Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER CANADIAN HR REPORTER February 24, 2014 NEWS 9 MARS MISSION < pg. 1 MA MARS RS MIS IS I SI SION < pg pg p . . 1 change her mind. "I began to realize that this will happen, this mission to Mars. And I might as well be part of this and ensure that the best people are up there," she said. Personal qualities basis of selection process So how exactly do you fi nd the best people for such a uniquely challenging mission? e selection process is still in development, said Kass — but a key takeaway is that much of it will be based on the applicants' personal qualities and teamwork, as opposed to their technical knowledge. "We have developed criteria that are connected with psycho- social areas and my team has put together fi ve characteristics that will be considered: resiliency, adaptability, curiosity, ability to trust and creativity or resource- fulness," she said. "(But) we're also looking for a person who can build and maintain healthy rela- tionships. And, of course, attitude (plays) a signifi cant role — it is the foundation." In terms of personal qualities, it's not the same kind of mission profi le shown in movies and in space stations, according to Zac Trolley, another successful round two applicant and a Calgary- based project engineer. "Those kinds of people we imagine in our heads when we think of Tom Hanks in Apollo 13 — those are the test pilots, the tough guys, the guys that love speed. And that's not what this mission is about — it's a settling mission, it's a colonization mis- sion. So the most important thing is working as a team." Even the preliminary stage of the recruitment process was based more on gauging the ap- plicants' personalities than on as- sessing their skills, requiring can- didates to answer a questionnaire and create a brief video about themselves. " e questions very much re- minded me of a job interview," said Foley. " ey weren't looking for skills because they fi gure they can train us. What they can't train is personalities and the ability to work as a team and the suitability for being fairly isolated for a long time." Several stages involved In terms of process, potential astronauts will have to weather multiple rounds of cuts before earning the chance to explore the red planet. Round one was mostly a mat- ter of selecting the best applicants based on how well they presented on paper (and video). Round two — the round Foley and Trolley are in right now — will involve screening for any pre-existing health conditions or drug, tobac- co or alcohol dependencies, fol- lowed by a round of face-to-face regional interviews. Round three will take place in the United States, involving a se- ries of challenges connected to survival, while round four will involve simulations and isolated environments. The application process is expected to reopen at some point, and after the fi rst four astronauts are sent, the plan is to send a new crew every two years. "So the fi ve characteristics will be considered and as we engage over the weeks, over the months in simulations, in isolation, watch- ing them do diff erent things for long, long periods, it will begin to be evident," said Kass. "We are looking at, ultimately, a person who is able and willing to build and maintain healthy re- lationships. Which doesn't mean you don't have conflict, which doesn't mean you don't disagree, but we're looking here at healthy confl icts and (the) ability to move forward after that. After all, that's who they will be living with, eating with, doing everything with." Given that Mars One has placed no limits on education level, gender, race, language or culture, there is no telling how members of the broad applicant pool might relate to one another. But that hasn't stopped observers from speculating, said Kass. "Of course, big questions have been asked — what about age? What about gender? All these questions are still up in the air in terms of who is really in front of us by the (end)," she said. In fact, the age range of the round two applicants is quite wide, as there is no upper age limit. "We haven't said, 'You've got to be such-and-such an age.' As the screening process begins to take place in the selecting out in terms of medical and technical (require- ments), age may become a factor," said Kass. " e beauty about this is we haven't put any educational limits or anything like that. We haven't said, 'We need to have a physicist and we need to have a nurse.' We haven't said any of that." Group cohesion in extreme environments A harsh environment that's in- hospitable to human life is prob- lem enough, but being isolated in such an extreme environment can place extraordinary tension on group dynamics. Even more complicated? e fact that it's a one-way trip adds a whole new dimension to the psy- chological challenge, said Kass. "I'm often asked, 'What if people change their minds?' Of course, they can change their minds — but that's before they go. But they'll have ample opportuni- ty," she said, adding the selection committee will be carefully exam- ining each applicant's motivations before they are sent. "In no way will they be coerced. In fact, the whole process is set up to select out, so that those who have remained in are the ones who really feel quite grounded in their decision." Kass has studied and examined the social dynamics in other ex- treme groups, such as the trapped Chilean miners in 2010, the Ari- zona biosphere project in 1994 and crews spending extended pe- riods of time on a submarine. "You look there at the scape- goating that takes place and all of the things that happen when people are together for a long time under diffi cult circumstanc- es… It's the people part that really can push this forward or hold this back," she said. "Individuality will not work very well in a situation like this. It's a sense of community, it's a sense that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts." "It will be very difficult — I have no illusions about that," said Trolley. "If you're one of the fi rst people to go up, you could potentially have only (three other) people that you'll see and talk to for the next (few) years, so that's a very small social circle." And living in such a small group for the indefi nite future will make effective communication skills that much more critical. "In life on Earth, it's tough as it is. If I'm annoyed with you, I go to my room and close my door… I may take off to another city or country," said Kass. "You won't have that luxury (on Mars). We have those luxuries and it's still diffi cult." ere will be limited ability to communicate with Earth elec- tronically, so Foley sees that as a silver lining. "It'll be tough, but growing up I moved around a lot. So while my parents were my constant… many of my friends, I only had contact with through social media. So I do have a little bit of familiarity or comfort level with that type of in- teraction and maintaining friend- ships that way," she said. Despite the many diffi culties, the Mars mission will allow a lucky few to turn a new page of history, said Kass. "It seems to me that the human condition by its very nature is to push through these crises, and history is made when the impos- sible is made possible." RECRUITMENT Personal qualities the key Instead of technical skills or knowledge, the selection committee will be focusing on the personal qualities of potential astronauts. Raye Kass, Mars One advisor, discussed what each of the fi ve key traits for applicants entails. Resiliency: "We're looking at someone who perseveres, stays productive — is at their best when things are at their worst. Indomitable spirit, the can-do attitude, robust thought process." Adaptability: "We're talking about a fl exible barometer of how to adapt to situations and individuals, while taking context into account. The ability to know one's boundaries and when and how to extend them when it's needed." Curiosity: "(It's) the asking of questions to understand — not simply to get answers. Actively engaged in the journey of knowing, not simply content with reaching an answer. The transferring of knowledge to others, not showcasing what one knows while others don't." Ability to trust: "That is so core. Trust in one's self, trust in others, knowing when to mistrust… trust that's surrounded by good judgment. Self-informed trust." Creativity/resourcefulness: "You're not constrained by one way of doing things or by one initial way you've been taught to fi nd a solution. And in there you're looking at sense of play, you're looking at the way in which an issue, a problem, a situation is approached." Not the space mission you've seen in the movies Not the space mission you've seen in the movies " ose kinds of people we imagine in our heads... are the test pilots, the tough guys. And that's not what this mission is about. Most important is working as a team." Credit: NASA Handout (Reuters) This full-circle scene combines 817 images taken by the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity on the planet Mars. It shows the terrain that surrounded the rover while it was stationary for four months of work during a Martian winter.

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