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• Table of Contents 

  November 5, 2010, 01:26

  This page contains the site table of contents. Use it to quickly find content on this website.

• About this blog 

  November 16, 2009, 02:29

  What's this blog about?

• About Scot 

  October 20, 2009, 18:33

  Scot Kleinman is an astronomer with the Gemini Observatory where he works as the Instrument Program Scientists. He has had past jobs managing aspects of the…

Blog Posts

• Category: General  (53)
  • Give yourself time to think by: Scot

    March 10, 2013, 22:59

    Why is it we schedule time for meetings, but not time for thinking? Take a look at your calendar. If it's like mine used to be, it's a series of scheduled…

  • Some thoughts about commitments by: Scot

    October 10, 2012, 22:18

    No, this Blog is not dead. I think about it often; I just don't have as much time as before to update it. I started taking some remote classes (what was I…

  • Is being "busy" a good thing? by: Scot

    July 31, 2012, 22:18

    Ask people from Gemini how they're doing and the response you'll most often hear is "Busy".  This response begs the question: Are we really busier than other…

  • Resource Management: Focus on the workers, not the managers. by: Scot

    May 22, 2012, 21:45

    Inspired by the Norm Smith talk I recently heard (see previous post), I purchased his book Got Progress? and highly recommend it. I now have words to describe…

  • Additional Random Bits from the NASA PM Challenge, 2012 by: Scot

    March 30, 2012, 17:49

    The annual NASA PM Challenge is a really good meeting. The speakers are generally excellent and the material covers a wide range from project management…

  • Managing Cost, Schedule, and Scope is not enough. by: Scot

    March 26, 2012, 22:14

    Project Management 101 teaches the need to actively, and simultaneously, monitor and manage a project's cost, schedule, and scope. Project Management 102…

  • On systems, processes, and paperwork by: Scot

    December 21, 2011, 17:18

    Lately, I've come across several proposed new systems, processes, and forms ---  all developed to address an assumed real, but unstated need.  In most cases,…

  • Musings on the future of Astronomy by: Scot

    October 31, 2011, 22:14

    The future of astronomy seems clear to me right now. It goes through ESO. That's not particularly bad, especially if you're an ESO member, but if you're…

  • I am can be powerful! by: Scot

    August 30, 2011, 21:19

    The other day, someone came into my office with a bad idea for a project of mine. I regularly get bad ideas from this person, so I naturally have just set…

  • Real vs. fake work: What are emails, meetings, etc.? by: Scot

    July 31, 2011, 16:49

    A couple years back, a group of us at work put together a series of classes designed to help people better communicate and manage their tasks more efficiently.Â…

  • Superficial pleasantries vs. honest relationship building by: Scot

    June 30, 2011, 22:52

    In my last post, I discussed some thoughts from reading Conger, Lawler, and Finegold's Corporate Boards book. Here is something else that caught my eye in that…

  • Balancing Two Boards by: Scot

    May 19, 2011, 17:43

    Gemini has two Boards - the Gemini Board from the international partnership agreement and the AURA Board. It's actually a bit (well, OK a lot) more complicated…

  • Agile development and change implementation by: Scot

    May 8, 2011, 22:35

    While I'm on the topic of change management and how it isn't very different than plain old good management, I feel like I need to address one additional aspect…

  • Change Management - Another Instance of Management 101 Getting it Wrong by: Scot

    March 27, 2011, 17:27

    Change Management is a idiom often heard these days where I work. I'm sure you know what it refers to - the process of implementing change in an organization…

  • Musings on career paths... by: Scot

    February 28, 2011, 22:35

    I look younger than I am.   I hear this a lot when people find out (or ask) my age.  People seem surprised to find out how old I am.  I'm never quite sure…

  • "I set early deadlines so people work hard to get done as soon as possible." by: Scot

    February 23, 2011, 21:02

    I recently heard a project manager say something like, "I set an optimistic, aggressive schedule to make sure people work hard to meet the deadlines, otherwise,…

  • Is Work Supposed to be Fun? by: Scot

    January 31, 2011, 21:09

    Well, it's almost the end of January and I do want to get something posted before the month's out.  Let's see if I make it in some time zone, at least. Our…

  • Another advocate for Openness, Transparency, and Accountable Management by: Scot

    December 28, 2010, 16:23

    Somewhat recently, I finished reading Employees First, Customers Second by Vineet Nayar.  It was a very easy read since the techniques the author talks about…

  • Working with academic vendors... by: Scot

    December 5, 2010, 11:12

    In my previous post, I made the outlandish statement that not all vendors are well-versed in the skills needed to properly handle large, fixed-price, contracts…

  • Why are we surprised when vendors can't keep projects on time and budget? by: Scot

    November 22, 2010, 21:00

    It has been occurring to me lately that there is a fundamental mismatch between how some astronomy projects  select and manage external vendors and their…

  • One year later ... by: Scot

    October 30, 2010, 13:46

    Well, it's been a year now since I started this blog.  I thought I should commemorate the occasion by writing something deep and reflective.  The problem is,…

  • Healthy Conflcit by: Scot

    October 24, 2010, 11:48

    I recently picked up a copy of A Grand and Bold Thing by Ann Finkbeiner. It's a book about the original Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). I actually haven't…

  • There's more than one set of reasons for not communicating well... by: Scot

    September 30, 2010, 13:30

    There are some other topics I've been wanting to write about lately, but this one just keeps on giving... I received an anonymous private reply to my previous…

  • To fix a problem, first look in the mirror, define it, and own it by: Scot

    September 21, 2010, 13:37

    There is an interesting discussion starting from a post I made on an internal work blog.  So, I thought I'd repost a slightly edited version of it…

  • VWs in China and building relationships by: Scot

    September 16, 2010, 22:39

    Combining my interests in German cars, international relations, and general management, I recently read the book, 1000 Days in Shanghai, by Martin Posth.  The…

  • Kill the Annual Performance Review by: Scot

    August 25, 2010, 12:53

    Kill The Annual Performance Review I've been holding on to this link for a while, hoping to write more about it, but there's really not much more to write,…

  • Is project management enough? by: Scot

    August 6, 2010, 16:36

    I was reviewing some notes from a colleague's previous class on project management when I came across the following lines that caught my interest: A business…

  • The role of politics in astronomy by: Scot

    July 17, 2010, 16:19

    For some, politics is a dirty word - either a necessary evil or something to be avoided altogether. For others, it's the name of the game. What role does…

  • Who advocates for the Observatory? by: Scot

    July 10, 2010, 18:49

    I've been reading a book on corporate boards, so expect a few posts on astronomy governance coming up, starting with this one. I really knew nothing about how…

  • Fire those who need to be fired by: Scot

    June 17, 2010, 08:24

    Right on the heels of my recent blog post about keeping bad employees too long, an article appeared in the 4Jun10 issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education by…

  • When to release in-progress plans....? by: Scot

    June 15, 2010, 13:45

    The way to get buy-in for an idea or plan is to let people get involved in its formation, not by spinning it to them afterward.

  • Are we too generous in hiring and keeping employees? by: Scot

    June 3, 2010, 22:10

    A recent article I read about how to hire the right people for the right jobs gives a statistic attributed to the US Department of Labor that 50% of all new…

  • Support needed from above, below and horizontally by: Scot

    May 9, 2010, 19:17

    I've recently started a management support / study group here at Gemini. We've only met once, so we'll see how it goes, but while thinking about it, I…

  • What are you really concerned about here? by: Scot

    April 25, 2010, 12:34

    I learned this particularly powerful combination of words from one of my (few) regular commenters here, Andy Flach. I might generalize them slightly, though…

  • There's more to getting input than just getting input by: Scot

    April 17, 2010, 19:25

    It's funny, I'm starting to feel a bit like Scott Adams, I mean beyond sharing part of a first name. About the time I start wondering what I should next write…

  • Only you can prevent needless fires! by: Scot

    April 10, 2010, 13:41

    A colleague sent me a link to a John Hersey blog post about the role of a leader. He argues an effective leader is not one who can come in and solve problems…

  • Learn from your mistakes by: Scot

    March 27, 2010, 18:40

    I was recently sitting in on an oversight meeting of Gemini management.  Most of the meeting was spent in executive (ie. private) sessions, but during one of…

  • The CEO of the Container Store on the vital nature of open communications. by: Scot

    March 17, 2010, 16:29

    A colleague sent me a link to an interview with Kip Tindell, Chief Executive of the Container Store. In the interview, Kip describes how important it is to…

  • The never-ending battle between big and small science in astronomy by: Scot

    March 15, 2010, 21:32

    When you hear the thundering herd behind you, it's time to move on to a new field. That's advice I often heard from my graduate advisers. While you might call…

  • Don't demotivate. Communicate! by: Scot

    March 2, 2010, 20:59

    Let your people know what's going on as soon as possible and ask your people what you should know that you may not.

  • Flaunt your flaws: Don't communicate the Toyota Way by: Scot

    February 10, 2010, 22:26

    In this information age, your customers will find out what you're trying to hide sooner or later and you'll be well ahead of the game if you are the one…

  • Competition vs. Cooperation - another angle on why astronomy needs sound management practices by: Scot

    February 1, 2010, 21:53

    Introducing competition to astronomy projects is not always an easy task. Here, I explore the reasons why competition is healthy and question some of the real…

  • The Role and Need for an International Observatory by: Scot

    January 20, 2010, 22:46

    One immediate natural outcome of the UK's withdrawal from Gemini is that until/unless another partner is found, the existing partners will likely divide up the…

  • Some of my take-home thoughts from recent management books I've read.... by: Scot

    January 11, 2010, 22:23

    I wanted to jot down some key points from some recent books I read, so decided here to give some brief summaries and key ideas from some recent readings in…

  • Towards more realistic project costing... by: Scot

    December 30, 2009, 21:07

    I've been involved and associated with a number of astronomical projects now that have depended on some level of external funding. One almost universal feature…

  • Gemini without the UK by: Scot

    December 20, 2009, 18:41

    The UK appears to be pulling out of Gemini at the end of 2012. I explore some steps I feel Gemini must take in order to survive the likely resulting loss of…

  • Climbing the Corporate Ladder by: Scot

    December 9, 2009, 23:35

    I consider and discuss the pitfalls of blindly climbing the career ladder and point out how astronomy particularly needs to pay attention to finding people…

  • The Management Corollary by: Scot

    November 28, 2009, 04:52

    I finally close out my initial discussion of the Scientist Dilemma with an introduction of what I call the Management Corollary. Astronomy's modern projects…

  • New post late this week... by: Scot

    November 24, 2009, 03:08

    I'm in the middle of a research week, so will be a bit late with this week's post. I'm having too much fun playing with data right now. :)

  • Astronomy is a Business by: Scot

    November 15, 2009, 07:58

    Astronomers don't always like to think so, but astronomical facilities are a business. There are more and more choices available for all classes of telescopes.…

  • The Scientist Dilemma by: Scot

    November 9, 2009, 04:30

    In preparing talks on lessons learned from Sloan Digital Sky Survey Operations, I began to formulate what I refer to as the Scientist Dilemma: projects want…

  • Alfred P. Sloan and a functional management model for Gemini by: Scot

    November 1, 2009, 11:04

    Can Gemini operate like Sloan's GM? Is complete funcational management the way to go?

  • Is Gemini really a matrix-management organization? by: Scot

    October 29, 2009, 22:40

    Matrix management and Gemini Observatory

• Category: Introductions  (1)
  • What's this Blog about? by: Scot

    October 29, 2009, 01:46

    Who am I? Why am I here?

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