J O H N Ο. PERCSYAL, Director of Special Product Development, P. R. MaWory & Co., Inc., Indianapolis, Ind.

F R O M : D I R E C T O R O F R E S E A R C H

T O : E N G I N E E R I N G D E P A R T M E N T

S U B J E C T : I N C R E A S E Y O U R E A R N I N G P O W E R

S O M E O F T H E M O S T C R I T I C A L L Y I M P O R ­T A N T F A C T O R S C O N T R I B U T O R Y T O T H E S U C C E S S O F A F I R M P R O D U C I N G T E C H N I ­C A L P R O D U C T S A R E T H E K N O W L E D G E , I N ­I T I A T I V E , E F F I C I E N C Y , A N D I N G E N U I T Y O F I T S T E C H N I C A L P E R S O N N E L .

H E N C E , I T I S A S M U C H T O T H E A D V A N T A G E O F A C O M P A N Y A S I T I S T O T H E I N D I V I D U A L T H A T E A C H O N E ! E A R N — R E A L L Y E A R N — M O R E M O N E Y . O B V I O U S L Y , F O R A C O M ­P A N Y T O H A V E M O R E M O N E Y T O D I S T R I B ­U T E A M O N G I T S E M P L O Y E E S , T H E Y M U S T , T H R O U G H A S T U T E C O O P E R A T I V E E F F O R T , C R E A T E M O R E P R O F I T A B L E B U S I N E S S F O R T H E C O M P A N Y .

A T T A C H E D I S A B R I E F E X P O S I T I O N E N ­T I T L E D " I N C R E A S E Y O U R E A R N I N G P O W E R , " W R I T T E N B Y D R . J O H N O . P E R C I V A L . I F F O L L O W E D , T H I S S H O U L D H E L P T H E I N ­D U S T R I A L S C I E N T I S T T O I N C R E A S E A N D I M P R O V E H I S C O N T R I B U T I O N S T O T H E S U C ­C E S S O F H I S C O M P A N Y A N D , H E N C E , T O H I S O W N S U C C E S S .

W E H E A R T I L Y C O M M E N D T H E S E S U G G E S ­T I O N S T O Y O U R C O N S I D E R A T I O N .

j tV MAN'S salary a n d progress with a com­pany a r e solely h i s own responsibility.

T h e more efficiently h e turns out ixse-ful results, the greater his value to the co­operat ive effort. T h e purpose of indus­trial employment of a technically trained person is to secure professional service for which recompense is made in propor­tion to the relative value of that service.

Following are a few tips on how to in­crease your earning power as an indus­trial scientist.

I. Obta in a C lear Definition o f Each Problem

One of the most difficult, yet most i inportant phases of engineering and re­search is to define the problem clearly, be

it a service job or long-range basic r e ­search.

If sufficient information is not given you, get it, so tha t your work c a n b e most effectively integrated wi th the over­all problem a n d wi th company policy.

Find out how the problem arose, what factors operate , and just w h a t t ype of solution could b e practically ut i l ized. Ge t out in the field. Talk wi th the supervisor, engineer, salesman, or worker most con­cerned.

Do not be overly influenced by a spot diagnosis which comes with t h e problem. Sometimes this is most helpful; sometimes it carries an unconscious bias based on an analogous but not equivalent problem.

See if the p rob lem can be. solved on the basis of present knowledge, or elimi­

na ted as unjustified; if so, money has been saved for more valuable work.

If t he problem still appears to require fur ther attention, this preliminary phase enables you t o wri te up and execute your work plan more efficiently and—this is very important—with a knowledge of how pre­cise your work needs to be, wha t the scope of the problem is, and how much you can afford to spend on it.

It is almost axiomatic that , to get some­w h e r e , it is necessary to know w h e r e you w a n t to go.

EL Estimate the Economic Value of Each Problem

D o n ' t spend six months working on an interesting problem which may save the company only $10 a year.

4O80 C H E M I C A L A N D E N G I N E E R I N G N E W S

T h e investigating or research engineer does not have t ime to conduct an extensive market survey or production cost analysis before undertaking a problem. But you can and should reach some estimate in your own rnind as to how much money the company would earn if you solved the problem, and then plan your expenditure of t ime and capital accordingly.

Review all problems periodically from the point of view of money expended plus money still necessary versus probable earnings of the result. Drop the project like a hot iron when the point of no re­tu rn has been reached.

But as long as the assigned projects appear justified, concentrate on finishing t h e m just as quickly and as economically as possible.

Hi. Follow a Work Plan

A n investigation without a work plan is l ike a ship without a course.

Your work must eventually end with clear-cut, unambiguous instructions for nontechnical production workers to fol­low. In order to reproduce your process or product a t your demonstrated quality level, they must b e given positive instruc­tions. Each and every variable should be identified and defined i n terms of optimum value and permissible tolerance. The tolerance should be narrow enough to yield consistent quali ty and as wide as possible to permit low costs.

T h e company will have to get these answers sooner or later.

T h e cheapest place to get them is in the engineering or laboratory investiga­tion.

T h e quickest way to get them is through following a systematic work plan.

IV. Plan Short Cuts W e can't afford to do academic style

research of 994 -% precision and every facet explored.

Use your common sense a n d ingenuity. Try to do t h e last experiment first. Com­bine your technical knowledge with the simplest type of acceptable solution in planning your initial experiments.

If this doesn't work, plan exploratory experiments which rather widely explore the entire field rather than concentrating on a complete study of each possibility in succession. You may pick up an early

lead showing which line to follow in systematic detail.

Don't delay in gett ing your feet wet or your L·ands dirty on a problem. A few cmde preliminary experiments often will put you further ahead than a week of theoretical planning.

V. Strive for Simplicity It is easy t o get a complicated answer;

it is h a r d to get a simple one. A simple produc t or process is cheap to

reduce t o manufacture, easy to use, easy to sell, easy t o maintain.

Analyze your problems and answers to find the simple way, to eliminate the un­necessary, the awkward, and the ineffi­cient.

VI. Balance Precision with Economics

Pay careful attention to t he precision required on a problem.

Some individuals are afraid of making a mis take and have a natural tendency to b e excessively careful. They produce very precise results, but usually at a very considerably reduced rate. Often an an­swer goocl to =fclO% is just as useful as one car r ied out to four decimals and it is a lot cheaper and quicker to obtain.

Others tend naturally to work rapidly and, in t h e interest of making a quick report, often fail to secure enough data of su i tab le reliability. This may result in a costly mistake.

Each problem should be analyzed to show the necessary precision and scope, and the "work then executed accordingly.

A man who never makes a mistake never does anything. Yet a man who makes too many mistakes doesn't get another chance.

VII. Keep Busy Be a self-starter. A man who needs t o

have all detai ls of his work planned and interpreted, or who has to be continually

prodded into activity can never expect a very high rating.

Ask yourself, does what I am doing now contribute t o company progress and, hence, to my professional advancement? If your assignments don't keep you oc­cupied, find something useful to do your­self.

The main purpose of engineering and laboratory research is to investigate and get answers. For most jobs, if you average up to an hour a day on reports and litera­ture, you aren't working efficiently. Enter experimental results directly in your note­book as the experiment progresses, not tomorrow. If your notebook is filled out right, report writing does not require much time.

Plan your experiments in advance; lay­out your work plan days or weeks ahead. Then you can start your work br ight and early each morning without stopping to figure out the next step. Get the experi­ments started early and keep them roll­ing.

A business concern is not a charitable organization. We all have to contribute our share of effort in order to continue sharing in the profits.

It is natural to conclude that a man who isn't busy isn't very valuable.

VI I I . Have Several Problems

Very few problems require 100% con­tinuous attention. The more problems you can effectively handle simultaneously, the greater your progress. While something is aging or baking, you can b e starting an­other project, writing a report, or getting the next experiment ready.

If you have several similar experiments to do, see how many you can do simul­taneously. It may take more apparatus, but the pro rata cost of the equipment is usually far less than t h e time wasted in doing repeat experiments in the same piece of equipment.

By a little judicious planning, work can be dovetailed easily to double or triple your part in your company's progress.

There is a n excellent correlation be­tween the number of dollars in a man's pay envelope and the number of projects which he can simultaneously bring to a useful, early, and economic solution.

IX. Work Safely

A man isn't any good with an extra hole in h is head.

Almost all accidents could be eliminated by the use of ordinary common sense and forethought.

Time and materials spent to ensure safety are always an excellent investment. Everyone can and should train himself always to consider in advance the safe way to carry out any activity, whether it is working with high voltage, cyanide, or crossing the street.

No one wants to associate with an un­safe worker.

If suicide is your motive, go out in the woods where you won't endanger others,

John O . Perc iva l of P . R. Mallory & Co., Inc. , Indian­apolis, directs a n d coordinates a program to develop designs a n d processes for manufacturing transistors, s tart ing from scratch- Th i s task calls for a knowledge of solid state physics, metallurgy, electronics, mathe­matics, a n d precision raicromechanics, as well as chemistry. Dr. Percival w a s educa ted at the Univer­sity of Vermont and a t Columbia and has been active i n the Northeastern Sec t ion of the ACS. Before join­ing Mallory he had worked a t Monsanto and had taught at Paterson State Teachers ' College.

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X. Finish What You Starfr

Bring each job to a conclusion com­mensurate with its economic value.

A multitude of half finished jobs are of no use to anyone and are a waste of your time.

If jobs a r e carefully selected i n advance, they usually can be finished.

This often means refusing new jobs until your old ones are completed. This must be done diplomatically, of course, and with d u e regard for relative economic value.

Get the answer, then get the results out of your notebook and p u t them to work.

A good coon dog keeps on the coon's trail and leaves the rabbits alone.

XL Keep Supervisor Informed Of Progress and Results

H e may not want to bother you wi th questions every day, so when you reach some results or a roadblock, let him know.

No executive is clairvoyant. Few will strain their ears to catch a mumbled pearl of wisdom, no matter how priceless. Don ' t be afraid of what you have t o say-. Say you did it or you didn't, b u t say it audibly, clearly, a n d succinctly.

Many executives have risen far in their organizations, not only through outstand­ing technical skill, but because, in addi ­tion, they could talk convincingly, clearly, pleasantly", and understandablyr.

We can ' t all be orators. But we owe it to ourselves to present our work a n d ideas in such a way that they can b e understood.

XI3. Be Neat and Pleasant

Scientists cannot be p u t off in a solitary cell and judged solely on their technical output. I n our world today, in spite of being technical people, we still remain human and are influenced b y personali­ties and appearances.

W e can't all be fashion plates o r Dale Carnegies, b u t we owe it t o our asso­ciates to present a neat appearance and a pleasant attitude, and we owe it to our­selves n o t to detract from our position and opportunities by sloppy dress, irritat­ing habits, or cantankerous personality.

I n our modern society there is n o place for the boor, the braggard, or the bully.

Everyone likes the cheerful chap who works with enthusiasm, takes criticism gracefully, spreads praise where due, shares ea rned credit, shows a personal interest in h i s fellow workers, carries no wooden objects on his shoulders, and who always remembers the modern version of t he Golden Rule, "Treat others as they would like t o be treated."

Clothes and polish don't make t h e man, b u t they sure make h im easy to take.

Smile .

XI I I . Cooperate

Modern industrial research is predicated on cooperative efiiort in which large prob­lems a r e broken down into small pieces

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for exjperfcs to work on. You will usuaiiy g e t some o f the pieces. As the chain is n o stronger i~han its weakest link, a whole project: caja be wrecked by sloppy execu­tion or? oike of its parts.

Unless you are Einstein, don ' t expect t o get t h e whole problem. But, if yrou like sgporfcs, you will like team research where e v e n o n e has his own job to do in order for the team to win.

There i s no room for secrets, hoardings o r petty jealousies.

XIV. Be Reliable It i s easy t o make a loud report tha t

sounds good. Even a firecracker can do that—fcsut the only result is smoke a n d

Youu" employer pays you to discover facts, not fancy. Make sure your answers a re tr~ue, and, if there is an element of uncer ta in ty , clearly state the degree of uncer ta inty .

Business is, a t best, a risky th ing . Your managgeiraent is bett ing your future and t h e s^gkîiolders* money on your technical abilityi^feid sound j udgmen t

Your reputa t ion is an invaluable bu t a very «delicate asse t Don ' t jeopardize it by unre l iab le work or misleading statements.

Shakespeare said, "Murder will ou t . " So will t>e t he unreliable scientist.

XV. W r i t e Good Reports Umreported work or unsatisfactory re­

ports are» a waste of your t ime and the conYp*anyr*s money. A good report leads to action.

WSien it is decided that sufficient work has b e e n done, a clear and concise report of v-our- recommendations is essential. Enoragh results should b e reported to sub­stantiate your recommendations, to indi­cate the precision and reliability, to show possOble difficulties and negative ap­proaches , and to permit duplication.

THe clearer and more concise your re­port is, the bet ter the chance it will he read_ understood, acted upon, and lead to a pat on your back. If a clear and con­cise report is not given, t he assumption may be made that conclusive results were not ob ta ined .

No th ing points u p a report bet ter than leading off, not with a work summary, but Avitli a brief statement of principle re­sults, conclusions, and recommendations. One of the most common failings of a techtnica.1 report is that technical details are expounded with such verbosity tha t the main conclusions are virtually impos­sible to» find,

A-S much as they would like to, busy executrves do not have the t ime to b e con­cerned with the details of your experi­ments, no mat ter how clever.

TTiey want only to know, " W h a t should we do and w h y ? "

XVI. Fol low Up IThe decision whether to use your re­

sults will not ordinarily b e yours. But often interest will be found to have slack­ened be tween start and finish of a job.

You w e r e satisfied t h a t t h e J0F3 was worth doing and spent a portion o€ your professional career on it. No one i s more familiar w i t h the technical significance oi your work than you are.

You should make certain tha t a l l con­cerned a r e aware of t he implications of your results and, if necessary, do a. sales job to ge t your recommendations tried. If t h e situation has. changed so thart your work is inapplicable, you are entitled to an explanation.

In selling your work { as well as in ac­cepting ass ignments) , remember th»at the only arguments wbich cany- weight are decreased costs, improved salability, in­creased profits.

X v i l . make SiiCfgesfiwus

B e inventive. T h e growth of a com­pany and , hence, t he progress of I t s em­ployees depends o n new ideas, n e w and better ways of doing things, new a n d bet­ter products .

T h e engineer or research man i^ pecu­liarly* wel l si tuated to make sucfi con­tributions. Don't accept any presen t prod­uct or process as ideaL Scrurinizre each product and process for cheaper a n d bet­ter w a y s of doing it. Seek for n e w and more efficient ways of meeting costomer needs. Watch f o r unexpected results which migh t lead t o a n e w and profitable development.

Don ' t keep your light under a bushel or a beaker. No o n e can read youx mind-New ideas take selling b u t if y o u are convinced, you c a n convince others.

But don ' t be discouraged if your ideas at first mee t resistance ranging from dis­interest to downright opposition. That's just human na ture . Others a r e butsy with their o w n ideas a n d don' t readily compre­hend yours in t h e same light a n d with the same enthusiasm that you <lo. So> think your idea through and g e t some facts to support i t-

D o n ' t cry "Wolf" unti l you s^e one, and t h e n take a p ic ture of i t first.

XVI I I . Grow wi th the Company

You a re paid for the application, of your knowledge and skill to company problems. An employer didn' t p a y your college tui­tion; h e is buying what you k n o w and— more important—what you can do with, your knowledge.

Science and technology a re progressing. Competi t ion is tough. An increase? in youx knowledge widens the scope a n d type of problems you can handle.

Keep up to da t e in your field. Mead the journals and the best texts. Attend scien­tific meetings. Expand your technical hori­zons in to related fields.

Successful men increase their popularity by kindness, their skill by doing, a n d their knowledge by home study.

Grateful acknowledgment is made to C. !P. Dyer o f Monsanto Chemical Co., 2uîd F. H.. Matthews of Socony-Vacuum Oil Co-, Inc., for advice and example leading to sooae of tiie thoughts presented here. Appreciation is ex­pressed to C. J. Breitwiesex, Director o f Researcli, P. R. NIallory & Co. , Inc., for his interest and permission to publish this article.

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