Presentation given at the Workshop “HRS4R – The Human Resources Strategy for Researchers” which was organised by the Conference of Italian University Rectors (CRUI) and took place in Rome on 28 March 2012.

1. Charter & Code and the
Human Resources Strategy for Researchers
in the European context
Dr. Dagmar Meyer, European Commission
“HRS4R – The Human Resources
Strategy for Researchers”
organised by CRUI
Rome, 28 March 2012

2. Overview
• From the Mobility Strategy to the Charter & Code and
the European Partnership for Researchers
• Europe 2020 Strategy, Innovation Union and ERA
Framework
• Human Resources Strategy for Researchers – how
does it work?
• HR Strategy - State of play

3. Overview
• From the Mobility Strategy to the Charter & Code
and the European Partnership for Researchers
• Europe 2020 Strategy, Innovation Union and ERA
Framework
• Human Resources Strategy for Researchers – how
does it work?
• HR Strategy - State of play

4. Policy context (1/4)
• COM Communication (2000) “Towards a European
Research Area”
• Lisbon European Summit mandates Commission and Member
States to work closely together to take the necessary steps for
the removal of persisting obstacles to mobility of researchers.
• COM Communication (2001) “A Mobility Strategy for
the European Research Area”
• “This Communication presents a strategy to create a
favourable environment for the mobility of researchers in the
ERA, in order to develop, attract and retain appropriate human
resources in research and to promote innovation.”

5. Policy context (2/4)
• COM Communication (2003) “Researchers in the
ERA: One profession, multiple careers”
• “The present Communication … aims to analyse the different
elements which characterise the profession and defines the
various factors which condition the development of researchers’
careers at European level, namely: the role and nature of
research training, the differences in recruitment methods, the
contractual and budgetary dimension, and, finally, the
evaluation mechanisms and the progress perspectives within
the career.”
• Implementation of Mobility Strategy / Careers
Communication monitored by HLG, then Steering Group
HRM as part of the Open Method of Coordination

6. Policy context (3/4)
• COM Recommendation to Member States (2005) on
a “European Charter for Researchers and Code
of Conduct for their Recruitment”
• based on broad stakeholder consultation process
• follow-up activities focusing on implementation: EU
Presidency Conferences London (2005), Vienna (2006),
and in a broader context: Rennes (2008), Brussels (2010),
Budapest (2011)

7. Policy context (4/4)
• Competitiveness Council (April 2005) invites MS to:
• take into account as appropriate, in accordance with their
legal system, the principles laid down in the Charter and the
Code when formulating their Human Resources and Mobility
strategies and funding programmes, such as institutional
quality assurance mechanisms, funding criteria as well as
auditing, monitoring and evaluation processes;
• raise awareness of the Charter and the Code within their own
country, on a voluntary basis, engage actively with
employers, funding organisations and researchers and other
relevant parties on their application and where appropriate put
in place monitoring mechanisms to accompany the different
measures.

8. ERA Expert Group
• Green paper (2007) “The ERA: New Perspectives”
• Expert Group report (2008) on “Realising a single
labour market for researchers”:
• “Any organisation in receipt of public funds for research
which signed the C&C is required:
• to promote knowledge and awareness of C&C; (…)
• to define and advertise a Human Resources Mission
Statement, in line with the C&C spirit, focusing on the
recruitment, career development and retirement
procedures of their respective researchers; (…)”
• Expert Group recommends creation of a ‘ERA –
Researchers’ Human Resources Label’

9. European Partnership for Researchers
• COM Communication (2008) “Better careers and more
mobility: a European partnership for researchers” Four
main themes:
 Open recruitment and portability of grants
 Meeting the social security and supplementary pension needs of
mobile researchers
 Providing attractive employment and working conditions
 Enhancing the training, skills and experience of researchers
• EPR implementation monitored by the Steering Group
Human Resources and Mobility (SGHRM)

10. Overview
• From the Mobility Strategy to the Charter & Code and
the European Partnership for Researchers
• Europe 2020 Strategy, Innovation Union and ERA
Framework
• Human Resources Strategy for Researchers – how
does it work?
• HR Strategy - State of play

11. Europe 2020 and the Innovation Union
• COM Communication (03/2010) “Europe 2020 - A
strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth”
 Big Societal Challenges - Climate, Energy, Health,
Security, Resource Efficiency…
 7 Flagship Initiatives: Innovation Union, Agenda for New
Skills and Jobs, Digital Agenda, Youth on the Move, etc.
• COM Communication (10/2010) “Europe 2020 Flagship
Initiative - Innovation Union”
 Innovation overarching policy objective
 Main obstacles: unfavorable framework conditions &
fragmentation of effort

12. Innovation Union Commitments (1/3)
• Over 30 Action Points (“Commitments”) proposing
initiatives in key areas, including:
#1: By the end of 2011, MS should have strategies
in place to train enough researchers to meet their
national R&D targets and to promote attractive
employment conditions in public research
institutions. Gender and dual career considerations
should be fully taken into account in these
strategies.

13. Innovation Union Commitments (2/3)
 #30: By 2012, EU and MS to put into place integrated
policies
- to ensure that leading academics, researchers
and innovators reside and work in Europe and
- to attract a sufficient number of highly skilled
third country nationals to stay in Europe.

14. Innovation Union Commitments (3/3)
 #4: Completing the ERA: In 2012, COM will propose an ERA
framework and supporting measures to remove obstacles
to mobility and cross-border cooperation (to be in force
by end 2014), addressing among others:
- quality of doctoral training, attractive employment
conditions and gender balance in research careers;
- mobility of researchers across countries and sectors,
including through open recruitment in public research
institutions and comparable research career structures
and by facilitating the creation of European
supplementary pension funds.

15. ERA Framework
• Lisbon Treaty makes reference to the ERA as the way to
achieve the objective of strengthening the scientific and
technological bases of the Union.
• Article 182(5) TFEU entitles the Union to adopt all measures
that it deems necessary to achieve the ERA.
• Intense preparatory work ongoing, including a thorough
Impact Assessment.
• Broad Stakeholder Consultation carried out in late 2011,
confirming the urgent need for action in key areas such as
open recruitment, portability of grants, training and
career development (including working conditions).

16. Overview
• From the Mobility Strategy to the Charter & Code and
the European Partnership for Researchers
• Europe 2020 Strategy, Innovation Union and ERA
Framework
• Human Resources Strategy for Researchers – how
does it work?
• HR Strategy - State of play

17. HR Strategy for Researchers
• Tool to support the implementation of Charter &
Code: “HR Strategy for Researchers”
Voluntary, based on self-assessment and mutual
learning
Open to all research organisations and funders -
more than 200 institutions taking part, more to
come!!
Aim: include all major public employers and
funders of researchers in Europe (critical mass,
spill-over effects)

18. Key aspects of the HR Strategy Process
• This mechanism is a support tool.
• It is thus voluntary.
• It is also light to apply and flexible in its validation and
verification approach.
• It recognizes the variety of situations across
institutions and organisations.
• The result should be meaningful and reliable
information on the actions to implement the Charter
and Code principles, which is easily available to the
public at large.

19. How does the HR Strategy for
Researchers work?
Implemented via 5-step voluntary programme:
• Internal gap analysis by the individual institution/
organisation, involving key institutional stakeholders, in
particular also researchers
• Development and publication of institutional HR
strategy for researchers and action plan (what, by
when, by whom) in response to gaps identified
• Acknowledgement of progress by Commission (Logo
“HR Excellence in Research”)
• Self-assessment of progress after at most two years
• External analysis after at most four years

20. “HR Excellence in Research” Logo
• To be used exclusively by institutions that have received
the acknowledgement (listed on EURAXESS website)
• Logo displayed on EURAXESS Jobs Portal with adverts
by acknowledged institutions!

21. Key success factors (1/3)
• HR Strategy process should be firmly integrated in
overall institutional strategy and vision – not a separate
process!
• Support by institutional leadership crucial.
• Should help you to do what you should do anyway, just
better:
more efficiently
more effectively
with more impact
Logo is a recognition of progress – should not be
the main motivation!

22. Key success factors (2/3)
• Institutional cross-cutting working group can help to get
buy-in from all departments involved.
• Staff survey, workshops / focus groups or similar can
help to find out more about the views of both junior
and senior researchers
• Interaction with peers useful to see how they do/did it.
• Important: small changes (that do not cost the world)
can have a huge impact!

23. Key success factors (3/3)
• Participants should think beyond their own institution;
act as ambassadors
• Relevant umbrella organisations (Rectors
Conferences etc.) can facilitate the coordination of
institutional efforts at national or regional level (e.g.
analysis of legal framework for all institutions
governed by it)

24. Action plan/HR Strategy – what
should it contain? (1/2)
• A short description of the process at institutional level,
including who/which groups were consulted for the gap
analysis.
• Main gaps identified and their allocated priority/
importance in the institutional/national context (full gap
analysis does NOT need to be published).
• Actions planned to address the issues, including
who/which department is responsible and who else
needs to be involved/consulted; what is the timeline.
Being concrete here will facilitate monitoring!

25. Action plan/HR Strategy – what
should it contain? (2/2)
• Where applicable: Some explanations why certain
issues will not be tackled or have to be postponed
(legal constraints, shortage of resources, …); longer
term approach for these issues.
• Approach to monitoring; what is the institution’s long-
term vision?
• Final action plan/strategy must be available (also) in
English, in order to fulfil the requirement “easily
accessible” for foreign researchers and to allow the
Commission to check its content for the
acknowledgement.

26. Acknowledgement – why bother?
No obligation to ask for the acknowledgement, but:
• Acknowledgement provides added visibility:
 listing on the EURAXESS Rights website;
 exclusive right to use the logo on institutional website,
promotional material…. use of logo on EURAXESS Jobs;
• Acknowledgement adds credibility – internally and
externally, towards researchers, national authorities,
funders etc..
• Acknowledgement means becoming part of a growing
group of institutions, many of very high international
standing, adding to the institution’s status.

27. Acknowledgement – what is it (not)?
• It is NOT an evaluation of the strategy put forward.
• It is NOT a judgement of the current state of affairs.
• It IS an acknowledgement that steps 1 & 2 of the HR
strategy process have been fulfilled and that the
prescribed procedure has been respected.

28. Overview
• From the Mobility Strategy to the Charter & Code and
the European Partnership for Researchers
• Europe 2020 Strategy, Innovation Union and ERA
Framework
• Human Resources Strategy for Researchers – how
does it work?
• HR Strategy - State of play

29. HR Strategy – state of play
• “Institutional HR Strategy Group” set up in 2009, 2nd /
3rd cohort Jan. 2011 / 2012, 4th to be launched late 2012
• 150 members: universities, research institutions,
funding bodies, multipliers, etc.,
• 21 group members from first cohort acknowledged,
(including Univ. Foggia, Palermo, Camerino, Padova)
• 3 group members from the second cohort
• Plus 50 (!!) UK institutions carrying out process on
basis of the UK Concordat under coordination by VITAE
(8 further candidates currently being assessed)
• Plus first 10 “external” institutions (3 from BE, 7 from
HR) – process not restricted to members of WG

30. More information:
visit the EURAXESS portal, section
“Rights”, at
http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess/rights

31. Thank you for your attention!
dagmar.meyer@ec.europa.eu
Dr. Dagmar Meyer
European Commission - DG Research and Innovation
Unit B2 - “Skills”