Concepts to become an accomplished industry scientist by M.J. Loboda

The Elements Of An Accomplished Scientist Mark Loboda Consulting LLC

ÂŠ 2015 Mark Loboda Consulting

My Experience Commitment - It is huge, the required effort is not going to be a typical “work-life” balance - It is more like being an Olympic athlete. - Measure success at an aggregated level, not event by event. The Elements of Success 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Ethics and the Way of Life Practice, practice, practice Art – State of the… Business - $ Control your legacy from day one

Ethics and Way of Life •

Recognize industrial science is a competition at all levels, internal and external, business vs. science. The end game is profit and influence.

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How you compete will be part of your legacy.

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Know why you are where you are ! • Why did you choose science? • (What is the right answer?) • Know your strengths, weakness, and limits • What do you want to achieve – is it realistic? Is there a stepwise plan? •

Surround yourself with people with more experience than you; people with a history of career and product success • Do this early, it gets harder as you get older • Political correctness and learning network are orthogonal

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If it makes you uncomfortable, it is probably not worth doing.

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Pick someone to make successful, this is a route to success.

Secrets: Practice, Practice, Practice – Most Important ! SIMPLE : Never stop practice. Practice on all skills. Never stop expanding your skills. This is what you must do all the time. No Complacency ! When you stop, you will fall behind. You will not be able to compete at the same level. If you maintain consistent practice, you will pass 95% of the competition. Become an expert at one thing first, then expand your skill base to complement your core expertise. Become versed in all tools, learn when to leverage each tool to your advantage (most average performers use <10% of accessible tools/skills). Spend maximum time using and growing your strengths/skills. Don’t build something unless no one else can. Do what has not been done. Know where to get the best tools/support ! Manage yourself. Enjoy the fruits of your commitment.

Art – State of the… • Know and respect the state of the art and the prior art. • Build on the state of the art, do not re-invent it. • Read what was done and what was NOT done. • Ideas come from good science. Patents do not require good science. Patents are a weapon for competition. • There is no weakness to build off the work of others, just give credit. This is the fastest path. • Know the markets and their trajectory better than the Marketing Professionals. • Your passion and desire for knowledge should make this easy. • This is required to build strong VISION. • 10 years minimum – long range focus is required. • Identify the market/technology gaps before they occur.

Business - Project Buy-in and Revenue Impact •

Design for rapid technology transfer and manufacturability, or watch your efforts stall or even fail. • Include cost impact – know costs for making and impact on customer.

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Understand the competition, what they do better and what they struggle to do you should do effectively.

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A program with an ambiguous goal and loose timeline is a program that will fail.

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A good program proposal has science, business and emotive (needs) impact. It has time driven, measurable deliverables. Communicate these effectively. • Start with small projects: 4-8 months • Realize the first time it won’t go so well. Be up front with your stakeholders as soon as you know there are problems. • Practice often, you will achieve the ability to predict timelines well and define impacting deliverables.

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Communicate to your audience, not to yourself • Anticipate questions and what is the desired take-away of the audience. Speak in their language.

Legacy – you are what you leave behind, don’t wait to the end to see your impact, make impact every day; measure impact every year. Grow in steps. • From day one, how you work every day defines your future. • Documentation – write what the intended audience wants and needs to know, not just what you did. (Major Problem) • Strive to learn, embrace failure and feedback as energy. • Create self sustaining opportunities – and plan for your exit. Then get the next opportunity going… • Accept your role, then complete your task to the highest standard – all work is valuable. •

Be passionate and persistent; avoid derogatory positions – define problems with potential solutions.

The 8 Skills You Need to Succeed: Analyze Information

Compare statistical analysis of internal data with as much external benchmarks as possible

Convert Info To Know-how

Convert data to knowledge, knowledge to strategy, strategy to competitive advantage

Sell New Ideas

Skillful, concise and honest presentations

Communicate Clearly

Be articulate and focus on technical, business and customer impact of your information â&#x20AC;&#x201C; it must all hang together.

Plan for Commercialization

What ever you create/innovate needs to work in manufacturing Scientists do not manufacture products.

Be a Team Player

Get help and help others. You will be successful when the team is successful.

Do Integrated Problem Solving

Learn the impact of the source on your problem and the impact of your solution on the Customer.

Seek Learning Opportunities

Continuous improvement of skills is essential. Practice is essential.

ÂŠ 2015 Mark Loboda Consulting

Summary • Success begets success… we control our output. • To excel and be successful in Industrial Science at the highest levels requires constant practice and large time commitment. Work hard, play hard to achieve balance. • Drive to meet your work obligations with highest standards. Focus and challenge yourself. People will see your passion and career satisfaction – this has measurable impact on a business. • Maintain engagement in your career. Study others who have succeeded. Grow your skills, focus on your roles and deliverables. Be patient for success.