Biological Research Blog | ABS

All of us at ABS are thankful for working with you, and we wish a very Happy Thanksgiving! Please enjoy and appreciate this time with family and friends. After a December break, our blog will return at the beginning of 2020.

Interpersonal issues at work can be a major cause of stress. We don’t get to choose necessarily who we work with, but we are obligated to treat others at least cordially.  All of us have good and bad days and a multitude of factors affect our behaviors in ways that can have a positive or negative effect on others. These interactions affect the overall ethos of an organization.

Lack of time, knowledge, personnel, materials, or money are common stressors at work, and in life. Too few resources can be frustrating and limiting. Lack of them can impair performance and general satisfaction. This is especially true when a lack of resources is perceived as outside of one’s control.

Run and hide until the problem passes is one option, but not a good one. Let’s face it, despite our best efforts, problems do occur. The problems that occur at work fall into several business-related categories, such as too much work, too few resources, mistakes, and unanticipated events. In addition, and often more significantly for employees, interpersonal issues can cause significant stress. This blog will deal with the first category. Subsequent postings will consider the remaining categories.

The last few postings from some of our staff give you some idea of what ABS is like. Frankly, I hope their comments may inspire you to apply at ABS. We are always looking for people who want to be effective and grow with us.

The topic of this blog is less pleasant. However, it bears thinking about sooner rather than later. Let me start by saying that I not a financial advisor, nor do I claim expertise in economics; but my expectation is that winter is coming. You don’t have to take my word for it. I highly recommend that you read or view the insights of Ray Dalio, the billionaire founder of Bridgewater Associates.

Most of these blogs have about the processes and systems at ABS that ensure fast and reliable service. All of this is important, but none of this happens without the people who are dedicated to making it happen. The next several posts will be written by our team members who work in all aspects of ABS.

ABS attended and exhibited at the annual International Bio meeting in Philadelphia last week. As an entrepreneur and scientist, it was an interesting and exciting event. I have no doubt that many of the talks were interesting and well worth attending, but that is not what I am talking about.

Someone recently asked how we decide to add new services. For us the answer is straightforward. We begin with our mission statement. Any new services must make research faster, easier, and more reliable. It also must center around how we deliver value to researchers by providing, processing, analyzing, and storing cells and human biospecimens.

When doing science, information technology (IT) is often an afterthought. When working with a supplier or custom research organization such as ABS, it is probably even less of a consideration. However, it is of crucial importance. If it is working well, you shouldn’t have to think about it; but if it doesn’t, it can cause significant problems. For example, how often have you contacted a vendor and that vendor does not know what is going on with your inquiry or order? How often does a company market to you, but never follows up?

Tissue donations are essential for biological research. For example, it is impossible to study the biology of a cancerous tumor without a cancerous sample. Sadly, many of the samples that could go to scientists looking for cures instead go into medical waste, which is carted away and incinerated. Unfortunately, even when samples are collected, they are often stored away unused although there are researchers who urgently need them; but the connection is never made.