Back to the Future with Conference Alerts

Last week an academic called to ask me whether I knew of an email alert system for upcoming conferences. There's plenty of alerts out there for funding opportunities, but none that I knew of for conferences. Luckily, Twitter came to the rescue. I put out a call, and Damien Hall quickly came back, pointing me in the direction of the cunningly titled 'Conference Alerts'.

Sure, it all looks a bit 1995, but it does seem to provide info on a vast array of disciplines, including interdisciplinary areas. So, if you're wondering what's coming up in your area, pay it a visit. Alternatively, if you know of other databases or email alerts with a more 21st century interface, drop me a line.

SSC: Accentuating the Positive

The Jekyll and Hyde character of the Research Councils' Shared Services Centre (SSC) was once again on show last week.You might remember that it had a somewhat - ahem - 'difficult' birth, with couriers refusing to deliver to Death Star House until the SSC bills were paid off, and SSC itself being branded a 'fantastically expensive failure' by Prof John Seddon.

But that's very much the 'Mr Hyde' end of things. Let's instead focus on the respectable, Rotary Club-belonging, upstanding-member-of-the-community, 'Dr Jekyll' side of the SSC. In August last year it was shortlisted for the National Business Awards in the 'Transformational Change' category (oh so appropriate for Dr Jekyll!). But as if that wasn't enough, last week saw it scoop another trophy for the cabinet, this time for its Payroll Team.

This is, of course, fantastic news. However, whilst I'm very pleased for both the Payroll Team and the - erm - Transformational Change Team, I am still waiting for the silverware to come tumbling in for the Customer Services Team. It's a travesty that it's missed out so far, and it can only be down to some high level conspiracy. How else can you explain that fact that it's not yet been given the 2011 Quick and Effective Response to Enquiries Award?