Dear colleagues,
I would like to thank everybody for a very nice HSE-day and Christmas party. My impression was that everybody had a great time, and appreciated to have a day where we could socialize and get to know each other better through the activities at the HSE-day. I would like to thank all of you involved in the planning, arranging and practical work for both the HSE-day and the Christmas party! The quiz during the Christmas party was also great fun, so good job by Harald and Stian on that one. A special thanks goes to Bård for being the coordinator for both activities in addition to all the practical work he also did the whole day from early until late!
The year is coming to an end, and this will be the last newsletter for 2023. To summarize the last year in short, key words would be: success, changes, retirements, challenges, teaching and external funding. Last year was one of the best in the department history when it comes to external funding obtained. This year there has been less, which in some ways is natural as many are not allowed to apply for funding from the same source where they already have funding. However, some have had success lately and I would like to congratulate Hongyu, Per Øyvind and Hrvoje with funding from Helse Vest. I would also like to congratulate Donald with funding from Nasjonalforeningen. Last, but not least I congratulate Henriette with obtaining the highly prestigious starting grant from TMS. Great achievements and I’m so happy on your behalf!
External funding is important for all of us collectively, not only for those that obtained it. This is especially the case now since the economy still is very challenging. I, and many others, are working hard in many directions to improve the economy at the department, and I’m hopeful that all of us together can succeed in getting the economy back in balance. This requires some tough decisions ahead, like not replacing most of the positions from people that leave their positions. Unfortunately, this is necessary in our current situation and sometime ahead to stabilize the economy. Challenges in the economy is not only the case for us but is the case for many others in our sector as well. Such times often require changes and in addition to the above, we decided to make changes in our group structure at the department. This new research unit structure will help us move forward in a better and more dynamic way, and I think this will be very positive for the department in the long run. I really appreciate the overall positivity and your understanding of the need for this restructuring.
During 2023 some of our most experienced employees have left their position at the department, and this will affect us both short term and long term. We are working hard to set up the administration in a suitable way after the recent changes there. For most of the retired professors and technicians there will unfortunately be no replacements. This means that we must prioritize and see if we can do things more efficiently. For example, we have started to look at ways to make our teaching more efficient, which also is important when more students arrive. We’ll continue this important work in 2024. Even though the effect of these changes for us and the entire sector may seem overwhelming, I am optimistic for the future, and I’m confident that we’ll continue to deliver great teaching and scientific output at the highest level within our fields! We can make this happen by standing together and helping each other!
With this I’ll thank each and every one of you for great effort in 2023 and I’m looking forward to a productive and exiting 2024!
