More Transparent Hiring with the HR Excellence in Research Certification
The University of Montpellier has made its recruitment policy for researchers and staff public by publishing its OTM-R charter. This initiative is part of the university’s efforts to renew its European “HR Excellence in Research” label , which stems from theUM Human Resources Strategy for Research (HRS4R). This strategy, implemented since 2015, aims to better support researchers in their careers, improve their working conditions and mobility, and enhance the university’s appeal.
“This isn’t a revolution in our recruitment methods, but it is another step toward greater transparency,” says Frédérique Gerbouin, head of recruitment, training, and support in the Human Resources Department, regarding the publication of the OTMR recruitment charter. OTM-R stands for “open, transparent, and merit-based recruitment.” The manager prefers to clarify this literal translation:“Merit doesn’t mean quite the same thing in English as it does in French, so it should be understood as recruitment based on objective competency criteria.” ” Originally designed for the recruitment of researchers, this charter has been extended to all UM staff—and will soon include its doctoral students—and is now available for everyone to view on the institution’s website.
Streamline recruitment and standardize practices
The primary objective of this OTM-R charter is to improve the clarity and understanding of the various stages of the hiring process atUM from submitting an application to starting the job—and to make job postings accessible to all candidates, whether they are internal or external to the institution, French-speaking or non-French-speaking, by practicing“internationalization at home,”that is, internationalization within the institution to better meet the needs of diverse audiences. This involves, in particular, increasing the amount of information available in English,” explains Nathalie Modjeska, HRS4R project manager and head of MUSE’s international programs. “This is a quality-driven approach, with the goal of recruiting the most qualified candidate by opening up the applicant pool as widely as possible, particularly internationally. This approach supports the implementation of our human resources strategy and has earned us the ‘HR Excellence in Research’ certification.”
The institution did not wait until 2020 to implement these recruitment principles, the official publication of which is now mandatory to qualify for renewal of the HR Excellence in Research label — a program created in 2008 by the European Commission to recognize research institutions that apply the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers (C&C)— two Commission documents aimed at harmonizing research practices to facilitate mobility and career advancement within the European Research Area.“Research is highly collaborative on an international level, so facilitating researchers’ mobility seems logical,” adds the head of training and support.
To this end,UM adopted a human resources strategy for research (HRS4R), led by Jacques Mercier, Vice President for Research, and involving more than 13 departments. In March 2015,UM thusUM the first French university to receive this accreditation for a five-year term, thereby highlighting its excellence in human resources for research.“Paradoxically, this certification is often overlooked and undervalued by faculty members. Yet this initiative was originally designed for them. It aims to improve their working conditions, promote their mobility within the European Union, and better support their career development,” explains Nathalie Modjeska.
A Research Label
This accreditation benefitsUM researchersUM various ways, starting with access to European funding. “All else being equal, a proposal submitted in response to a European call for proposals by an accredited institution will be given priority for funding. ” The institution’s accreditation also meets the European Commission’s requirements regarding the obligation for institutions receiving European funds to implement a human resources strategy aligned with C&C (Article 32 under the Horizon 2020 program). It therefore plays an essential role in securing European funding obtained by researchers at the University of Montpellier, amounting to approximately 10 million euros per year.
This certification also helps significantly enhance the institution’s appeal both nationally and internationally by giving greater visibility to job postings published byUM.“Thanks to the HR Excellence in Research logo featured on the job postings we publish, we stand out as a good employer that cares about working conditions. Not to mention that it increases the visibility of our postings on the platform Euraxess platform, as they are automatically reposted on Nature and Sciences ,” continues Nathalie Modjeska.
“We need to encourage researchers to use this logo whenever possible—to include it in their signatures and in their responses to European calls for proposals,” adds Frédérique Gerbouin. “We support them in posting their job openings to highlight this label. It can really make a difference!” A toolkit has also been created on the intranet to guide them through this process.
A 3-year renewal
The application was submitted to the European Commission in December 2020 and published on theUM website. Representatives of researchers and faculty members, who are members of the HRS4R Steering Committee, were consulted throughout the process, particularly during an interactive workshop held in November 2019.“Europe really expects researchers to be actively involved in this process, ” explains the project manager. “Together, we considered possible improvements to their professional practices. Many suggestions were put forward, and the vast majority of them have been incorporated into the new 2020–2023 plan (see box).”
The challenge now is to convince members of the scientific community to embrace this new system: “Among the objectives of the new plan are the continued shift to digital processes and administrative simplification atUM , UM efforts to harmonize procedures with research organizations on issues that can be addressed locally. In fact, joint research units operate with as many tools, processes, and schedules as there are overseeing agencies! This is a measure that could make the teams’ work easier,”conclude Frédérique Gerbouin and Nathalie Modjeska. The results of the evaluation of the renewal application by three European experts will be announced in several months following an audit scheduled for thesecond quarter of 2021. Stay tuned!
A 23-point action plan
- Theupdated version for the 2020–2023 period outlines 23 initiatives, many of which are already underway or have even been completed;
- The policy to attract young researchers, postdocs, and established researchers (Action 16);
- Promoting teaching through the creation of a teaching award modeled after the innovation award (Action 17);
- Raising staff awareness about developing a personalized career plan, as explained by Virginie Fattore, a career advisor, in this video (Action 19).
As for new features, these include:
- The launch of interdisciplinary workshops designed to foster exchange and understanding among researchers at different levels or with administrative and technical staff (Action 5);
- Continuing efforts toward digitization and administrative simplification (Action 6);
- The creation of a committee to harmonize procedures and foster closer ties with research organizations (Action 7);
- The dissemination and implementation of the OTM-R principles through training sessions and their monitoring in the annual social report (Action 9);
- The pursuit of greater gender balance through the equality plan (Action 12);
- Improving communication regarding the timelines and procedures for career advancement and tenure (Action 18);
- A training program designed to develop managerial skills, offered to all heads of units, departments, and divisions (Action 23).