Bob Dylan sings that it’s time to wake up for the times have changed; also for UiB and K2. The UiB Board made two decisions on June 1st that will affect us. One seems unimaginable; We are now going to be called “The Faculty of Medicine” – simple and straightforward, but at the same time clear and powerful. The second decision that Per Bakke is offered the position as Dean touches us more. I received the news with mixed feelings. I was very happy on Pers and my own behalf; The Faculty of Medicine receives a new and visionary leader. The backside, however, is that K2 will soon be without a leader.

Per has led the department through a major and extensive reorganization and has managed to get groups from different institutes to work well together with a low conflict level. Under Press Management, the business has had impressive growth. K2 researchers regularly publish in “top tier” journals, receive grants from national (K.G.-Jebsen, NFR, Cancer Society) and international funds and organizations (EU, Novo Nordisk). We have managed to pay off debt and have provided us with an action room that enables strategic measures to further improve the quality of research, teaching and dissemination.

Per, in other words, leaves an institute with good vitality and little obstructivity. When he on July 31st, extends his right arm with the baton, who is ready to grab it and the challenge of leading K2 futher?

The Department Management thinks that it will be possible to conduct own research while leading K2, as Per has shown possible with about 130 articles published since 2010. The new department head gets its own post-doc position, a reliable management and the ability to build up a senior management team – all to facilitate high academic activity.

We hope that «The Times They are a-changin» in a positive way and that many, both internal and external, see the opportunities that lie in the position of head of department and apply.

Eystein

The government has made it clear that the universities are to promote digitalization within all fields. Traditionally we have considered digitalization primarily as a tool to optimize administrative services. In recent years digitalization within teaching and at examinations have become more common. A good example is the efforts done by Martin Biermann of which he received the Faculty Dissemination Prize 2017.

Also, research may benefit from digitalization. As part of the efforts to respond to the requests from the government, the university has made a strategy for digitalization.  UoB will establish working groups for how to promote digitalization within teaching and research, and within the administrative services. I have heard some state that digitalization is just a way to make the scientists do secretary work. This assessment is too simple.

The university will organize a “Come together day” on digitalization 4 October 2017 in Grieghallen. The aim is to present various ways of digitalization to promote teaching and research, as well as administrative services. Those who might have projects that could be presented in Grieghallen, please notify this by sending an e-mail to org2022@uib.no within Monday 12 June.^.

The event in Grieghallen will be open to everybody at the university. Note the date! Digitalization is here to come, we should join it. By visiting Grieghallen 4 October, we might get some good ideas to use in our own research, teaching or administrative work

Per