Communication
Communicating With Greg
I love the many responsibilities of being a professor and scientist, but I am almost always busier than I’d like to be. As a result I have less time for talking to folks than I’d like. However, you (lab members) are the most important parts of my job, and I need your help to stay organized and involved in the things I need to be involved in. Some general rules of thumb are:
1. Be proactive—tell me what you need. This includes coming to knock on my door even if it seems like you are interrupting, texting/emailing me to set up a time to meet, or catching me before or after lab meeting. In all likelihood I will not check in with you as often as I’d/you’d like, so it is up to you to make sure nothing falls through the cracks.
2. Write things down and remind me what we’ve talked about. I would love to remember everything we decided when we met last week, but this doesn’t always happen. Don’t hesitate to bring me up to speed when we meet. Even if I already remember what we are talking about, a couple of introductory topic sentences will help get me in the right frame of mind. Be sure to write down everything in your lab notebook and Trello!
3. Read all of the lab documentation: this lab manual, the Slack and Trello. You are responsible for knowing what is in each of these places, following the rules and guidelines we have set up, and notifying someone if you find incorrect information (or if you have questions).
4. I can be the most helpful to everyone if you are a little bit strategic in what you ask me. Please check with other people in the lab, and a Google search before shooting me off a question
My office
My door is always open, but if I am in a meeting please only interrupt for something very urgent. Otherwise, please send me a slack message or try another time.
Communication within the lab
Lab meeting
We meet once each week to talk about science together, and to make sure we have a chance to touch base on administrative and practical issues. There may even be a snack if the lab manager has the time to bring one. Regular attendance and participation is expected (unless you have a class during that time).
ASANA + Slack
All lab related communications should be directed to Slack. Before starting a new discussion thread or conversation, ensure that your specific topic/question/inquiry has not already been addressed on one of the #channels. Please use these channels appropriately, we can all see them!
Asana is the main tool for lab task organization communication. Please help by keeping Asana up to date and neat! A few thoughts and tips:
• Use the to-do lists, both for yourself and others. Oftentimes pre-existing lists will have already been created, and you will be ‘tagged’ in specific tasks under a topic.
• When you post a message, you can optionally have it emailed to people on the project. One of the nice things about Asana is that it can reduce the amount of email we have to read. It’s still advisable to hold important discussions on Slack or in person, though.
Just to reiterate, again, use Slack when you can. But for projects that include collaboration with other labs or the need for document sharing, email is also appropriate.
With this in mind, please prioritize reading any emails related to MCAB lab staff or projects. These will usually be time-sensitive and should be addressed as soon as possible (especially if you’re directly mentioned!).
Google Calendar
We have a lab calendar! Please refer to it for any upcoming trips/conferences and other key information. If you have yet to be added, speak to the lab manager.
Communication outside the lab
Communicating to people outside the lab is extremely important: your actions reflect not only on yourself, but also on the lab, the lab director, the department, and the university. This is true both for participants (who volunteer for our studies) and scientific colleagues (whose opinions have a direct impact on our success and opportunity—they are the ones reviewing our grants and papers and our future promotions!). It is important that every time one of us represents the lab to a high level of quality. The less experience you have, the more preparation is required. Don’t skimp!
Phone
• If the phone rings in the lab, answer it: identify the lab and your name. Most calls will be from potential (or current) research participants, so it’s important they view us as professional and competent. “MCAB Lab. This is [your name here]. How may I help you?” is a great start. Remember that many people calling will be older and/or have hearing loss, so speak slowly and clearly.
• Try to check voicemail messages daily to make sure nothing important slips through.
• If someone calls the lab and leaves a message, call them back within one business day to confirm that we received the call. If they would like to participate in a study but we can’t schedule them, thank them for their interest and ask if we can contact them in the future should one come up (if you actually will). If you are not going to contact them (or they do not qualify), tell them that we are done recruiting for that study and do not have anything else available, but thank them for their interest.
