Community Day: Call for Talent

6266047952_d66b7d7cac_bThe Entertainment Committee for the 19th Annual USPTO Community Day is currently seeking talent acts to perform during this year’s festivities.  The event will be held on Thursday, May 12, 2016 from 11:00am – 2:00pm.  This year’s theme is “Diversity: Coast to Coast.”  This call for participants is open to USPTO employees, as well as their family and friends.  If you are interested, please email Sesha Moon by March 31, 2016.  Each act shall not exceed 10 minutes and please be prepared to furnish audio and/or visuals on a USB drive, as well as a written script of any lyrics that will be performed for approval.

Community Day Diversity Awareness Showcase

Antique illustration of a couple dressed for a fashion catalogCommunity Day 2016 will be held May 12, 2016 on the outside of the USPTO campus.  Community Day is the USPTO’s primary diversity event bringing together affinity groups, labor organizations, and other employee associations to recommit to working as a team. The diversity element is an very important element of Community Day. This year’s theme for Community Day is “Diversity Coast to Coast”.

Back this year, by popular demand, will be the Diversity Awareness Showcase!  As you know, the Diversity Awareness Showcase is the highlight of Community Day and we want to make this year even more interesting. Please contact the Lambda inbox if you would like to participate in this one of a kind fashion show representing our group.

Get to Know the USPTO: Networking Event & Happy Hour

Event FlyerThe Leadership & Innovation Network in Commerce (LINC) will host “Get to Know the USPTO,” a Department of Commerce (DOC)-wide networking event, Wednesday, March 2 from 2 – 4 p.m. Participants will start their overview and tour in Madison West Room 207, and a happy hour will follow at Zikrayet at 2600 Eisenhower Avenue sponsored by the Supervisory Patent Examiners and Classifiers Organization (SPECO).

This is a great opportunity for USPTO employees to come and connect with our colleagues from across Commerce to share development opportunities, collaborative problem solving ideas, and best practices. It’s also a great opportunity for you to let others know about your affinity group here at the USPTO.

The LINC “Get to Know” series is designed to introduce DOC’s inner agencies to each other. LINC is a network of like-minded, action-oriented Commerce employees who engage across bureaus, innovate, and lead, to enhance the DOC workplace and contribute to operational excellence. For more information visit LINC contact Amber Ostrup, Laura Kahn, or Maryam Ipakchi.

Engineering Week 2016: Volunteers Needed

E-week flyerVolunteers are need to help Middle & High School students conduct a hands-on oil-water
separation experiment and consider the environmental impacts of oil-spills and the role
engineering and innovation play in improving our world.

Just a FEW HOURS of YOUR TIME on FEB. 26th, 9:30-1:30pm can INSPIRE a LIFETIME of LOVE for SCIENCE in the Next Generation.

*No other time provided. *Lunch Provided for Volunteers. *Volunteers of ALL Disciplines are welcome.
E-Week is an Annual Event hosted by PTOS, The Affinity Groups, The Office of Education and Outreach and The Office of EEO & Diversity.
To sign-up or for more information, contact Maryam Ipakchi.

Pride month video

photo of an old movie cameraThe office of Diversity has received a contract to produce videos for the special emphasis months and would like to complete the LGBT Pride month video by March 2016. We are looking for volunteers to appear on camera as well as ideas for content. What do you wish to convey to the PTO community about pride month and LGBT employees? This is a great opportunity to present ideas and represent our group! Anyone willing, please step forward and contact us.

Meet and Greet Director Lee

Photo of a greeting hand“Any employee on campus Thursday, Sept 10 is encouraged to drop by a “meet-and-greet” session with USPTO Director Michelle K. Lee. The session will take place from 10 – 10:30 a.m. in the Atrium of the Madison Building, on the concourse level near Innovative Grounds.”

-USPTO Weekly

Looking for Volunteers

Chocolate_Cupcakes_with_Raspberry_ButtercreamThe International Food Sample Festival is coming by! Our theme this year is boozy cupcakes! We need a few good members to help us throw a baking party the day before and a few to volunteer and help distribute our food samples at our table.

Baking day is July 28th, and the Festival happens on Wednesday, July 29th. We need to set up at 11:00 AM, start serving from 11:30 to 1:30, then clean up ending no later than 2:00. Are you in?

Count Me In!

Invitation to the IP5 working meetings

The Office of International Patent Cooperation (OIPC) is hosting four, IP5 working group meetings in the coming months.  The IP5 is comprised of the five largest Intellectual Property Offices:  the European Patent Office (EPO), the Japan Patent Office (JPO), the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO), the State Intellectual Property Office of the People’s Republic of China (SIPO) and the USPTO.  The IP5 Offices together handle about 80% of the world’s patent applications, and 95% of all work carried out under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

Each year, the IP5 Offices rotate to host annual working group meetings.  The purpose of these meetings it to find ways to eliminate unnecessary duplication of work among the offices, enhance the patent examination efficiency and quality, and guarantee the stability of patent rights.

The reason for our email today is to see if you and your members would be interested in volunteering to help out during any of the meetings and/or if you would like to host an event during one (or more) of our IP5 meetings.  These events can be anything that you would like to do, e.g., coffee breaks, happy hours, tea reception, etc. This is a great opportunity for our IP5 colleagues to learn more about our USPTO community and meet some of our employees. It would also provide our Affinity Group leaders and members an opportunity to meet our visiting international delegates.

Below are the schedules for the IP5 working group meetings.  All meetings are held in the USPTO, in the Global Intellectual Property Academy (GIPA).

August 17- August 20, 2015
Statistics Working Group Meeting
POC: Jane Peek
• Annual compilation of patent statistics for the five largest IP Offices

October 19 – October 23, 2015
Work Group 1 (WG1)
POC: LaChelle Carpenter-Parker
• Classification and related topics: Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC)

October 26 – October 30, 2015
Work Group 3 (WG3)
POC: Amber Ostrup
• Work sharing and Quality:  Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH), Collaborative Search Pilot Program

February 1 – February 5, 2016
Work Group 2 (WG2)
POC: Jessica Patterson
• IT-Supported Business Practices: Global Dossier, Priority Document Exchange

If you are interested and available, we would like to offer you an opportunity to host an event to welcome our IP5 colleagues.

Please contact Rachel Pellegrino by e-mail and the respective meeting POC if you are interested in hosting an event.

OEEOD August Training Series

P.I.E. (Performance, Image, Exposure) Training

In case you missed it the first time, OEEOD will be hosting another session of P.I.E. training.

What: P.I.E. examines the relationship and interdependency between three key dimensions (Performance, Image, and Exposure) and their impact on an individual’s career. A correct balance between these three dimensions is critical to proper career positioning and progress.

When: Thursday, August 6, 2015, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm

Where: GIPA (and WebEx)

Unconscious Bias Seminar

OEEOD will be hosting a seminar on understanding unconscious bias.

What: Unconscious Bias refers to attitudes or beliefs we hold about others that affect our understanding, actions, and decisions in an unconscious manner. Becoming aware of our unconscious biases can help mitigate them in the workplace.

When: Wednesday, August 19, 2015, 12:00 – 1:00 pm

Where: Only WebEx space available

Space is limited for both seminars. Please RSVP by e-mail to Chelsea Hansen. Please indicate your preference for in-person or WebEx attendance.

Webinar Tomorrow: WorkLife Balance “How to Get the Most Out of Both Sides of Life”

rock-balanceThe Office of Human Resources Benefits and Worklife Branch, in partnership with LifeCare, will host a “WorkLife Balance: How to Get the Most Out of Both Sides of Life” webinar Tuesday, June 2, from noon – 1 p.m. ET. Register online to learn more.

LifeCare Consulting Trainer Steve Earley will discuss the challenges of determining what information to share or keep private about your personal lives while at work. For those in the LGBT community, there may be some additional pressures or notions about what to share and what not to. Participants will discuss when sharing aspects of personal life is potentially helpful or harmful.

For inquiries related to the “WorkLife Balance: How to Get the Most Out of Both Sides of Life” webinar or other USPTO Wellness events, contact the Compensation and Benefits Division.

Register at https://lifecare.webex.com/lifecare/onstage/g.php?MTID=ee1c73320d21509c3287035b8563b7300

All seminars are open to USPTO employees and their family members. All participants who are not USPTO employees must obtain visitors’ passes at the nearest security desk.

All programs are physically accessible to employees with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation, other auxiliary aids, or special arrangements should be made as far in advance as possible to the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity and Diversity (OEEOD) or Tamika Beverly.