‘We want to be a healthy organisation, and we achieve that together’
A place where people enjoy working and studying—that’s at the core of the strategic plan of our faculty, and a lot of effort is being put into achieving this goal. Elice Schöne, Head of HR, is involved in the Leadership, Recognition and Rewards programme. What does it entail, and how does it affect you? Seven questions for Elice.
What does the programme involve?
‘As faculty we want to be an attractive employer. That’s why, as part of this programme, we’ve been working to make our HR processes better, more transparent, and clearer. How does someone progress from assistant professor to associate professor? What are the career development options for non-academic staff? And what training and career coaching opportunities are available? It’s important for these things to be clear to our employees.’
How are you approaching this?
‘First, we want to map out what’s already in place. We’ve started consultation rounds with academic staff in all institutes. That means we’re taking stock of how things are organised, what career paths look like, and asking employees about their experiences with current processes. We’re also interviewing the institute management teams. Next year, we’ll focus on the support staff. So far, what stands out is that there are significant differences between the institutes.’
Will everything eventually be organised the same way across institutes?
‘Within our faculty, we aim to have one clear foundational process that applies to everyone. The institutes can then adapt the implementation to suit their own needs. It’s beneficial to have clear and transparent faculty-wide processes, so staff members know what training, career coaching, and growth opportunities are available—and can easily access them.’
How does leadership fit into this?
‘Being a leader is a skill in itself, and it requires training. That’s why we’ve developed a leadership ladder that outlines, very clearly, the training options for each leadership role. Personal leadership is just as important. This means taking responsibility for your own development. Having conversations about that with your manager is crucial. That’s why we’ve introduced GROW, to support all employees in this.’
When will this programme be finished?
‘The programme began after the summer and will run throughout this academic year. By summer, we aim to present the Faculty Board with recommendations for implementing talent development processes for both our academic and support staff.’
‘I hope having conversations about personal development becomes something we enjoy doing.’
What do you hope this programme will achieve?
‘I hope we’ll establish a robust foundational process with a clear structure. My hope is that all institutes align with this, in line with the Faculty’s strategy. We’re part of the same team, and we need to work together to make this happen. We want to be a healthy organisation that achieves its goals. And we achieve that together.
Having open conversations is key. I hope it becomes a habit—something we enjoy doing. Because it’s about you, about your development. It should be something positive, not just a box you tick once a year.’
Is this a call to action for all colleagues?
‘My call to action is: make time to think about yourself and what makes you happy at work. What do you need to thrive? Talk about it with your manager, and definitely join one of the consultation rounds. For support staff, we’ll organise these soon. If you want a say in how we shape this process, get involved in the conversation now!’