Robert L. Van Ness
Associate Vice President for Laboratory Management

Bob Van Ness is the associate vice president for laboratory operations in the University of California's Laboratory Management Office (LMO). The office provides management and operational oversight to three Department of Energy laboratories: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Los Alamos National Laboratory.

The DOE-UC 1992 contract pioneered performance-based management in the DOE complex. Within the DOE contractor community, the UC Laboratory Management Office is a leader in the application of continuous improvement concepts, performance measurement and teamwork to foster management excellence.

Van Ness is a charter member and former chairman of the DOE National Laboratories Improvement Council, established to improve R&D productivity at all DOE laboratories.

Van Ness' career began with the U.S. Navy, where he was the contracting officer for new construction of nuclear submarines, including the first four Trident submarines. He then joined the Department of Energy, serving as director of Procurement Policy and of the Office of Financial Incentives. After entering the private sector, he became chief financial officer and executive vice president of a national construction company. Prior to joining the University of California, he served as associate director for administration at the Superconducting Super Collider Laboratory.

Van Ness earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Harvard Business School.