Core Managers benchmark survey request

Hello to all you flow gurus,
	Greetings from sunny (finally!) Maine. The powers that be, 
here at the Jackson Laboratory, have asked me to canvas flow 
cytometry facilities, especially ones connected with NCI Cancer Core 
Centers. Please take a few minutes to click on the URL link below and 
fill out our survey. When you get to the web page, you will notice 
there are many surveys. I am most interested in the one for flow 
cytometry, but I know that a lot of other institutions combine flow 
and image analysis and the like. Please feel free to fill out more 
than the one if it applies OR forward this request to other Core 
services in your institution. The more data we collect, the better we 
can understand services provided by others (as well as think a little 
harder about our own).
	The goal of this exercise is to compile some data on the ways 
other institutions provide services for their users, what types of 
service, user to FTE ratio, and how heavily the service is utilized. 
This data will be used to help make administrative decisions with 
regard to capacity measurements, at what point is it necessary to 
upscale FTE positions (or, God forbid- downscale), what is considered 
heavy use, when to legitimately ask for new equipment or space. 
Collectively, we, as Core Managers, may be able to help each other 
out by having some of this information in hand.   Due to our relative 
geographic isolation, it is easy to pat ourselves on the back and 
tell ourselves what a great job we are doing. It will probably be a 
real eye-opener to see what the rest of you are providing.
	Once we receive your survey answers, I will be collating the 
data, crunching the numbers, and will distribute it back to all the 
participants. If this works out, maybe we can get an ongoing 
communication in future or expand the database with regard to 
standardizing salary or other topics.
	Here is the web link:
		http://www.jax.org/sci_survey/
Please take a few minutes and check it out. I'd appreciate it 
greatly. If any of you are ever visiting in Bar Harbor or the 
vicinity, please stop in at the Lab. I would love to meet you and 
show you around. Thanks, and I look forward to hearing from you.

Ted
-- 
Ted Duffy
Flow Cytometry
The Jackson Laboratory
600 Main Street
Bar Harbor, Maine 04609
(207)288-6192
e-mail tmduffy@aretha.jax.org