Cam’ to [email protected], and we’ll start to by Revd Mervyn Stockwood. As with all the images on our back cover, send you the mag electronically from the next issue. He was a great talker and walker with it’s a Gustave Doré engraving. This one Don’t forget to tell us your postal address so we can whom Geoff Bedford and the late Brian dates from 1867, and it’s a monkey and a check that the correct person is being removed from the Fraser – all chemists – and I shared an dolphin, rather than a crocodile. It’s one of mailing list for the paper magazine. unforgettable walking holiday in Doré’s illustrations of the ‘Fables of Jean Scotland in the Long Vacation of 1961. de la Fontaine,’ published in the late If you’re not sure what it will look like, you can check out Peter hailed from the Stockton/ 1600s. The original legend was (in trans - e-back issues on the newly redesigned department Billingham area, but was very proud of lation!) ‘The dolphin thought it was sav - website, www.ch.cam.ac.uk his Scottish roots and, of course, we had ing a sailor, but was dismayed to find it Don’t worry if you still want to receive a paper copy – to pay a visit to a ruined castle in Fife, was carrying a chattering fool’. we’ll continue to print and mail the magazine for the seat of Clan Davidson and origin of his foreseeable future, so you won’t miss out! nickname, Tulloch.
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