handbook / Team
Responsibilities of Group Members (including ASN)
A research group is a shared space and a shared set of resources, not just a collection of individual projects running in parallel. Someone has to keep the shared cluster usable, make sure the group meeting actually happens on time, and keep the outside world aware that the group exists. None of this is anyone’s full-time job, and none of it should fall on one person by default, so we rotate it. This applies to everyone, including me (ASN).
Beyond the practical upside, taking a turn at these is also useful practice in its own right: organizing a meeting, writing for a general audience, or coordinating with a visitor are skills you’ll use well beyond this group.
Recurring jobs
| Job | What it involves | Rotation |
|---|---|---|
| Group meeting host | Book the room, keep time, take notes | Weekly |
| Computing | Monitor shared cluster usage/quotas, report issues with workstations or central facilities, and resolve them where possible | Ongoing / as needed |
| Social media | Post updates on research outcomes, publications, and hiring/openings | As they come up |
| Website & handbook | Keep news, publications, and resources on the site up to date | Ongoing |
| Event arrangement | Plan occasional group lunches, outings, coffee meetings, or other informal get-togethers | Monthly |
| Inviting external guests | Identify a researcher you’d like to hear from, regardless of career stage (PhD student, postdoc, or professor), and coordinate the visit with them | As opportunities arise |
| Departmental seminars | The PFM department at IICT runs monthly seminars; present when your turn comes up | Monthly |
A couple of general principles worth keeping regardless of the exact system:
- If you can’t make your turn, it’s on you to find someone to swap with or to flag it early, not to let it quietly not happen.
- These are meant to be lightweight. If a “job” is consistently eating more time than it should, say so in group meeting so we can rethink it, rather than just absorbing the extra work.