An Interview with Sergi Abadal: A Researcher’s Path to Leadership and Impact

Reflecting on your career so far, what accomplishments are you most proud of?

I am most proud of becoming an independent researcher and being able to successfully lead and coordinate projects, from its inception, proposal preparation, and execution.

This culminated on an ERC Starting Grant, of which I am indeed very proud. Equally important, I am proud of having been able to build a sizable research team composed of very nice researchers (technically and humanly)

How have your motivations changed as your career has progressed?

Yes indeed, out of necessity. At the beginning of my career, I was sort of forced to try many different things in order to adapt to the available funds or possible project opportunities. Now that I am more stable, I still try many things -- but feeling that I can focus on those topics that I am more interested and say no to others.

How do you identify and set professional goals for yourself?

I don't think I am a good example for that. I know that I want to be a full professor someday and have a large and productive research group, but do not think too much of the middle steps (or the times) needed to reach that goal. Although this is not ideal, it has worked for me so far.

Once you have set a goal, what steps do you take to ensure you will meet it?

Before setting a goal, I try to estimate whether I will have enough time to work towards it. Once I decide to tackle it, I do not have a general strategy. I try to force myself to have milestones along the way: milestones not only for myself, but for anyone else involved in the projects. This forces me to commit in order to be able to honor "my promises" to others.

How do you break down your goals into manageable tasks or milestones?

That kind of happens naturally. If the goals and work involve other people, I try to set up regular meetings that serve as checkpoints (and force me to set up deadlines for myself). I try to divide the goals into tasks of different nature in order to be able to switch among them and not feel burnt out (writing can be therapeutic when you are tired of coding, coding can be therapeutic when you are tired of meetings, etc...).

How do you monitor and adjust your action plan to stay on track toward your goals?

Again, I don't think I can set an example here. My planning and monitorization is composed of a combination of regular meetings and calendar reminders. I have a sort of general roadmap (without dates, just a rough list of goals) that I read once in a while, just to have them in my head.

How have you worked towards establishing your independence as a researcher?

Several tricks here:

1. I have tried to lead the establishment of collaborations with other researchers outside of my "inner circle" and work in papers with them, on topics that are at the intersection of my expertise and their expertise. Creating and nurturing a research relationship helps you learn how to make the decisions that you think will make that relationship grow.
2. Aligned with the point above, doing research visits and stays helps establishing an independence6. It is easier to not resort to your former advisors or other researchers that you depend on, if the people that you are visiting does not closely know them. This, again, helps establishing your own path.
3. Mentoring students6. Undergraduate students require the definition of small projects that are realizable in 3-6 months. Coming up with those small projects and then building up on top of them allowed me to try (and fail sometimes) to develop new research lines, which helps also establish your independence.
4. Write your own project proposal6. Take one of the ideas that you have been working with undergraduate students and make it grow into a project proposal.

Can you describe a project where you took the lead and what the outcome was?

I would describe WiPLASH. It was a FET-Open project about wireless communications between the chips of a computing system. This was the topic of my PhD, and during the first years of my postdoc period, I always thought it could turn into a large EU project. Being an expert in the topic helped me take the lead in the proposal preparation and gave me credibility for strong project partners to join. The proposal was accepted and the project was executed without any major issues (besides COVID).

What strategies do you use to enhance your research output?

Early in my career, the tricks were to try to alternate between brainstorming, coding, writing, and housekeeping frequently enough to not get tired and keep going (although I was not always successful and there was a lot of procrastination). In order to publish more, the tricks are understanding very well what I wanted to explain and try to improve my writing skills as much as possible. Later in my career, the strategy has necessarily shifted to delegating more and trying to have a group whose structure allows for work to be done without me. I try to ensure that each person on my team has a publishable product they will be responsible for. That way, they grow professionally, and they feel a sense of accountability to the project and the team.

What skills do you believe you have gained from your acadèmic experience that are transferible to other industries?

Tolerance to frustration, resilience, presentation skills, empathy, leadership.

How do you evaluate the pros and cons of academic versus non-academic career paths?

Pros: freedom (in relative terms), access to talent, potential for societal impact (not only through research, but through the training of future engineers or researchers). Cons: instability (early in the career), salary, resources.

What competency areas do you think researchers need to develop, and therefore, universities should offer more training in?

Fundraising and leadership

Have you had, even informally, a mentor figure in your postdoctoral career?

Yes, commonly my supervisors and people I got to know during research projects. I am very lucky that those people are incredibly supportive and I am very glad to work with them.

How can mentoring be improved to better support early-career researchers?

With help to develop a career plan, with help to let them know about the general structure of research funding, with help to improve their fundraising skills, etc.

Do you think that geographical and/or intersectoral mobility is valued at the university?

I don't think it is specifically or directly valued in the university, at least in Spain. Geographical mobility has been kind of imposed by the regulations of the accreditation processes and of the access to the professorship positions. In my case, the university has valued my capacity to raise funding, and that has probably been possible thanks to my research stays abroad; so the impact is indirect. I don't have enough experience with intersectoral mobility, but I do not have the feeling that is valued or encouraged enough.

How have language skills impacted your professional development and career opportunities?

Being able to fluently speak a third language has been a key enabler of my career, no doubt. It allowed me to establish collaborations, perform research stays successfully, write great project proposals, and spend less time writing my emails. It's crucial.

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Profile: Sergi Abadal Cavalle a Futur UPC