NIST Community Building Group

VCAT – 2/6/2023
OUTLINE

• The Volunteers

• The Problem and Group Motivation

• What the Group Did, Learned and Produced Thus Far

• Broad Observations and Recommendations

• Next Steps
NCBG Volunteers

• 31 Volunteers from across NIST

• All ADs represented; Most OUs 

represented

Name Org

Ally Esquibel OISM (Boulder)

Nicholas Barbosa MML (Boulder)

Jacqueline Hildebrand OFRM

Jewel Green OHRM

Katie Schlatter BOO (Boulder)

Michelle Cordova EEO (Boulder)

Riley Wilson PAO

Dan Cipra M&O

Andrew Conn IAAO

Jeanita Pritchett DEIO

Ashley Boggs-Russell PCO (Charleston)

Albert Wavering EL

Skip Vaughn OFPM

Amy Cubert OHRM

Konstantina Di Menza CTL

Name Org

Christine Carson CTL (Boulder)

Meghan Percy OSHE

Jim St. Pierre ITL

Heather Snow OAAM

Robert Hickernell PML (Boulder)

Christopher Currens OHRM

Adam Biacchi PML (Sigma Xi Liaison)

Juan Fung DEIA (EL)

Greta Babakhanova MML (G PEAR Liaison)

Jo Wu DEIA (Shops)

Khan Hasan ADIIS

Heather Mayton ADIIS

Jennifer Berry MML (B PEAR Liaison)

Mark Ferris PML (B PEAR Liaison)

Barbara Guttman ITL

Mike Fasolka MML (Chair)

• G,B,C NIST sites represented, HI Liaison

• Liaisons to G/B PEAR, Sigma Xi, WiSTEM
Views of the Problem/Concern

Staff and Leadership:

“NIST is losing valuable workplace 

attributes we had before the pandemic”

Valuable Aspects:

• Sense of Community and Belonging

• Institutional Pride, Esprit de Corps

• Fun

• High-Quality Early Career Experiences

• Stakeholder/Customer Engagement

• Networking and Connection

• Idea Sharing, Collaboration and Teamwork

• Sense of Wellness and Wellbeing

Common Staff Viewpoint:

“I have no reason to be on campus”

• I can do a lot from home

• When I work on campus, I get what I 

need to get done and then leave

• Being on campus is difficult

• There is little happening on campus

• I feel lonely and isolated

We trained 

staff to do 

this 2+ yrs

“I have to leave campus for everything I need”

Many staff have never experienced 

a vibrant NIST campus

Elements a healthy work community

Elements of a great employee experience

Key to NIST Mission

Many of these are better/more easily fostered 

with in-person interactions (e.g. on campus)
NIST Community Building Group

Motivation: NIST Leadership and Staff are concerned about poor work culture and lack 

of interpersonal interaction, especially on 

campus(es)

Goal: Jumpstart NIST work culture in ways that spur interaction, and enhance valuable 

workplace attributes

Method: Purposeful creation of programs of events, practices and spaces designed to 

support and enrich workplace culture

Networking and 

Connection

Community

Belonging

Institutional Pride

Esprit de Corps

Fun

Wellness and 

Wellbeing

Early Career 

Collaboration Experiences

and Teamwork
Simple Model of Culture

A Culture can be defined (in part) by:

1) Commonly held Values (beliefs, mores...)

2) Behaviors and Practices that support and celebrate held values 

(customs, rules, special events...) This is accountability!

In addition, a Culture may create

3) Spaces that support cultural practices (meeting spaces, special areas...)

If we want to change/build culture, we need to embrace values, adopt 

supporting behaviors/practices and create supporting spaces.

VALUES

Practices Spaces
Simple Model of Workplace Culture

Culture: Liberal Democracy

Values:

• Representative Government

• Transparency

• Rule of Law

Practices/Behaviors

• Elections

• Debate and Press Freedom

• Checks and Balances

• National holidays

Spaces

• Polling Places

• Buildings for representatives to meet

• Courts

Culture: NIST Work Culture

Values/Valuable Aspects:

• Sense of Community and Belonging 

• Institutional Pride, Esprit de Corps 

• Enculturation 

• Fun 

• High-Quality Early Career Experiences

• Stakeholder/Customer Engagement 

Practices/Behaviors:

• Many NIST in-person events were paused due to pandemic and not restarted

• Some of these transitioned to virtual events

Spaces

• Many of these are under renovation, in planning, closed, or don’t exist.

• Professional Networking 

• Creativity 

• Idea Sharing, Collaboration, Teamwork 

• Sense of Wellness and Wellbeing 

• DEIA

VALUES

Practices Spaces
Initial Brainstorming Activity

Networking and 

Connection

Community

Belonging

Institutional Pride

Esprit de Corps

Fun

Wellness and 

Wellbeing

Early Career 

Collaboration Experiences

and Teamwork

WORKPLACE VALUES/ VALUABLE ASPECTS 

Events

VALUES

Practices Spaces

Spaces Wellness 

Activities 

Practices

What Events, 

Practices, Spaces, and 

Wellness Activities 

does NIST need to 

support these 

Workplace Values?
Brainstorming Summary

110 creative ideas were generated

Diverse Themes:

Networking Events Food and Beverage 

Services

New Services

Places to Eat and 

Gather Celebratory 

Events

Fun and Social 

Events 

Contests/Competitions

Ways to Improve Hybrid Social/Affinity Groups

Wellness 

Spaces

Mental Wellbeing 

Programs

Physical Health 

Programs

DEIA Focused Ideas

Beautification/Improvements to Work Environment

Care for Others

Arts and Culture

Lab Tours

Open Houses
3 Initial Take Aways

10

1) Working on NIST Campuses is Difficult

NIST Campuses lack at least one of these 

basics: 

Palatable Water: Gaithersburg (many buildings)

Food: All (Gburg has pop-up)

Coffee/Snacks: All (Gburg has pop-up) 

These are barriers to staff working on campus

2) NIST Campuses Lack “Neutral Space”

Welcoming space where staff from different parts of 

the organization can freely gather, socialize, eat, drink

• NIST Gburg Cafeteria filled this need

• Many central common areas are closed

• Common areas require permission/scheduling

• Many suitable spaces are “owned” by OUs 

This is a barrier to staff socializing across campus

Virtual Platforms are a competing Neutral Space

3) News about Activities and Campus Improvements is not Reaching Staff on Campus

• Example: Lack of awareness of Pop-up and Pop-Up Coffee in Gaithersburg

• Example: Plan for replacing water fountains

• Some supervisors discourage participation in community activities

Some Reasons and Recommendations follow

Not 

Neutral
NCBG Program Proposals In Development

Campus Improvements

Campus Basics

Gathering Places

Campus Services

Campus Environment

Commuter Resources

Activities and Events

Learning about NIST and NIST work

Networking and Connection

Celebrating Community @ NIST

Creating Community via VEOs

NIST Week

Games and Competitions

Policy, Guidance, Information Re-invigorating BLEA/SEBA

Policy/Guidance Package for 

Community and DEIA Activities

More TBD

Better Hybrid

Rebuilding connection through 

intention and equity in hybrid work 

More TBD

Wellness and Work Life Balance

Group Activities for Physical Wellness

Mental Wellbeing

Practicing Mindfulness

Proposals for recommended 

programs of action

•Water

• Central Eating 

Places (G,B)

• Coffee

Guidance for 

Supervisors

•Institutional 

Pride

• Social

Events

• Enculturation 

Cross-campus

Community

Themes/Priorities Within

“Beyond 

the Gym” 

Wellness
Broad Observations and Recommendations
Staff Campus Experience

Observations

Many organizations at NIST are 

partly responsible for the staff 

campus experience.

• OFPM

• SEBA/BLEA

• VEOs

• DEIO

• EAP

• OUs

• PAO

• OHRM

No one is responsible for the big 

picture or for coordinating efforts 

needed to shape workplace culture.

Recommendations:

1. Make the staff campus experience a focus and 

priority

2. Put a body in charge of managing staff 

experience

Other organizations: Employee Experience Office(r)

• Vision for workplace experience/culture

• Builds/Coordinates community activities 

• Staff engagement/feedback

• Holder of Institutional workplace values, 

history, traditions
Focus on NIST and NIST Work

Observation: NCBG-ideated activities and discussions showed:

• Staff want to know more about the work of their colleagues

• Staff want to know more about NIST, NIST work and how NIST works.

• ADMR staff want a connection to the science they support

• ADMR staff want the opportunity to celebrate their work too

Recommendation: Activities about NIST and NIST Work:

• Colloquia on NIST work: Sigma Xi NIST Frontiers Series

• NIST Movie Night: PAO videos w/ panel discussions (SEBA has popcorn maker)*

• Lab Tours for administrative/support staff*

• Open Houses*

• NIST-themed games and contests*

• Talks on NIST Awards work

Institutional Pride

Pride in Work

NIST Identity

Belonging

FOCUS OF TWO NCBG PROGRAMS

*NCBG
Theme: Inclusion

Observations: 

• In the past, campus events largely aimed at ZP and ZA Employees.

• Fewer activities tailored for ZT, ZS, Associates and Wage Grade employees.

• Inclusion at NIST is complex: Campuses, Admin/Technical, Career Path, Generational...

• NIST staff have developed higher expectations around inclusion

Recommendations:

• Make inclusion a design factor in community program development

• Inclusion means common activities for all NIST staff AND diverse events tailored to meet 

the needs of diverse groups. 

• Communications that reaches all staff is key to inclusion

• Widespread supervisor support/permission key to inclusion 

Inclusion is not addressed by simply inviting everyone to every event
Theme: Communication Challenges

Observations

• NCBG Discussions: Communications about campus 

events/activities are not reaching staff

• Blast email and iNET remain the go-to methods for 

communicating campus news

• New work patterns suggest that on-campus staff aren’t 

reading email or iNET while onsite.

• Campus: lab/physical work, Home: computer work

• Some staff don’t have regular access to computers or 

email. 

• There is no single place to look for on campus-centered 

activities, news and events.

Recommendations (w/PAO)

1) Diversify strategies for communicating about 

campus activities

• Posters and Flyers

• News/Events Monitors in Hallway/Lobby 

(delayed due to IT Security requirements)

• Multifaceted Comms Campaigns

• Direct Calendar Invitations

2) Centralized/compiled information about campus 

events

• Campus Events carve-out on iNET

• ON CAMPUS TODAY Email Newsletter

3) OUs need to amplify/repeat communication of oncampus activities.

• Town Halls, Emails, Local Announcements

• Support and Encouragement to Participate
Next: Vertical Support is Essential

Top Leadership: Support and Communication of All of Campus/All of NIST Events

ADs: Cross-OU Activities for Tailored for AD Community

OU/Division: Emphasize Importance of Community

Amplify event communications, community news

Recognize Community Building as Necessary Work

Organize OU and Division Level Campus Events

Recognition for On Campus and Community Building Efforts

First Line Supervisors: Recognize value of community 

Encourage, or at least permit, staff to participate in 

campus events, community activities.
Current/Planned Community Events

Activity Timeframe Organization

NIST Frontiers Seminar Series Jan, Feb, March 2023 NIST Sigma Xi

Sigma Xi Early-Career Poster Presentation May, 2023 NIST Sigma Xi

PEAR Writing Group Weekly PEAR

Boulder PEAR Seminar Series Monthly PEAR

Boulder PEAR Lunch Biweekly PEAR

PEAR Accolades April-July PEAR

PEAR Networking Happy Hour Monthly PEAR

PEAR Buddy Program Ongoing PEAR

Division-level Open House (643) Feb-23 MML/643

WiSTEM lunch and learn reccurring events WiSTEM

PI Day Celebration 3/14/2023 MML, EL

History of Womens Groups at NIST 2-Mar-23 WiSTEM

Her NISTory 9-Mar WiSTEM

Career Mentoring Events 23-Mar WiSTEM

Women in Stem Town Hall 30-Mar WiSTEM
NCBG Next Steps

1. Discuss work and recommendations with ADs (ADLP complete)

2. Plan paths for priority ideas. Identify Champions.

3. Secure support (time and money) from NIST leadership 

4. Complete and refine Programs

• Effective and impactful

• Plan for inclusion

5. Feedback from staff

• Public comment on written programs

• Focus Groups
Thank You!

• Are we on track? 

• What other efforts should NIST be 

thinking about in terms of building a 

community where everyone thrives?