The College’s technicians gathered for an event focused on leadership and management in the technical community.

The event was hosted by the College’s Technician’s Network , which highlights opportunities for professional and personal development and encourages the exchange of knowledge, experience and resources.

I wouldn’t be able to do this type of work anywhere else but Imperial Olivier Dubois Biomedical Imaging Technician

The day focused on leadership and management skills – highlighted as areas of interest in the 2017 Technicians Skills Survey .

The summer event is part of a suite of activities and support provided by the College for technical staff, who are spread across faculties and departments.

Last year, Imperial pledged to support technical staff and became a founding signatory of the Technician Commitment – a sector-wide initiative led by the Science Council that addresses key challenges facing technical staff working in research. As part of this commitment, earlier this year Imperial launched the Technicians’ Portal which brings together the support and development opportunities on offer, including for pursuing professional registration .

We spoke to one of our talented technicians to find out more about his role.

Olivier Dubois: it’s all in the image

Olivier Dubois, Biomedical Imaging Technician, works in the Biological Imaging Centre at the Hammersmith Hospital Campus. He is part of a team which offers technical support to researchers working with animal models in an imaging context.

Olivier said: “My role is to enable the best research possible while also making sure that we are providing the highest standards of animal care.

“I ensure that researchers understand the equipment and environment they’ll be working in. Often, some researchers may not know how to use scanners, so I step in and support them,” says Olivier.

He has been working in this role for three years and finds his role rewarding: “Being a Technician requires a lot of skill and practice – I think we all tend to have a very strong work ethic. My role is very satisfying as I get to support our academics with their research and have helped to support some of the most innovative research.

“I wouldn’t be able to do this type of work anywhere else but Imperial. As a technician, I feel that I’m serving a very good purpose as I’m at the forefront of research at Imperial.”