Storytelling is one form of communication tool to help stimulate discussion among friends and colleagues in a workplace. Human resource unit often use storytelling as an activity in a knowledge sharing session. At a recent (RU-Director): Sharing session, Prof. Sirirurg Songsivilai was invited to sharing his experiences on the topic of “How to Run a World – Class R&D Unit”. Attending the session were researchers and administrators from various research agencies within NSTDA.
“The important element to running an efficient and progressive R&D unit is knowing which research to undertake” said Prof. Sirirurg. “Research funding constraints will always be an issue therefore; it is necessary to do research that is/are relevant to national agenda”. However, Prof. Sirirurg said that in order to promote project ownership, it is necessary for researchers to be part of the decision making process. Prof. Sirirurg went on to say that creating an environment conducive to creative thinking and issues analysis is also a key factor to running an effective R&D unit. “Having the necessary bells and whistles (R&D equipments) is good but if you are unable to capture the researchers’ heart, it is worthless”.
NSTDA organized the Research Unit Development (RUD) program sharing session as a tool to collectively explore experiences and networking on specific topics. Senior management is encouraged to participate as both audience and speaker.
