Meet Professor Maribel Fernandez – new Vice-Dean (People & Planning) in the Faculty of Natural, Mathematical and Engineering Sciences

Can you explain the Vice-Dean (People & Planning) role?

This is a new role that has been created to work with the Faculty Leadership Team to ensure that NMES is a place where everyone feels safe and valued and is supported to achieve their full potential.

The role covers all matters related to people and planning, as both are interlinked. As part of this role, I chair the Faculty Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, which aims to embed the values of diversity, inclusion and dignity into student and staff activities to improve our working and learning environment. Planning that recognises the rich bed of talent across all levels in our community is key to achieving this.

What are your priorities for your first 1-2 years in post?

Three areas in particular were highlighted by the staff survey as priorities to create an improved and inclusive environment where people can thrive, and that’s where I’ll begin work.

• Ways of working – To define workload allocation models which are fair, effective and aligned with Department, Faculty and College priorities
  
  
• Staff voice – To ensure effective mechanisms for staff to share ideas, raise concerns and provide feedback on Faculty initiatives
  
  
• Recognition and reward – To establish mechanisms that acknowledge excellent work and honour it in a way that is not simply about promotion

Improving the Faculty’s processes in these domains will be critical to our success when building a better and more inclusive organisation.

You have held a number of positions at King's, what in particular excites you about this new role?

I am particularly attracted to the role of Vice Dean (People & Planning) as it is an ideal opportunity to contribute to the transformation that will make Vision 2029 a reality.

NMES has seen a large expansion in student numbers coupled with changes in ways of working triggered by unforeseen worldwide events. As the Staff Survey indicated, we need to rethink the way we work across Departments and Faculties in the university. As a Vice Dean, I will make it a priority to build on the strengths we have to ensure staff and students are empowered to contribute to the success of the Faculty.

Mentoring and supporting students and colleagues has always been an important aspect of my work, both at King’s and outside it. I’ve previously been the Undergraduate Senior Tutor, Head of the Software and Systems group and Deputy Head of Informatics in the College, and I was one of the initial members of the ACM-W Scholarships committee, which supports female computer science students in their next academic or industry career steps.

As President of the European Association for Computer Science Logic, I also chair the Jury of the Ackermann Award for PhD dissertations, which recognises the excellent work done by post-graduate researchers and gives them the tools to pursue a promising career in research.

Inclusivity is a guiding principle in my work. I believe that with careful planning and by embracing technological advances (to increase our resilience to deal with unexpected difficulties), we can build an ecosystem where all staff and students in NMES can thrive.

Can you tell us a little bit about your background and career to date?

I studied Engineering as an undergraduate in Uruguay, specialising in Systems Engineering, and then was lucky to get a scholarship to study computer science in a new school created in Argentina under the auspices of the EU, the Escuela Superior Latinoamericana de Informática. The courses were taught by visiting professors from Europe and the US, who were excellent role models.

After graduating, I had the opportunity to study in Paris for a PhD, and then I got a lecturer position at the Ecole Normale Superieure, where I taught in the Computer Science and Mathematics programme while I prepared my Habilitation thesis after my degree. This was a great experience and good preparation for the next step in my career, which was a position at King’s!

What has been your highlight in your time at King's?

Working at King’s has provided many highlights, it is difficult to pick one. I would say that working with great students and colleagues has been the real and continuous highlight.

If you were stranded on a desert island and could only take one piece of music, one tool and one famous person - what and who would you take? Why?

Music: I like classical music, piano and violin pieces in particular. If I could only take one piece of music, I would choose Monti’s Czardas, because it brings back a lot of nice memories (I learned it when I was a teenager, I can no longer play it but my children can and it is lovely!)

Tool: Is there such thing as a “Desert Island manual for beginners”?

Famous person: Can I choose Marie Curie? She was such an amazing scientist, a real inspiration.