SAFE Labs

BoumendilLab_2026:

Annual appraisal meetings : I am aiming to set annual meetings for every lab member. This has not been formalized yet in the lab but I am working towards implementing it. I aim to provide specific forms to prepare in advance by the labmember and the PI to prepare these meetings (construction of the forms currently ongoing, co-constructed with lab members). This will be the opportunity for two-way feedback on project advancement, experience of working in the lab, discussion of how to improve performance, support by the PI, supervision and/or any other relevant topic.

OttLab_2025:

The PI and team members commit to providing open and fair feedback on each other’s performance at least once per year. Feedback is encouraged throughout the year and is never understood as personal criticism but as a constructive way to promote personal and scientific growth and foster a healthier work environment.

ReinhardLab_2025:

All lab members have 1o1 meetings with the PI as illustrated in the section “Regular meetings”. In addition, at the end of each year, the PI meets with every lab member separately to provide mutual feedback and discuss future plans. These meetings follow a structured outline, require preparation on both the PI and team member side, and ensure that feedback is constructive and bidirectional.

INSIGHTLab_2026:

This is embedded in policy at Tilburg University: every year there is a Performance and Talent Development meeting, which allows for bilateral feedback.

UraiLab_2026:

The university encourages a yearly ‘functioneringsgesprek’ (see this form). I will draft a mentoring agreement with each lab member, and I aim to have a big-picture ‘review meeting’ with postdocs and PhD students twice a year.

RadzisheuskayaLab_2025:

We will review your long-term progress and work performance during yearly appraisals. This is also an opportunity for you to give me feedback on your experience working in the lab and under my supervision. During these meetings, we will also discuss the training you have undertaken and plan the training for the next year. The schedule is sent via Outlook Calendar.

CoenLab_2025:

All lab members have 1-on-1 meetings with Pip every week. In January, one of these meetings will be dedicated to bilateral feedback. A form will be provided, with sections to be completed before, during, and after, the meeting.

The goal of these sessions is to provide a dedicated meeting for reflection and mutual growth. It does not mean you should refrain from providing feedback at other times of the year (if you feel uncomfortable doing this directly, there is an anonymous feedback form available.

Before these sessions, it is most helpful you not only think about areas for potential improvement, but also how you would like those improvements to be achieved.

Pip will not necessarily be able, or willing, to implement all suggested changes. However, when something will not be implemented—or partially so—he will discuss the reasoning behind these decisions with you. If he fails to do this, please tell him and assume incompetence rather than malice!

AeryJonesLab_2026:

During our annual meetings, we will plan your goals, align them with your career path, and discuss what you can realistically achieve during the next year.

ChoryLab_2026:

Who Does Them: All members of the lab will provide progress reports, irrespective of career stage. Additionally, undergraduate students will also write up a report every 6 months (1-page), or at the end of their time in the lab. For undergraduate students and master students, a written progress report and 1:1 meeting is required for a research letter of recommendation from Dr. Chory.

• When We Do Them: To ensure you get the most out of this process, we will schedule a meeting once every six months to review your progress report together. These meetings will offer an opportunity for personalized feedback, questions, and guidance moving forward.
• How long should you spend on this?: Though it’s important to make these reports comprehensive and well-structured, they shouldn’t consume too much of your time. Ideally, spend no more than 1-2 day MAX on these reports every six months. They should be detailed but succinct, professional but not overly time-consuming. The first one will probably take the most time.

CobeyLab_2026:

There should be informal reviews at every weekly meeting. The point is mutual feedback, i.e., we can discuss your progress and develop achievable goals for the next few days to years, and you can tell me if there are areas in which I can provide better help. If you would like more formal progress reviews, let me know. Please also let me know if you are ever worried about your progress. Postdocs and salaried researchers will get formal annual reviews as required by the Biological Sciences Division, but they are really secondary to the regular meetings (i.e., there should be no surprises).

CTML_2026:

Each CTML GSR will be assigned one Project Leader (PL) in addition to their Faculty Supervisor (FS). Depending on the project, a GSR’s FS will also be their PL. The PL and GSR are responsible for the GSR’s  goal & milestone setting for the year and monthly check-ins. If the PL has any concerns regarding the GSRs progress, the PL will conduct a  mid-year evaluation and/or schedule a conversation with the FS before the end of the semester. Each Spring, the GSR will submit a self-evaluation that will be utilized during their annual evaluation with their FS. The purpose of the annual evaluation is to showcase growth as well as to create goals for next year. Afterwards, the GSR will be invite to submit an anonymous program evaluation to help improve CTML’s GSR program.

DenmanLab_2026:

All members are expected, on joining, to develop an individual development plan (IDP) with Dan. Even if this exercise feels silly or foreign, please consider it seriously, as it will be a useful tool for setting expectations in the mentor-mentee relationship. IDPs will be reviewed and revised at least annually.

DolbowGroup_2026:

Professor Dolbow will meet with all students and post-docs in the lab at least once a year to discuss progress on research and progress towards degree, expected timelines to completion, and etc. During these meetings, the members will discuss career aspirations, options, and goals and additional steps (as needed) to help meet them. These meetings will be held every May after classes end.

HealthPolicyDataScienceLab_2026:

If Dr. Rose is your primary advisor, students and postdoctoral scholars should complete the Stanford Individual Development Plan (IDP) when joining the Lab and then annually thereafter (student forms, initial form for postdocs, annual form for postdocs). This applies regardless of home department. Trainees should plan to check in on progress made toward IDP goals once a quarter. Dr. Rose expects that trainees will be responsible for scheduling the annual IDP meetings and adding the IDP check-ins once a quarter to the agenda for an existing recurring meeting.

HollandGroup_2026:

I put a high value on feedback. For example, I have one-on-one meetings with students both before and after they present group meetings to go over presentation style, effective communication, research progress, and long-term goals; in addition, I encourage all students to discuss their Individual Development Plan and career goals with me at least once per year. Each New Year’s, I have a discussion with each student where we discuss various areas for growth such as Lab Skills, Responsiveness, Curiosity, Presentations, Writing, Participation, Work Ethic, Teaching/Mentoring, Taking Charge of Project, Following Through on Plans, and Safety.

JimenezGroup_2026:

We have an annual evaluation process, where the postdoc fills an official CU form (Annual Summary of Accomplishments or ASA) plus this group form this form, followed by feedback from Jose & Doug, and then we meet and discuss. This allows regular discussion of performance, timelines, suggestions for improvement in both directions etc.

LePenLab_2026:

• Annual career development meeting: Each lab member will have an annual career meeting with the PI to discuss their Individual Development Plan (IDP). This meeting is an opportunity to reflect on career goals—whether academic, industry-related, or otherwise—and to identify actionable steps for progress. The IDP, prepared by the mentee, serves as a framework for this conversation and should include short- and longterm goals, current strengths and gaps, and a plan for progress.

McDermottLab_2026:

About once a year I schedule a one-on-one meeting to address the big picture of your time in the lab. These are a chance for us to discuss how things are going and what we can do to make things better. I will send out questions in advance of this that you should prepare answers to, and these form the basis of the conversation. Your feedback is a gift to me to help me do things better, and I cannot stress enough how much I value your honest opinions. It is very acceptable and encouraged to give me constructive criticism, and I will do my best to implement suggestions that I get from you. I also generally give a lab presentation after these meetings to summarize the feedback I got (my hope is that this increases transparency and conveys to all of you that I am serious about incorporating your feedback).

MemoLab_2026:

Work with you to develop a mentoring and research plan tailored to your interests, needs, and career goals. We will meet in late summer each year to sketch out a strategic plan for the academic year that will keep you on track with your goals. At that time, we will also review your progress toward these goals.

MsEELab_2026:

At the start of every academic term, a one-on-one meeting with every lab member will be dedicated specifically to evaluating the state of the mentorship relationship. Both participants will discuss answers on the last online survey and reevaluate the worksheets on Mentoring Expectation Scales, Mentee Needs and Wants, and the Mentorship Agreement included in the Cornell FAIM Practical Toolkit for Mentoring within the Effective Mentorship Plan folder, making whatever adjustments may be necessary.

PinskyLab_2026:

At the end of the fall and spring, we take a meeting to step back from the details and think about big picture career trajectories. It’s a good chance to go back the goals you wrote for yourself, think about your progress, and think about whether they’re still the right goals for you. Please start a running document of your goals in our Google Drive (how_we_work/Group_member_goals/, make a copy of the template and add your name to the title) and share it with Malin.

This is your meeting to use as you want, but I often find it useful to loosely structure the meeting like this:

• First 1/3: Highlights from the semester/last six months:
• What have you done?
• What have you learned?
• What connections have you made?
• Last 2/3: Plans for the next six months:
• What do you want to do?
• What do you want to learn?
• What connections do you want to make?
• How can I support you in that?
• Also let me know if you want me to think about answers to any questions.
• Funding plan during each end-of-year checkin

RichardsonLab_2026:

Prepare an annual “personal plan” that includes short, medium- and long-term goals, as well as specific milestones for the coming year. We will review your plan together at the start of each year, and you will conduct a self-evaluation at the end of each year, which we will review together.

SnyderGroup_2026:

As a new group, one feature we are trying to implement within our group is a feedback mechanism system. A questionnaire will be filled out and discussed with Ben. This will serve as a professional way to discuss with Ben regarding his mentoring style and any goals members have in mind. It is important to understand that graduate school is not only about publications, but an opportunity to bolster one’s toolkit for future endeavors. These meetings will occur at the end of every semester and should not be viewed as performance reviews, but rather as opportunities to seek out and provide structured feedback to ensure continued success.

SUMMITLab_2026:

In line with this approach, I use Individual Development Plans (IDPs). IDPs contain mentees’ unique goals for each academic year, opportunities for self-assessment of skills and documenting progress towards their goals. The use of IDPs ensures that myself and my mentee have a mutual understanding of their goals and a tool to track their progress towards their goals. I will have set meetings with my mentees at least every six months to review their IDPs and ensure that we are hitting agreed upon benchmarks to meet their goals.

TowneGroup_2026:

I conduct a quarterly mutual assessment with each of my students. These exercises are four-fold symmetric: (i) the student assesses their own progress and performance over the last quarter; (ii) I provide feedback on their work; (iii) I assess my own performance as an advisor and researcher; (iv) the student provides feedback on how I could better support them.

TurnbaughLab_2026:

Inspired by Angela DePace and the NIH guidelines, I meet with each lab member at the start of each year to discuss notable accomplishments and challenges in the past year. Each of us comes prepared with a pre-written set of ideas and together we plan our strategy for the coming year. We also focus on opportunities for further improving our lab culture and the broader UCSF work environment.

Weecology_2026:

In order to facilitate this process we designate one week each year, typically during the Spring Semester, where we will plan to look over your self-assessments and discuss them with you during your weekly meeting. We will give you a few weeks notice on when that week will be and encourage you to send us your self-assessments one week in advance of your meeting so that we have time to look it over and think about it. If you don’t want to participate, just let us know.