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Leadership Changes Coming to the ARM Facility This Fall

Published: 12 May 2017

Jimmy Voyles (left), Nicki Hickmon (center), Mike Ritsche (right)

After 23 years of working in ARM—most currently as the Chief Operating Officer (COO)—Jimmy Voyles will retire September 30 from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

The Office of the Chief Operating Officer is responsible for ensuring efficient, effective, and continuous operation of instruments and data systems and generally provides oversight to operational activities to ensure that ARM facilities are operated consistently and appropriately to serve the ARM user community. COO responsibilities also include management of user facility proposals and the reporting of formal metrics to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

The Chief Operating Officer role is transitioning to Associate Director for Operations to better align with other Facilities and to better affiliate the name of the role with its responsibilities.

Effective October 1, Nicki Hickmon, Southern Great Plains (SGP) Facility Manager from Argonne National Laboratory, will take on the new role of Associate Director for Operations. Hickmon—who will continue to work from Argonne—will collaborate with Voyles to transition into the role over the next four months.

Mike Ritsche, Assistant (SGP) Facility Manager working at Argonne National Laboratory, has been named the new SGP Facility Manager and will also be transitioning into his new role between now and the end of September.