Could you please tell us a little bit about yourself and how long you’ve been with AmSpec?
I was born and raised in Houston, TX, in the heart of the refinery hub. After graduating from East Texas Baptist University in Marshall, TX, in 1997 with a BS in Biology, I started a career in laboratories, such as environmental and toxicology labs.
After returning to Houston, I spent 26 years in the TIC Industry, joining AmSpec seven years ago. My TIC career began in the laboratory as a technician, and I have spent years in various aspects of the business, including inside sales, web marketing, business development, and, over the last decade, operations and laboratory management, encompassing metering and measurement.
What motivated you to pursue a career in the TIC field?
Having grown up along the Houston Ship Channel, the refinery industry was a natural choice when I returned from school and looked to start a career.
How do you ensure that laboratory operations in your region align with both company goals and regulatory requirements?
Face-to-face time with the laboratories, management, and staff is how I ensure the labs in my region are aligned. I am blessed with a renowned team of regional lab managers in our region who ensure we are onsite and working daily face-to-face with the local operations and lab teams. We are a hands-on team that ensures proper messaging and expectations are routinely reinforced, while also providing feedback and support to the senior management team on challenges in the labs.
What key regulatory bodies (e.g., ISO, ASTM) do you work with, and how do you ensure compliance in lab operations?
On the US Gulf Coast, our labs conduct analyses in accordance with ASTM, EN, and other international standards to support our clients’ contractual obligations. We operate our labs in compliance with the EPA, US Customs, ASTM, and ISO quality standards, among others. AmSpec has an internal quality system that will ensure compliance with these industry standards.
How do you lead and motivate a team of lab managers and quality assurance staff?
The key to leadership is to understand that your primary role is to support the team in all aspects of the business. When the lab managers and QA teams encounter obstacles, it is my job to resolve them. This includes working with senior management, vendors, and staff to solve problems in real time.
Can you describe your approach to training and competency development for lab personnel?
AmSpec’s North American lab leadership has developed an excellent tool for initial and continuous training on all the key aspects of our labs. This system must be supplemented with hands-on training and routine monthly meetings to discuss important topics such as method and procedural changes. The management team needs to understand that not all personnel learn and digest information in the same way, so lessons must be reinforced through various methods, including written, verbal, and hands-on approaches, to ensure all personnel have the best opportunity to master the necessary skills. Finally, it is key that when errors are found, they are brought back to the personnel directly responsible so they can review and understand how to correct them in the future.
How do you handle conflicts between team members or departments (e.g., lab vs. operations)?
Open communication is the key to solving any conflict. All lab personnel must understand the commercial impact of results, including turnaround time. Additionally, the lab must provide constant updates in real time to operations with as much detail as possible to ensure operations can communicate with the client effectively and in a timely manner. Both departments need to appreciate the job the other has to perform in order to work together as a cohesive team. They cannot exist independently and expect to function as one team.
What metrics do you track to assess lab performance, and how do you drive continuous improvement?
The most important metric to track is customer satisfaction. Clients will communicate whether they are satisfied or not with the service we provide. In addition, we track the time instrumentation is down, the amount of testing that is outsourced, round-robin performance, employee retention, as well as a few other key metrics, all of which drive the final product delivered to the client.
Have you ever had to manage a lab under budget constraints? How did you optimize resources without compromising quality?
The lab budget is handled like any other budget. When things are tight, you must differentiate between what is a need and what is a want. You must be willing to explore alternative options regarding staff scheduling, repair versus new purchases, consumables, and third-party services. It is key to communicate clearly what you are doing and why to get buy-in from staff.
What strategies do you use to reduce turnaround times while maintaining accuracy?
One of the strategies I use to improve TAT is to establish what a good TAT is for a particular product slate, then work with the staff to eliminate obstacles till the desired TAT is achieved. Typically, simply setting expectations and then measuring the results will drive the needed change. However, sometimes it will require an additional investment in resources.
How do you ensure customer requirements are met while maintaining compliance with testing standards?
Ensuring customer requirements are met requires clear and constant communication with operations. From the time the nomination is received, the lab should review all requirements and communicate any deviations on methods due to down equipment, product incompatibility, or any other perceived issues ahead of the samples’ arrival at the lab. This will enable operations to discuss with the client and develop alternative solutions to ensure the client receives results promptly without delay.
Tell us about labs in your assigned region.
I have a lot of ground to cover, including the following locations: Pasadena, TX (HTC) and Mont Belvieu Satellite; Channelview, TX (HFO); Port Arthur, TX and Sabine Blend Lab Satellite; Corpus Christi, TX and Ingleside Satellite; Sulphur, LA; La Porte, TX (Bostco); Texas City, TX; Freeport, TX; Brownsville, TX; Port Lavaca, TX; Pecos, TX (West Texas); Cushing, OK; Minot, ND.
