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 releasing its OTM-R charter. This initiative is part of the renewal of the European HR Excellence in Research label , a result of UM’s Human Resources Strategy for Research (HRS4R). This strategy, implemented since 2015, aims to better support researchers in their careers, improve working conditions and mobility for researchers, while enhancing 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.” ” Initially designed for the recruitment of researchers, this charter has been extended to all UM staff, and soon to its doctoral students, and made available to everyone on the institutional 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 at UM—from submitting an application to starting the position—and to make job postings accessible to all candidates, whether 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, the idea being to recruit the most qualified candidate by opening up the applicant pool as widely as possible, particularly internationally. This approach contributes to the implementation of our human resources strategy and has earned us the HR Excellence in Research label.”
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 development within the European Research Area.“Research is highly collaborative on an international level, so facilitating researcher mobility seems logical,” adds the head of training and support.
To this end, UM has 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 thus became the first French university to receive this accreditation for a period of five years, thereby highlighting its excellence in human resources for research.“Paradoxically, this certification is often misunderstood and undervalued by faculty members. Yet this project was originally designed for them. It aims to improve their working conditions, promote their mobility within the European Union, and better support their careers,” explains Nathalie Modjeska.
A research label
This accreditation benefits UM researchers in 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 label also helps significantly boost the institution’s appeal both nationally and internationally by increasing the visibility of job postings published by UM.“Thanks to the HR Excellence in Research logo displayed 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 ,” adds 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 help them highlight this label when posting job openings. It can really make a difference!” A toolkit has also been created on the intranet to guide them through this process.
A three-year renewal
The application was submitted to the European Commission in December 2020 and published on the UM 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 translated into actions in 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 toward digital processes and administrative simplification at the UM, as well as 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 supervisory bodies! 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 known 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 already been completed;
- The policy to attract young researchers, postdocs, and experienced 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 counselor, in this video (Action 19).
Among the new features, we can highlight:
- The launch of interdisciplinary workshops designed to foster exchange and understanding among researchers at different levels or with administrative and technical staff (Action 5);
- The continued shift toward digital processes and administrative simplification (Action 6);
- The establishment 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 programs 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 managers of departments, divisions, and units (Action 23).