The importance of supporting employee passions is increasingly being recognized in today’s business world. This strategy not only enhances job satisfaction and retention but also drives innovation and productivity. At Parallax Advanced Research and the Ohio Aerospace Institute the approach to nurturing employee passion aims to foster an engaged and innovative workforce.
Passion is a powerful motivator. When employees are passionate about their work, they are more likely to go the extra mile, exhibit higher levels of creativity, and contribute to a positive workplace culture. Recognizing this, forward-thinking organizations are creating environments where employees can pursue their passions, both within and outside their job roles.
Fostering employee passions in Independent Research and Development (IRAD)
One way that organizations can better foster employee passion is through an Independent Research and Development (IRAD) department or initiative. Traditionally unique to large organizations, IRAD is a cornerstone of Parallax and OAI’s culture of innovation. It allows employees to dedicate time and effort to projects they are passionate about, even if these projects fall outside their primary job responsibilities, to then present as a proposed research focus area for the organization. This process of sharing passion projects with colleagues leads to cross-functional collaboration and the exchange of ideas, further leading to defined interests and focuses for the organization.
The success of IRAD lies in its ability to align personal passion with organizational goals. By providing our employees the autonomy to pursue their interests, our enterprise can tap into creativity and enthusiasm that benefits both the individual and the organization. This approach creates a culture of continuous improvement and experimentation. By allowing employees to explore new ideas and experiment, Parallax/OAI can discover novel solutions and stay ahead of the competition.
“All large research organizations have robust IRAD programs,” said Viktoria Greanya, chief scientist at Parallax “What’s rarer is when smaller organizations like Parallax/OAI have an IRAD program because, although it is an allowable cost, it still affects our rates and competitiveness. As a result, small research organizations usually don’t allocate funding for IRAD projects. However, IRAD is vital to an organization’s growth because that’s where the research staff gets to explore early-stage topics and areas with significant potential to receive U.S. Government and/or DoD funding.”
Building an innovation culture
Encouraging a culture of innovation leads to the overall research focus areas at Parallax and OAI. Currently these focus areas include multi-domain intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, artificial intelligence and autonomy, advanced concepts modeling and simulation, human machine teaming, advanced systems integration and testing, advanced air mobility, and advanced aerospace research and development. Each focus area would not exist without the passion, knowledge, and skillsets of our employees. Passion-driven projects lead to breakthrough innovations and bold solutions, and this is what our enterprise provides to its customers.
Tadas Bartkus, senior researcher, supports the advanced aerospace research and development focus area. “As I enter the NASA Glenn Research Center campus, the very first thing I see each day is a sign that reads ‘Research and technology for the benefit of all,’ and that is what initially sparked my interest in this arena, and it still continues to motivate my efforts. This work benefits everyone’s safety as they fly commercially around the world. On the other hand, we also have world-class facilities and cutting-edge technologies here at NASA, and these toys are quite fun to play with. From a technical perspective it is an intellectually satisfying challenge working with my colleagues to solve what may seem like difficult-to-answer questions.”
Investing in workforce education and development
Encouraging the pursuit of passion-driven work doesn’t stop at providing the flexibility and time to do so, organizations must also support the development of employee education and skillsets needed to drive continuous improvement. With this goal in mind, Parallax/OAI provides development dollars and education assistance for employees to ensure that they have access to the tools, training, and support needed to pursue their passions effectively. This in turn leads to new initiatives, new focus areas, new collaborations, and an overall better customer experience.
Parallax Human Factors Researcher, Erica Curtis, discovered her passion for human factors engineering while completing her master’s degree through the Parallax education assistance program. Before starting with Parallax, Erica was pursuing a master’s degree in engineering.
“Being able to meet so many people with so many different backgrounds, I was able to see the different career paths that were taken by other researchers and decided to switch my major to Human Factors Engineering, something I had not thought of before,” said Curtis.
Curtis is a part of the Parallax Human Machine Teaming efforts in coordination with the multi-domain intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance research focus area.
“With the ability to work while pursuing my degree, I gained experience conducting experiments, writing articles, sharpened my business acumen, worked with different hardware and software, and interacted with customers,” said Curtis. “I gained an overall knowledge base to lean on and was continuously encouraged to take on new things.”
Curtis continues pursuing her passion for human factors engineering by starting her Ph.D. program this fall.
Embracing Flexibility and Community Engagement at Parallax/OAI
What about employee passions outside of work? How often do we hear people say they wished they had spent more time doing what they loved? Paul Dungan, contracts administrator, speaks on his passions outside of the workplace and how his flexible work schedule permits him the time to do so.
“I have many passions outside of work. I enjoy spending time with Missy (spouse) and our girls (Emma & Grace). We love to vacation at the beach and go to Disney. I love the outdoors. I enjoy watching Grace play softball, umpiring, and fishing. I recently started umpiring in the NCAA D1 Women’s Fastpitch and that is exciting.”
A core value of Parallax/OAI is to drive impact by multiplying the talent and resources of our organization and partners for the greater good. We do this together as an organization and with our partners by helping local small businesses and academic organizations to expand. Another way we drive impact is by giving our employees the flexibility to enjoy their lives and give back to the community. Our Flex Time program allows for employees to participate in activities that “fill their cup” outside of the workspace. This could be umpiring a local sporting event, running their child’s scout activities, and volunteering with other local non-profit organizations.
Employees in most roles have work from home opportunity, allowing further support of their passions such as fostering for local animal shelters and rescue organizations and enjoying local parks and businesses as a workspace or for breaks in the day.
“Parallax is a great place to work!” says, Dungan, “The workplace atmosphere is that of a second family, a work family. The ability to work from home has allowed me to spend more time with my uncle and my dad who recently acquired a place over at the lake only a few minutes away from ours. I stay with my uncle and try to take care of things he has difficulties with. I have an office set up in the modular home we have over at the lake. It is nice being able log in and work all day without interruption. When I am over there through the week, we can fish in the evenings. This is very special to me because we have been fishing together since I was old enough to remember.”
Our organization’s effort to drive impact starts with supporting our employee’s ability to do so at an individual level first.
Supporting employee passions is more than an engagement initiative; it is a strategic imperative that can drive significant business success. This effort instills a culture of trust and respect showing employees that the organization values them as the unique, passionate individuals that they are, creating a positive and inclusive environment. Organizations like Parallax/OAI show that by nurturing the interests and passions of its employees, they can foster a culture of innovation, improve employee and customer satisfaction, and achieve groundbreaking success. As organizations recognize the value of this approach, the future of the workplace looks increasingly bright and engaging.
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About Parallax Advanced Research & the Ohio Aerospace Institute
Parallax Advanced Research is a 501(c)(3) private nonprofit research institute that tackles global challenges through strategic partnerships with government, industry, and academia. It accelerates innovation, addresses critical global issues, and develops groundbreaking ideas with its partners. With offices in Ohio and Virginia, Parallax aims to deliver new solutions and speed them to market. In 2023, Parallax and the Ohio Aerospace Institute formed a collaborative affiliation to drive innovation and technological advancements in Ohio and for the nation. The Ohio Aerospace Institute plays a pivotal role in advancing the aerospace industry in Ohio and the nation by fostering collaborations between universities, aerospace industries, and government organizations, and managing aerospace research, education, and workforce development projects.