Episode Details

Lisa Ryan: Hey, it's Lisa Ryan. Welcome to the Manufacturer's Network Podcast. I'm excited to introduce our guest today. Scott Hanton. Scott is a Ph.D. chemist with over 30 years of experience in the lab who has recently changed careers to media. He is now the group editorial director at lab manager, responsible for the editorial team for four science-based brands. So Scott, welcome to the show.

Scott Hanton: Thank you, Lisa. I'm happy to be here.

Lisa Ryan: Scott, please share a little about your background and what led you to do what you're doing.

Scott Hanton: It's an interesting story. I was a good student. I liked math and science. So I got a Ph.D. in science, and I thought my path was clear until one day, my boss came to me and said he wanted me to be a supervisor. And then he wanted me to be a group manager - and that's not what science is. But he saw things that I didn't see in myself. So it's been a great journey being a lab manager for a long time. And then, more recently, taking this knowledge into the media, working for some magazines where my goal is to share my experience as a longtime scientist and lab manager with people who are in those careers or who wish to be in those careers.

My goal is to help them prevent the scrapes, bumps, and scars I have from learning it on the job, and maybe I can facilitate a little learning and make their journey a little more pleasant.

Lisa Ryan: One of the things that you just said about your manager seeing more in you than you saw in yourself. That's a mark of what makes up a good manager because they are not always the easiest people we report to, but for some reason, they see bigger things than we see in ourselves.

See, what happens is that people get it. I was one of them. I was so focused on the tactical work that needed to be done that I didn't realize I had broader strengths and skills that could benefit the organization. So I needed someone to point it out. And that lesson wasn't lost on me. I've done it as a manager as well.

Lisa Ryan: You and I connected at an event I was speaking at, and I was intrigued by a couple of things you're doing. Number one, the focus on the workplace culture that you have. But also the fact that you have a remote team right now. It has been a real struggle for some people in these last two and a half years. How do you connect with people when you're not sitting in the room, drinking coffee with them? With culture, what are some of the things that you've seen, that you've done, that you've incorporated, that have helped you in your career?

Scott Hanton: When it was time for me to leave the lab environment and start something new, one of the things I specifically looked for was a company with a positive organizational culture. One of the things that I liked about the LabX media group is right on their webpage. When talking to potential recruits, they state that we have a positive culture. I was looking for that as part of my next career, I'd had enough grind in the laboratories, and I needed to do something surrounded by people enjoying themselves. I can see it in this culture. Some of the things that I like about this culture is they know how to celebrate.

We stop and cheer each other on. We thank each other for the work that we've done, and it doesn't always happen at year-end. It occurs along the way when the projects get done. Another thing that I like about the culture is that it's candid. We can speak our minds. We say what's important, and that's everybody in the room. It could be the newest employee in the most junior position. The room will stop and listen, no matter how many gray-haired people like me are around the table. We value everyone's opinion, and we can candidly discuss what we want to accomplish or what's going wrong without anybody feeling like that