Albright named president and CEO of HRL, Laboratories LLC
LLNL Newsline- 10/20/2014
Parney Albright, former director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, has been named the president and chief executive officer of HRL Laboratories, LLC [Hughes Research Laboratories].
He takes over the job formerly occupied by William Jeffrey on Nov. 3.
HRL is a commercial research and development center focused on advanced microelectronics, information and systems sciences, materials, sensors and photonics, among other disciplines. It specializes in integrated circuits, antennas, networking, smart materials and lasers. Formerly a research arm of Hughes Aircraft, HRL produced the first working model of a laser in 1960, by Theodore Maiman.
"This is one of the premier scientific institutions in the country, a storied lab with a long history of innovation," Albright said. "It is quite an honor, and I look forward to being a part of such a talented team."
Albright, who will retire from Lawrence Livermore effective Oct. 31, said, "It has been an honor to be a part of this Laboratory. I will miss the people and their dedication to the mission, and I look forward to possible future collaborations."
"Parney has been an important part of this Laboratory, as a director, senior manager and adviser," said Lab Director Bill Goldstein. "With his background in national security work and his management skills, he will make an excellent leader for HRL. We congratulate him in this new position."
Albright came to the Lab in November 2009 as the principal associate director of Global Security, which supports the Lab's biosecurity, counterterrorism, defense, energy, intelligence and nonproliferation missions. He served as Lab director from 2011-13, steering the institution through budget cuts brought on by the recession, sequestration and government shutdown. Last January he took an assignment with the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
Albright has more than 25 years' experience in the federal government and the private sector. Prior to joining the Laboratory he worked with Civitas Group, a homeland security consultant in Washington, D.C. He has served as assistant secretary in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), assistant director in the Office of Science and Technology Policy and senior director in the Office of Homeland Security in the White House; and program manager with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
LLNL Newsline- 10/20/2014
Parney Albright, former director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, has been named the president and chief executive officer of HRL Laboratories, LLC [Hughes Research Laboratories].
He takes over the job formerly occupied by William Jeffrey on Nov. 3.
HRL is a commercial research and development center focused on advanced microelectronics, information and systems sciences, materials, sensors and photonics, among other disciplines. It specializes in integrated circuits, antennas, networking, smart materials and lasers. Formerly a research arm of Hughes Aircraft, HRL produced the first working model of a laser in 1960, by Theodore Maiman.
"This is one of the premier scientific institutions in the country, a storied lab with a long history of innovation," Albright said. "It is quite an honor, and I look forward to being a part of such a talented team."
Albright, who will retire from Lawrence Livermore effective Oct. 31, said, "It has been an honor to be a part of this Laboratory. I will miss the people and their dedication to the mission, and I look forward to possible future collaborations."
"Parney has been an important part of this Laboratory, as a director, senior manager and adviser," said Lab Director Bill Goldstein. "With his background in national security work and his management skills, he will make an excellent leader for HRL. We congratulate him in this new position."
Albright came to the Lab in November 2009 as the principal associate director of Global Security, which supports the Lab's biosecurity, counterterrorism, defense, energy, intelligence and nonproliferation missions. He served as Lab director from 2011-13, steering the institution through budget cuts brought on by the recession, sequestration and government shutdown. Last January he took an assignment with the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
Albright has more than 25 years' experience in the federal government and the private sector. Prior to joining the Laboratory he worked with Civitas Group, a homeland security consultant in Washington, D.C. He has served as assistant secretary in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), assistant director in the Office of Science and Technology Policy and senior director in the Office of Homeland Security in the White House; and program manager with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
Comments
Winston Churchill
Perhaps his positions or challenges presented to the NNSA were justified? Maybe we just lost a true leader
that we couldn't afford to lose.
Our leaders don't have 100% control of the ocean currents. They can be evaluated on how well they navigate them. Beyond that, is an over expectation I think.
It is the managers that repeatedly fail to follow internal managerial expectations in this square mile, that are the real disappointment.
Good for him, and best wishes.
Like Ed or others?
The real problems at LLNL are only sponsor induced. Congress, DoE and NNSA are ignorant, insecure and unreasonable people who neither trust nor respect LLNL leaders and employees. All manner of disagreement prompt crises.
They confuse and conflate their disagreements at each lab and apply responses generally to all labs, needed or not.
Can't get rid of Congress, but both NNSA and DOE could be closed and the US would function no worse, and a little less wastefully.
Good luck, Penrose
October 27, 2014 at 2:18 PM
Name one?
I think LIFE was basically doomed anyway. Maybe Parney hit the red stop button first, OK.
As far as Moses goes, he stepped down and out in slow motion. I don't think that fits the classic definition for "getting rid of".
A ~5 year "tour of duty"' at LLNS will become the norm for post 2007 new hires with their portable 401k plans. Can you blame them?
If GS fails, then it failed because it doesn't make sense to take on external work-for-other sponsors at the NNSA labs. The external sponsors try to constantly nickel and dime the projects they want executed at the labs and can't be counted on for long term financial support. There are other options that are cheaper, faster and easier for these sponsors to run to for their research needs.
Nuclear or nothing, that's the key. Yes, the weapon labs will be much smaller but they will also be focused on the problems they were designed to be focused on in the first place.
Isn't this a reasonable response to some of the GS Leader criticisms?
The NNSA weapon labs should only be doing grand challenge type work that has the word "nuclear" in it. Everything else should just be shut down and those who don't like it should leave.
This. GS work-for-others was always a force-fit for the weapons labs, and an attempt to keep money flowing in an era of decreasing stockpile-related funding. Some of it makes sense, the parts that make full use of lab resources and expertise, particularly designers and simulations. The rest does not make sense.
until of course, you need the missing steward. which steward and when you say? That is the question.
Which part of the trillion dollar investment in the nuclear arsenal is critical?
One thing is certain, no one in Congress, DOE, NNSA or the presidential staff knows.
Your grand plan is to have LLNS senior leaders just go with the flow and assimilate? I'm sure Parney evaluated the LLNS situation and voted with his feet to Malibu. Good for him!
Moses and Pattiz are pals? How so?
"NNSA has concerns regarding several management issues at LLNL. On several occasions LLNL
management engaged Congress contrary to stated NNSA strategy or in open opposition to that strategy. [Moses, infamous Lofgren letter] There were also a number of issues related to a lack of transparency of operations and program management decisions regarding the ICF program. [Moses again] NNSA and LLNL worked for several months to meet budget challenges requiring the reprogramming of funds to alleviate impacts due to the ICF program rate changes. NIF operating costs and assumptions were not transparent or well communicated to the NNSA Program Office, which made it more difficult to understand programmatic tradeoffs with FY13 budget pressures. NNSA raised concerns regarding the ICF spend rate that resulted in an extremely low level of carryover late in the fiscal year. [Moses burning through his reserves and unloading hundreds of people into the homeless ranks] NIF management also expended considerable facility time and resources on two facility activities (AMP 3 and ARC) despite input from the NNSA program office that these efforts were of a lower priority. [Moses again, pushing the hopeless ARC project] Communications with external stakeholders was a continuing issue. LLNL mismanaged external communications in several instances regarding ICF activities and budgets. LLNL attempted to mitigate some of these issues and improve communication with NNSA by making some mid-year organizational changes, and improvements were noted. [Moses was fired] Additionally, LLNL made changes to its senior management team (key personnel) as coordinated with NNSA leadership to improve performance in this area. [Albright was fired]"
DOE wanted Moses gone and Albright complied. There is no way Albright would have been pushed out if he himself had DOE support, because Pattiz knows who calls the shots.
So Parney followed DOE orders and dumped Moses, and was subsequently fired for opposition to "shutdown" related impact to LLNL operations? Did we lose Director Parney for sticking up for continuity of lab operations and employee impact during the shutdown? Is that what you are saying? If so, what does that say of the new Director selection?
November 2, 2014 at 5:29 PM
That is what I heard from two well placed sources, probably along with personality differences and maybe partly as a scapegoat for the issues listed above. The orders from on high were, shut it down and cause maximum pain and publicity against the Republican-led revolt. What that says about Goldstein, I'm not sure, but I guess he was the best on a very short list of plausible candidates.
November 2, 2014 at 5:29 PM
So touching, the "we" part of that. So naive, so juvenile, so clueless. If you continue with the "we" concept of work at LLNS/LANS you will be steamrollered along with your fellow clueless dupes. There is not, and never was, any "we" connected with employment at LLNS/LANS. Just you. And them. They win, all the time. Get a clue.
Pattiz alone has that much power?
PS: "DOE and Bechtel would not interfere? Furthest thing from the truth.