PNNL

Dr. John P. LaFemina is the Executive Director of Performance Management and the Chief Risk Officer for the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) where he is accountable for a broad scope of enterprise-level activities, including oversight of the prime contract for the management and operation of PNNL, a $1.1 billion research and development engine with more than 4,400 staff. The Performance Management office guides the development and execution of a comprehensive set of performance management metrics resulting from rigorous self-assessment, internal audit, independent oversight, external bench-marking, and the application of advanced data analytics to our performance information. As the Chief Risk Officer for PNNL, he is responsible for the Enterprise Risk Management framework and policies that support PNNL and Battelle senior management in the execution of key institutional risk management functions.

Prior to this he was the Director of Laboratory Planning and Performance Management at PNNL (2015-2018) where he was accountable for a broad set of enterprise-level activities focused on the development of the institutional strategies and implementation plans to distinguish PNNL as a world-class scientific research institution. He has also served as the Director of Institutional Strategy at PNNL (2009-2015) and Vice-President and Director of Operations for Toxicology Northwest (2003-2009), a $20M inhalation toxicology business that is part of Battelle's Health and Life Sciences Global Business. Dr. LaFemina's experience at Battelle and PNNL includes nearly 30 years in a variety of research and executive management positions, including leading Battelle's Environmental Quality Market Sector; PNNL's Director of Quality, and Manager of the Radiochemical Processing Laboratory. Before coming to the Laboratory, Dr. LaFemina was a Captain in the United States Army, teaching chemistry and physics at the United States Military Academy and serving as the Deputy Director of the Science Research Laboratory and the Thomas H. Johnson Photonics Research Center at West Point.

Dr. LaFemina earned his Ph.D. in Chemistry at The Pennsylvania State University under the direction of Professor John P. Lowe in 1985. He has written or contributed to more than 50 scientific papers and made over 100 presentations on a variety of scientific and technological topics ranging from the photophysics of polymers to the atomic and electronic structure of semiconductor and mineral surfaces and interfaces. He was the Series Editor of "The Chemistry and Physics of Surfaces and Interfaces" published by CRC Press, and is an active member of the American Chemical Society.

Dr. LaFemina also serves on the Board of Directors for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Benton and Franklin Counties, and is a graduate of Leadership Tri-Cities Class V and Past-President of their Board of Directors. He is an ordained Elder in the Presbyterian Church, an active coach of youth sports throughout the Tri-Cities for the past 16 years, and spent 13 years as a guitarist for the local rock band Mudshark.