Image: Grace Gay for Research Professional News
SRAI annual meeting highlighted post-pandemic shifts in working life, says Debra Schaller-Demers
You plan for a whole year, and it always feels like it’s so far away. Then in a flash it’s here—and it’s over.
The president of the Society of Research Administrators International gets to preside over two annual meetings during their term of office. The annual meeting is our biggest and most anticipated event and generally attracts upwards of 1,000 attendees.
Last year’s meeting, in October, was not just my first as SRAI president but also SRAI’s first in-person event since the pandemic began in March 2020. We gathered in New Orleans with much uncertainty. Would our members return? Would we risk catching the virus? Would attendees respect the masking requirements in force at the time?
I look back on that 2021 meeting with a smile and a sigh of relief. Numbers were far fewer than usual for the location, as international members were still severely hampered by travel restrictions. But those who came were thrilled to be out in the world again, and joyous at being able to share, learn and network without having to sit at a computer screen all day to do so.
Big, flashy and fun
Fast-forward to the 2022 annual meeting in Las Vegas. US-based members came back, almost tripling the number of attendees in 2021, as did international members, with more than 100 in attendance. It felt like old times; and in keeping with the Vegas vibe, the meeting was big, flashy and fun.
Despite the triumphant return, the pandemic lingers in ways that are sometimes not obvious. We have all suffered loses that have changed how we view the world and those around us.
There were few masks in Las Vegas, but there was still much hesitation in how to greet each other. Do we hug, shake hands, stand six feet apart, pass the microphone while speaking? Some longstanding members still could not travel, due to personal health concerns or those of their loved ones. And with many institutions facing post-pandemic financial constraints, travel budgets are generally the first item to be cut.
Volunteer power
Even in a great venue such as Caesars Palace, the glitz is not as important as the substance. It all starts with solid programming. For that, a shout-out to the meeting’s three co-chairs, Terry Campbell of the University of Ottawa, Tonya Edvalson of the University of Utah, and David King of the University of Louisville, along with all the folks who served as track chairs, thread chairs, proposal reviewers, speakers and content creators.
This is a completely volunteer effort. Everyone involved has a day job and personal obligations, yet year after year we seem to top ourselves with superior education and networking opportunities.
Of course, nothing happens without the SRAI’s dedicated professional headquarters staff, led by chief operating officer Ellen Quinn and executive director Evan Roberts. Both are logistical wizards, who make it all seem easy. Trust me, it is not.
For the president, much of the meeting is taken up with various obligations, such as board and committee meetings, and meeting with sponsors, exhibitors and special guests. In my case, I was fortunate also to present three sessions.
Two of them fell in the leadership track with my international friends Mark Hochman from Australia and Ian Carter from the UK, both research management consultants, and Annedorte Vad from the University of Copenhagen. The other was in research ethics and compliance with Madeleine Williams of Huron Consulting.
Hot topics
Throughout the meeting, the running conversation centred on how best to retain, recruit and engage research administrators.
The pandemic shifted our perspectives. Most of us were sent home to work from our bedrooms, kitchen tables, or basements. Some returned six months or a year later, only to be sent home again, sometimes permanently. Others who enjoyed the safety of home were forced to return to the office against their will.
As a result, a new era of work culture was born, one where staff began to question what was important. Retention became a challenge. Suddenly people could work remotely for a big institution with deeper pockets yet stay safely in their small hometown. Many sessions were dedicated to this topic, and I suspect it will continue to be top of mind for the foreseeable future, as we navigate this new landscape.
The other hot topic was research security and its effect on international collaboration. Over the past several years, the US federal government has focused on protecting intellectual property from being stolen, and new regulations will require institutions who accept US federal awards in excess of $50 million to have research security plans.
This will be an important topic at future meetings, as we struggle to meet the requirements without being given additional resources to do so.
Win-win
I love facilitating sessions and workshops as a way of giving back to the society that has given me so much. I have attended every SRAI annual meeting since 2003, and I truly believe that the knowledge, experience and colleagues I have gained through SRAI has been one of the factors enabling me to go from being a research education coordinator in 2002 at Weill Cornell Medicine to my current post as vice-president for research outreach and compliance at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
Through these connections, I was also asked to be an adjunct lecturer at the City University of New York’s School of Professional Studies, where I teach an introductory course in research compliance, ethics and integrity in the online master’s programme in research administration and compliance.
Every time I am asked to contribute to the profession—whether by writing an article or a book chapter, making a presentation, consulting on a project, participating in a panel or focus group, serving as a peer reviewer or creating programme content—it is a win-win for me personally and professionally. I get to pay it all forward and I continue to learn from every interaction.
As I reflect on the most recent SRAI meeting, I am already looking forward to those that lie ahead in 2023. I hope to see many of you, either virtually or in person, and hear your story of how professional development in research administration and management has impacted your career growth and success.
Debra Schaller-Demers is vice president for research outreach and compliance at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, and has just stood down as president of the Society of Research Administrators International