A Conversation with INA REICHEL ON WSEC

Since its founding in 2008 by Physics Division Director Natalie Roe, Nancy Brown of the Energy Technologies Area, and former Chief Human Resources and Diversity Officer Vera Potapenko, the Women Scientists and Engineers Council (WSEC) has worked with Berkeley Lab’s Human Resources Department to make the Lab a more family-friendly environment.

The WSEC is different from a traditional employee resource group because it is made up of members who are both Division-appointed as well as volunteers. There are three subcommittees that meet separately to work on WSEC goals: policy, networking, and empowerment.

With this year marking the Lab’s 90th anniversary and WSEC’s 13th, the WSEC continues to embark on a new set of initiatives, all for the sake of making the Lab an even better place to work for everyone. Ina Reichel, WSEC chair, shares her vision for the council and organization.

What is the Women Scientists and Engineers Council’s mission?

Our current mission statement reads as follows:

To address issues that affect the careers of women scientists and engineers, Berkeley Lab created the Women Scientists & Engineers Council (WSEC) in 2008. Since then, we have embraced all women who work at Berkeley Lab as members and group leaders.

The WSEC and Berkeley Lab’s IDEA Office and Human Resources Division work in partnership to determine priorities and develop strategies for recruitment, retention, work-life balance, and the empowerment of women scientists and engineers. Subcommittees focus on target areas and to address specific challenges. Key activities include:

• Engaging division leaders in recruitment, retention, and development

• Improving policies for work-life balance

• Empowering women scientists through training and meeting people of influence
  

As we look to the future and the impact of WSEC's recommendations and hard work, we are considering expanding on our stated mission to be more inclusive of all women who work at Berkeley Lab.

What big challenge(s) are you hoping to solve with your work as part of WSEC in the next 20 years?

It might not appear like a big challenge because many people may not be familiar with or experience this on a daily basis, but I would love to see microaggressions against any underrepresented group, not just against women, become a thing of the past. By their nature, microaggressions can be indirect, subtle, or unintentional, but these can add up and have a detrimental impact on someone’s career and well-being.

This is a known issue that WSEC continues to tackle and bring to general attention and I hope my work with the group helps to reduce the occurrence of these situations and through that, further build and strengthen the Lab’s culture and ability to deliver on its mission.

What steps are you taking today to accomplish this vision?

We continue to partner with HR, the IDEA Office and the Learning & Organizational Development team to train and educate employees on why microaggressions are harmful, to enable them to recognize microaggressions and become an upstander when they witness them.

Who would you like to partner with at the Lab to bring this vision to life?

We appreciate our current partners and think it would be great to continue collaborating further with other employee resource groups at the Lab on our priorities and goals.

Additionally, we look forward to deepening our partnership with the FAIR office on the Lab’s Affirmative Action Plan as well as continuing to communicate to and engage with the Lab’s growing community through strategic communications.

Who from the past, present, or future would you like to collaborate with? And on what?

Honestly, I love collaborating with the WSEC Executive Committee (the vice-chair, all six co-chairs of our subcommittees and our two secretaries) as well as active WSEC members. They get things done. If I need help with something, there is always someone to jump in. I see my role as chair less as a boss or supervisor, more as an enabler and cheerleader. If there is something someone in the group would like to pursue, I help to find a collaborator or two and work on getting them the resources needed and cheer everyone along.

And I also love working with our two executive sponsors Susan Hubbard and Horst Simon. They meet with us quarterly and are an incredible resource. If we have questions or are asking for advice they are very responsive. And they connect us to the right resources or people when and where needed.

And lastly I love working with everyone in the IDEA Office. I think we all know the Lab wouldn’t be where it is on its IDEA journey if we don’t have Lady Idos. Janie Pinterits is always available to teach another training workshop or give advice. And Kelly Perce helps immeasurably with logistics behind the scenes.

With such a wonderful and supportive team, who else do I need?