Judging the Consistency of Your Leadership

After some time in a new job — and especially one charged with significant leadership responsibilities — it can be an interesting exercise to look back at the cover letter that you used to apply, and then assess whether you've lived up to what you promised. It's been almost 3 years since, after having given careful thought to what I believed I could bring to UL Research Institutes, I put it all down on paper to share with the hiring committee.

I subscribe to transparent leadership, so I've decided to go beyond simple self-assessment, and to share my 2020 application cover letter here. First, because it's really the judgment of our governing board, my internal colleagues, and our external partners that matters! Second, because other followers might simply find interesting an example cover letter for a senior research administrator position. But most of all, I really believe in the things I wrote, and I welcome feedback from anyone not merely on performance, but also on philosophy. Leaders can always improve...

**********

Members of the Search Committee for the Chief Research Officer

Underwriters Laboratories Inc.

Dear Colleagues,

I would be pleased to explore with you my potential candidacy for the position of Chief Research Officer (CRO) of Underwriters Laboratories Inc. Over the course of my academic career, I have had the opportunity to take a number of leadership roles both at the University of Minnesota and within various organizations associated with my professional activities. My University of Minnesota experience has included, beyond continuously funding and running a moderately sized Chemistry research group for 25+ years, the management of large departmental graduate and undergraduate programs, committee and leadership responsibilities at several levels of institutional governance, a year as the Provost’s Faculty Liaison for e-Learning Initiatives, 5 years experience as an Associate Dean in the College of Science and Engineering, and my current service as Vice President for Research, begun in 2018, leading a unit comprising 750+ personnel with an annual budget of ~$125 million and overseeing and supporting more than $1B in annual research expenditures.

Given my academic background, let me note that I was attracted to your position because I have a strong commitment to the public service mission of land-grant higher-educational institutions, like the University of Minnesota, and I see that value mirrored in Underwriters Laboratories’ own commitment to benefit the public as a 501(c)(3) organization. Moreover, the anticipated scope of your research operations (the ultimate design of which will be tasked in part to the new CRO) will clearly be broad and require a multi-disciplinary perspective. I am convinced that management of such an endeavor will be tremendously intellectually stimulating.

Considering the opportunities and challenges enumerated in your position description, permit me to speak first to the topic of vision and strategy. With the University of Minnesota having just completed a system-wide strategic plan (which took about 18 months), I am certainly well versed in the nuts and bolts of such exercises, and the degree to which they can be facilitated by expert consultants where appropriate. Strategy, to be successful, must be responsive to events as they evolve, and a key to nimble response is regular consultation and willingness to listen to key stakeholders and partners both within and without an organization. As a strategist, I do believe in broad consultation, but I am also committed to actually making decisions once the consultative process has run a productive course. There are occasions where it is better to do the experiment, possibly be proven wrong, and learn from one’s errors, than simply never to do anything. Especially given the “start-up” character of Underwriters Laboratories’ articulated plans, it’s going to be important to be open to some risk in launching new research lines, or new collaborations, and choosing metrics and measures of success that can be used to determine which initiatives should grow and which should be discontinued. At Minnesota, I have created new mechanisms (including a unit called the Strategic Partnerships and Research Collaborative) specifically to engage researchers in broad explorations of new research directions and help launch novel multidisciplinary initiatives, and I have found such efforts to be particularly valuable for engaging a large organization in an ongoing evaluation of its vision and priorities.

Addressing the vision standpoint specifically, at Minnesota I set three strategic priorities and three tactical objectives for my own unit, and worked to ensure that our recent systemwide strategic planning effort would encompass them appropriately. Those priorities and objectives have driven our internal budgeting and served to rally partnerships with internal and external stakeholders. Without enumerating each of those priorities and objectives, suffice it to say that they were chosen with a view to (i) the needs of the State of Minnesota, (ii) unique areas of strength that offered opportunities to advance to extraordinary levels of excellence, and (iii) national and international recognition of importance (e.g., sustainability and data science).

Within the scope of safety science, there are a remarkable number of emerging products and technologies for which few data are yet available with respect to safety, and this creates an opportunity for Underwriters Laboratories to quickly establish itself as the highest-profile contributor to addressing such data deficiencies. As industry and society seek sustainable alternatives to existing processes and technologies in energy and materials, many exploiting new opportunities to manipulate matter at the nano-scale, there will be needs to understand how to implement those alternatives safely. The growing pressure for connected and autonomous vehicles for transportation needs, and for robotic devices in general to be implemented broadly across not just industry, but in homes and workplace, has also created a critical need for addressing safety issues. And, of course, the degree to which our 21st-century society relies on cyberphysical hardware and software for the control of complex devices and systems requires careful attention to embedding safety considerations in their development.

To maximize early impact, I would hazard that Underwriters Laboratories will need to judiciously select, based on analysis and consultation, some topic areas for which in-house teams will be assembled, and others where collaboration with partners having existing expertise is more likely to have the highest impact. The goal will be to quickly develop and foster a reputation for research excellence. Critical to developing such a reputation will be a commitment to integrity and upholding the highest of ethical standards. Even when the stakes are not life and death (which they obviously can be in safety science), research institutions must maintain a reputation for pursuing knowledge and truth in as unbiased a fashion as is humanly possible. This includes adherence to rigorous standards of protecting human subjects, animal care and use, and all other aspects of compliance, legal and ethical. My experience growing Minnesota’s research expenditures by 10% over the last two years while maintaining critical accreditations like that of the Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs illustrates my simultaneous dedication to excellence and integrity.

Considering next the management of a vibrant and growing organization, I bring several priorities to an executive role. These include a respect for data (to include analyses of returns on investment), a belief that collaborative efforts involving a team of diverse individuals usually deliver improved outcomes over more narrowly focused undertakings, and finally, a conviction that researchers and staff at all levels should be empowered, not micromanaged, to ensure not only maximal productivity of the full team, but also the development of a bench of talented future leaders ready to take on an institution’s next generation of challenges. I also bring a willingness to listen, and to learn. In my work, I try hard to be unburdened by hubris, and to seek counsel from those who are more expert than I prior to forming opinions or taking action. Finally, and of particular relevance for an organization in a growth phase, I have tried always to adhere to a model of service leadership. Senior executives can be most effective when they focus on clearing obstacles and creating an environment where their direct reports can be most successful. One obviously has a responsibility to exercise due diligence in assessing requests for investment, hiring, assistance, etc., but I have found that making clear my preparedness to work closely with my senior staff to help them advance their priorities has earned trust, respect, and buy-in on unit values and strategic priorities.

Of similar importance to establishing trust within one’s own unit, of course, is being perceived as a trusted partner by fellow executives and external stakeholders. I have found that a degree of empathy can be quite valuable when addressing conflicting priorities (which need not be an unhealthy situation) and, again, preparedness to listen and seek outcomes with mutual benefits.

Finally, with respect to serving as an ambassador for Underwriters Laboratories activities, such plenipotentiary activity is a major component of my present position, and one that I particularly enjoy. As an academic, I have dedicated enormous amounts of time to teaching, and more generally, I am a story-teller. I will be eager to use the mantle of CRO to publicly highlight and celebrate Underwriters Laboratories' accomplishments and to advocate broadly on behalf of the institution. I look forward to connecting with business leaders, academic partners, politicians, and peers at other relevant entities. I look forward to promoting the critical importance of safety science and helping to further establish Underwriters Laboratories as a leader in the field.

I believe that I can contribute, both as a leader and as an administrative team member, to advancing Underwriters Laboratories’ ambitions to move to a new level in safety-science research. I provide an abbreviated copy of my curriculum vitae that outlines in more detail my academic and professional qualifications. I would be delighted to have the opportunity to discuss with you in more detail the degree to which my background aligns with your goals for the CRO, and the degree to which the scope of the position aligns with my own goals for further professional distinction.

Sincerely,

Christopher J. Cramer, Ph.D.

Vice President for Research