UCAR Leadership Award

William P. Mahoney, former Research Application Laboratory Director

UCAR’s first-ever Outstanding Accomplishment in Leadership Award goes to William (Bill) Mahoney, a leader and scientist whose nomination received a dozen heartfelt testimonials from former colleagues and employees, and who spent his exemplary career inspiring, connecting, and empowering others. For more than 37 years at NCAR, Bill made a name for himself not only as an innovative scientist and visionary strategist, but as a champion of collaboration and service to others. Notably, his leadership of NCAR’s Research Application Laboratory (RAL) led to widespread growth and success over the past five years in the face of significant challenges, both globally and within the organization.

As his nominators detailed extensively, Bill’s efforts have broadly enhanced NCAR/UCAR’s reputation, served to initiate several new areas of applied meteorology, added applications to our repertoire, mentored new leaders within and beyond the organization, exemplified excellent and inclusive management practices, and empowered a generation of entrepreneurial scientists and engineers. Bill is particularly noted for his extraordinary scientific leadership; his dedicated mentorship of both young and established scientists; and the way his management transformed RAL into a highly collaborative laboratory, where a culture of interconnectivity inspired employees to produce fascinating and purposeful science. All of these achievements, along with many others, speak to the ways Bill’s leadership has permanently impacted UCAR, NCAR, and the wider scientific community.