'Narrow the gap between support and academic staff'
When a spot in the core group of the Strategy Team became available, she immediately applied for the position. Because as Head of HR, Elice Schöne feels it is important that her department is well connected to the strategic plan.
The core group makes joint choices. That is something beautiful, Schöne thinks. 'The mix of people makes you feel in advance that it is supported by every part of the faculty. Especially in combination with the sessions in Corpus; a lot of attention is paid to providing input.' She therefore says the strategic plan belongs to all of us. 'It is up to the faculty board to give it course and direction. But getting to the core, that is something that we do together.'
Recognise and appreciate
For Schöne, there are many important issues, but for her, recognising and appreciating is first and foremost. Therein lies the key of several themes which the core group has identified so far. One example is to bring support and management staff (OBP) and academic staff (WP) closer together. 'That gap needs to narrow,' Schöne believes. 'Both groups are equally important to our faculty.'
Forming working groups to deepen themes
She found the table discussions Schöne led in Corpus useful and valuable. 'In my position, it is very tempting to focus only on staff, but the group is so much larger. It would have been nice if more students had attended, but I understand that for them a strategic plan feels less important.' Despite the nice things being said, Schöne believes we should be careful not to promise to implement everything. She opines that when the strategy is ready, we should form working groups to explore other themes in depth. 'But first we need to create a helicopter view.'
'I hope we can continue to evolve'
Ultimately, Schöne hopes for a strategic plan with themes that people can relate to. Something that emphasises the unity of our faculty. 'We have institutes that function well independently, but let's look at what brings us together. What should we stick to? And what can help us move forward in the coming years? I hope we can continue to develop as faculty, as institutes, but above all as people.'