05/23-24/05 BUSINESS SENSITIVE

Miami Alumni ConferenceApril 7, 2006

The World of Research & Consulting

Jerry Pittenger (pittengj@Battelle.org)

V.P. Operations – Transportation Safety and Security Research

Battelle Memorial Institute - Columbus, Ohio

Miami Class of 1969

2

Miami Computing 1965-1969

• IBM 1401 – state of the art

• Time leased from some place in Cincy.

• Submit your card deck and pick up tomorrow (as long as the computer did not go down.)

• Jobs had to take less than 16K (?) of memory

• Drum mass storage

• Machine language and bit packing

• Output as card deck which were listed to read results.

• What is software engineering? Requirements? SW development process code

3

Introduction

• Miami Grad. (1969) – B.S. Systems Analysis (Scientific)

• OSU Grad. (1975) – M.S. Systems Engineering

• Employed by Battelle in April 1969 (~37 years)– Space Systems (10 years)

– U.S. Nuclear Program (2 years)

– Computer Integrated Manufacturing Systems (10 years)

– Intelligent Transportation Systems (15 years)

• Outside Work Interests (all work and no play makes for a boring Jerry)

– Amateur Radio (K8RA)

– Corvettes

– Chasing grandchildren

– Personal Computers

4

Battelle’s purposes stem from the 1925 will of steel industrialist Gordon Battelle

• Charitable trust

• Scientific research and development

• Creative activities of a scientific nature

• Reduction to practice and licensing of inventions, discoveries, and developments

• Advancement of learning and better education of men and women for employment (Refueling the education pipeline)

5

Key Battelle Features

• Non-profit charitable trust – began operations in 1929

• 75 years of research and development leadership

• Major businesses are contract R&D, laboratory operations, and commercialization/commercial ventures

• Conduct $2.9 billion in annual R&D

• 19,000 employees worldwide (including labs we co-manage)

6

Major Technology Centers

Battelle Europe Geneva, Switzerland

Marine Sciences LaboratorySequim, Washington

Battelle Eastern Science and Technology Center

Aberdeen, Maryland

Ocean Sciences LaboratoryDuxbury, Massachusetts

Corporate Headquarters

Columbus, Ohio

7

Key Battelle Features (Cont.)• Manage or co-manage five national laboratories

for the U.S. Department of Energy.

Brookhaven National LaboratoryUpton, New York

National Renewable Energy LaboratoryGolden, Colorado

Oak Ridge National LaboratoryOak Ridge, Tennessee

Pacific Northwest National LaboratoryRichland, Washington

Idaho National LaboratoryIdaho Falls, Idaho

8

Battelle Locations

INTERNATIONALGeneva, SwitzerlandHavant, United KingdomKiev, UkraineLondon, EnglandMexico City, MexicoMoscow, RussiaOngar, United KingdomRome, ItalySlavutych, UkraineTokyo, Japan

July 2005

Hawaii

9

Battelle Innovations Have Served Customer and Societal Needs

• Industrial discoveries in metals and materials science• Armor plating for WWII U.S. tanks• Manhattan Project• Fuel for the Nautilus, the first nuclear

submarine• Development of the Xerox machine,

spawning an entire new industry• The birth of scientific computing

10

Battelle Innovations Have Served Customer and Societal Needs (Cont.)

• Contributions to the development of the Universal Product Code

• Sandwich coins for the U.S. Mint

• Cut-resistant golf balls

• Pioneering work on compact disc technology

11

Battelle Innovations Have Served Customer and Societal Needs (Cont.)

• Medical advancements to protect against blood clots

• Photovoltaic cells for solar energy

• High-tech for Operation Desert Storm

• Fiber optics technology for telecommunications

• “BASIS” data storage software

12

Battelle’s Businesses – Contract R&D (Cont.)

• Serve customers in the following markets:– Homeland Security and National Security

– Health and Life Sciences

– Energy, Transportation and Environment

13

How Do We Get Business? (Project Life Cycle)

• Clients issues a Request for a Proposal (RFP)

• Battelle evaluates each RFP – Do we have the capabilities and experience to do the work?

– Who is the competition?

– What is the cost to generate a proposal?

– Are the people available for the proposal and technical work?

• Proposal written if positive bid decision– Proposal cost average $10K to $200K

• Project Award (you win some….you lose some)– You often find out months later if you win the contract

14

How Do We Get Business? (Project Life Cycle) - continued

Lose=it is over Win=proceed to negotiate a contract

• Develop a detailed Project Plan– Staffing (people and hours)– Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)– Schedule– Task assignments– Risk mitigation plan

• Perform Research– Manage technical work– Progress reviews– Progress reports– Corrective actions– Client communications

1.0

2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0

3.1 3.2 3.3

WBS

•Task Desc.

•Assignments

•$$$$

•Schedules

•Metrics

15

How Do We Get Business? (Project Life Cycle) - continued

• Typical Deliverables– A written research report

– A working system or component

– A process

• Typical Project Size– $50K to $10M ($10K to $500M)

– 3 months to 5 years (2 wks to 25 years but atypical)

• Contract Types– Fixed Price

– Cost Plus Fee

– T.O. or single project award

16

Things I have worked on in my career

• Simulate flights of expendable Launch Vehicles for maximized payloads and optimized orbits

• Developed of operational systems at Cape Kennedy

• Worked on Shuttle justifications and tile problem

• Brought first interactive graphics terminal into Battelle (client was Werner Von Braun)

• Worked 2 years on a program to develop a nuclear waste repository

• Managed the development of several large Computer Integrated Manufacturing Systems (CIM)

17

Things I have worked on in my career (continued)

• Developed a mobile data collection system for power optimization for Houston Power and Lighting

• Managed the implementation and demonstration of 5 advanced state-of-the-art Intelligent Transportation Systems 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta

• Managed several field operational tests of new technologies on cars, trucks and buses.

• Managed research for computer controlled positive train control systems

• Etc. etc. etc.

18

The Positives in an R&D Environment

• Diverse and interesting work

• Ability to be creative – constantly creating something new

• Some flexibility to define your specialty or area of interest (rule: there must be a customer willing to pay)

• Environment to gain broad technical experience and capability (you do a lot of different stuff)

• Opportunity to work with very smart people and learn

• Good pay (you have to be the best of the best)

19

The Challenges in an R&D Environment

• Schedule Milestones dictated by a signed contract

• Potential for extensive travel away from home

• Long hours. The job has to get done.

• Where is my next research project?– Staying billable to a client

• Keeping current with technology (a challenge but a requirement of most jobs

• Always new stuff and hours of research gaining basics to do a job

20

Employment Tips

• Work to get a job you like – you spend a lot of time doing it!• Prepare for interviews

– Appropriate dress– Be able to verbalize what kind of job you are looking for– Do you homework on company you are talking to– Try to exhibit a comfort factor in the interview (you can die inside but

don’t let me know you feel that way. … Demonstrates self control.)– Be prepared to address the big question of how much money do you

want ($$$$$$)– Take some notes and have some examples of pertinent work (i.e.

papers or classroom assignments, etc.)– Have some questions in mind

- Will I be work with a team?- What are your current projects ongoing- Don’t ask things like “how many hours a week do I have to work?”

– Follow up after the interview and thank them

21

Salary (What you might expect with a Systems Analysis Degree)

• Research Associate (entry level) $49,560 - $59,400

• Researcher (2 to 4 years experience)

$58,680 - $70,200

• Research Scientist (3 to 8 years experience)

$71,040 - $85,080

• Principal Research Scientist (7 to 12 years experience)

$86,280 - $103,320

• Senior Research Scientist (10 to 20 years experience)

$100,200 - $120,120

• And up …………

2005 dollars

22

Your Education Has Just Begun

• Your Miami degree provides proof that you can learn

• Don’t expect to go into a new job and feel comfortable on day one– No one expects you to be a star on day one.

– Think that you will be a real contributor within a year.

– Find a mentor you feel comfortable with (not the boss).

– Work smart. Be committed to deliver and do what it takes. In most companies you are evaluated on contributions and not hours spent.

– Live a balanced life. All work and no play makes Johnny a boring person.

• Be a volunteer. Seek new challenges. Be aggressive

23

Your Education Has Just Begun

• Plan your career – work smart

• Don’t get bogged down by things that do not contribute to goals (i.e. e-mail)

• Be a volunteer – step up to challenges

• Stay current. It is your future and your responsibility

• Be creative. Step outside the box in your thinking

• Celebrate victories and learn from failures

• Be a communicator. Learn how to express yourself verbally and in writing