“It’s been a wild ride”
At the end of his two-year term as Head of the Department of Computer Science, Professor David Basin looks back on a turbulent time and explains how running a department has helped him better understand the inner workings of ETH Zurich.
David Basin, what does the job of Head of the Department of Computer Science entail?
I was responsible for a large variety of managerial and organisational tasks, ranging from hiring new faculty to managing the department’s resources to conflict resolution. The Department Head not only works within the department, they also represent it in dealings with the ETH Zurich Executive Board. So I was able to contribute to improving things not only at D-INFK, but also for the whole of ETH Zurich.
Is it difficult for you to leave this post?
There is certainly some sadness, but the department is in fantastic hands with my successor Timothy Roscoe. It’s an unusual position. Most people come to ETH Zurich because they’re passionate about their research – I don’t know a single colleague who is not. We are, perhaps, less passionate about management. However, ETH has this principle of self-governance and it’s part of our job as professors to shoulder some of the administration. It’s a great way to give back to the department and to ETH, and I was happy to do my part. But I’m also happy to go back to my research and be a normal professor again.
What does being a normal professor mean to you?
I very much look forward to having more time for teaching and research. I had reduced my teaching during my two-year stint as Department Head and I missed having time with students. I often wished too that I had more time for the researchers in my group. I have two books in planning and I’m also hoping to go on sabbatical for the autumn of 2021. The last two years have been extremely full and exciting, and I am looking forward to having some peace to work on my research and book projects.
“Most people come to ETH Zurich because they’re passionate about their research. We are, perhaps, less passionate about management.”Professor David Basin
Your two-year term was particularly eventful, with the department expanding into new buildings in different locations and a global pandemic changing research and teaching almost overnight. What were the greatest difficulties you faced?
It’s been a wild ride! Managing the growth of the department and the distribution of resources was certainly challenging. But the most intense task for me was the hiring of new faculty. When the pandemic hit, we were in the middle of hiring, with some candidate here or in the air and others stuck in their home country. I’m pleased we managed to transition to having the hiring talks online and continuing this critical process. Moving the teaching online was also a crucial task, but one that was handled mostly by the Study Director, Ueli Maurer. I’m very grateful to him for his work. As for the other aspects of running the department, everybody was very cooperative, self-organising and resourceful, which made the management much easier.
Why is hiring new faculty such an important part of a Department Head’s job?
Because it has long-term consequences. They are the next generation that will take over the department, and getting the right people makes all the difference. During my time as Department Head, 14 new colleagues joined the department. It was a lot of work to select and integrate them, but it was also very rewarding. I had the opportunity to help bring great new people into the department and to hear many interesting scientific talks as part of the hiring process.
Is there anything else you achieved during your term that you’re particularly proud of?
There are many fantastic developments in the department that I am very proud of, but they are not my achievements. For example, I am proud that we are one of the best computer science departments in the world; this is all our achievement. The department has been run exceptionally well in recent years by my predecessors Markus Püschel and Emo Welzl. At the same time, computer science has become a very important, if not the key, science of the 21st century. This has led to tremendous growth, exploding student numbers and the founding of new centres and initiatives. None of this was my doing, but it did require some organisation and restructuring within the department, and I’m glad that I was able to contribute in this way. Creating the right environment in which we can flourish and achieve excellence is a large part of what the Department Head does.
Do you view your colleagues and D-INFK in a different light after your stint at the helm?
I have always held my colleagues in the highest esteem. During my term, I had the chance to work with some of them more closely and even to develop personal friendships in the process. I also had very positive interactions with students and student organisations, such as VIS and VMI, even though the coronavirus certainly made it more difficult to meet them.
“Creating the right environment in which we can flourish and achieve excellence is a large part of what the Department Head does.”Professor David Basin
What about ETH Zurich as a whole?
My view of ETH Zurich has always been very positive, but now I have a much better understanding of how the university works. We all share the same goals, but sometimes we don’t understand why certain things happen because our perspective is limited. Having been Department Head, I now have a much greater appreciation of ETH’s processes, regulations and management structures.
Will you continue to be active on the Department Board?
Yes, for another six months, to help support my successor, Timothy Roscoe. Afterwards I will step down for my sabbatical. Over time I may take on other service activities within ETH. It is quite common for former Department Heads to help out on different committees and organisations within ETH, and of course also in the department. I am certainly happy to help the colleagues who take my place, just as my predecessors helped me.
Does ETH’s system of professors serving short terms as Department Heads work or would longer-term leadership be better?
Both models have their benefits. If you find the right person to lead the department for ten years, you profit from the continuity and wisdom gained over time. If, on the other hand, you happen to find the wrong person, this is not ideal. In our model, faculty members take over the administration for a limited amount of time to give back to the department, even though they are usually much more passionate about their research and teaching than about administration. I think this works well, although it does require faculty engagement. The workload has, however, increased in complexity in recent years as the department has grown, and the job of the Department Head has become increasingly challenging.
How will the department evolve from here?
Right now, we have fantastic new colleagues and the department is developing wonderfully. This is an exciting time for us, since computer science is evolving so fast, revolutionising other sciences and fundamentally changing the way society works. Data processing, communication, transport, entertainment, finance and so much more rely on distributed computing. As computer scientists, we can make all of this more intelligent, more functional, and more secure, and I hope we will have the opportunity and the resources to do just that. Twenty years ago, nobody could have predicted the impact of topics like AI and machine learning. And we don’t know what will happen over the next twenty years either, but there is certainly tremendous potential in computer science.