Talk given by the DG to the CERN Staff on 13 January 2004

Firstly...

At the beginning of the New Year, I would like

• to convey my best wishes to all of you, members of CERN and your families for the full satisfaction of your dreams!
• to formulate for CERN and for you all, in this special 50th Anniversary Year, specific wishes and ambitions which should be led to success by your hard work and commitments:

• during the year to make such progress towards our goals, that no doubt will remain about their final success
• to observe an improvement in the recognition of CERN as the place where the European programme in Particle Physics is coordinated, shared and supported by all European actors in the field.
• to look beyond Europe, CERN becoming a world organization!

• To bring these dreams closer to reality I need your help.
• We should work together, the success means assuring the future of CERN.
• It will be our success!

Content:

1. A new management structure for CERN
2. Why a new structure ?
3. How should it work ?
4. For which objectives ?
5. Conclusions

1. New Structure for CERN

* from 1 March, until then Hans Hoffmann ad interim; ** ad interim

[followed a brief oral presentation by R. Aymar, J. Engelen, A. Naudi and M. Metzger, about their past careers]

2. Why a new structure ?

• A financial crisis occurred in 2001, reactions from the Management and the whole Laboratory have been appropriate
• the present CERN situation appears... as before! Is the crisis over?
• for some, difficulties were contingent, temporary and their consequences will be soon forgotten
  
  
  

• I do not share this analysis, and my assessment is rather the following:
  • this crisis has weakened again the confidence in CERN from some Member States (mainly the large ones)
  • consider actions in the past from the MS, like:
    • a compulsory staff reduction to be applied steadily for a long period,
    • a decrease in budget, even if accompanied by the positive LHC decision
  • all those actions, unrelated with accepted scientific objectives, reveal that the MS felt themselves unable to have their policy understood and implemented by CERN, when they are applied rigorously in their Home Laboratories,
  • the Member States were expecting, that in the end, CERN would reform itself, after being driven to hard extreme by lack of resources.
    
    
    
  • This loss of confidence in CERN management at all levels pushed the MS towards micromanagement but it never drove them away from the proper appreciation of the competence and motivation of the individuals in CERN.

2.1 Conclusion

• We should recover the full confidence from Member States
• The future of CERN depends on this recovery.
• It is a matter of improved management in CERN at all levels and of increased efficiency of the Laboratory as a whole entity.

3. How should this Structure work?

• More dynamic management methods should be applied:
  • short links inside management lines
  • efficient procedures
  • smaller number of committees
  • full exercise of responsibilities by individuals with full recognition of talents and merits
  • no more a priori controls but a posteriori audits and corrective measures
  • individual leadership: motivation, loyalty, transparency
  • share of collective responsibility: no sector / dept / service isolation

• Our cooperation with European Particle Physics Laboratories should be strengthened and deepened
  • more collaboration towards common goals (accelerator Departments should follow examples of Physics Department)
  • more active participation of CERN in ECFA
    
    
• At the Council level a new (old) objective has been agreed: to steer the European PP activities (in addition to supervise the CERN Lab)

3.1 Expected results:

• after some recognised evidence of successful trend in improvement (in 2007?), to come back to MS to approve coherent resources and scientific objectives

4. For which scientific objectives?

1. The following strategic orientations are proposed for CERN activities in 2004-2010:
   1. to keep the utmost priority for the completion of the LHC project, and strive for a start of operations in the summer of 2007 = machine / detectors / LCG
   2. to fulfil commitments previously made by CERN: CNGS, EGEE
   3. after an in-depth risk analysis review, to mitigate the consequences of failure of old equipment that is necessary for reliable LHC operation.
   4. in line with the new policy by the European Commission for structuring the European Research Area, by promoting the coordination of laboratories in matters of R&D and new infrastructure (FP6 - CARE programme), to launch in the period 2004-2006 different studies in cooperation with other laboratories.
      
      
2. Their primary goal would be:
3. to develop detailed technical solutions for a future LHC luminosity upgrade to be commissioned around 2012-2015.
   • Definition of the Linac4 (160 MeV-H-), in relation with the European Programme for a High Intensity Pulsed Proton Injector (HIPPI)
   • Definition of modifications to the magnets in the interaction regions at two crossing points of the LHC beams, linked with the European programme Next European Dipole (NED), aiming at 15 Tesla
   • Definition of new trackers for the upgrade of the ATLAS and CMS detectors, to withstand a factor 10 higher luminosity.
   • to keep in touch with other design studies launched in Europe, of Eurisol and neutrino factories.
   • to contribute, as far as possible, in collaboration with other European laboratories, to solving design issues that are generic to e+e- linear colliders and not specific to any particular design.
     
     
4. Another goal would be:
   • to define possible new fixed-target experiments, highly praised at another "Cogne" meeting in September 2004.
5. to decide in 2006 on the possible planning and the start of implementation of the Linac 4 and/or any proposed R&D or experiment, depending on the funds available or expected at that time.
6. to accelerate the tests of feasibility of the CLIC concept, in order to arrive by 2010 at a firm conclusion on its possible use in an e+e- linear collider above l TeV. For this to be possible, cooperation with other European (and non European) laboratories would be needed, with exceptional resources to be committed in 2004 and 2005 (contributions "a la carte" from Member States).
   
   This recommendation is based on arguments, assessing the probability of reaching a construction decision of the Linear Collider before 2010. Should the decision occur only after 2010, and the LHC results show the need of more than l TeV c.m., the CLIC concept, if successful, could provide a unique solution.
   
   
7. in 2009-2010, to review and redefine the strategy for CERN activities in the next decade 2011-2020 in the light of the first results from LHC and of progress and results from the previous actions. The possible choices are presently quite open. The future role of CERN will depend on these choices and their effective funding.

5. Conclusions

• The CERN LHC project is the worldwide priority in high energy physics: the support to CERN for this objective will not fade out.
  • The limited reduction in the scientific activities at CERN during the LHC construction is the price to pay for the future possession of this powerful tool.
  • Nevertheless, big challenges are ahead of us, which will require hard work and complete dedication
  • You can be proud of the results achieved so far, both machine-wise, in experiments, and in GRID development
  • I am fully confident in the motivation and competences of each of you.
• With improvement in the collective interaction throughout the organization, (not only by new tools, but through voluntary human relationship)
• By strengthening individual leadership and the full exercise of individual responsibility to favour the cost-schedule-performance awareness,
• With an increase in the voluntary collaboration of CERN with other European PP Laboratories.

• the LHC can be ready in time (within cost) and will be another success in the large series of CERN prestigious achievements: scientific discoveries will not be far ahead,
• the Members States' confidence in CERN can be fully restored, around an agreed European scientific strategy, supported by appropriate resources, thus providing CERN with a sure future. Two milestones: end 2006 and 2009-2010.