Abstract

EARMA 2024: Challenges in the recruitment, training and retention of research managers

ISGlobal's Grants Office has been in continuous evolution since its creation. This evolution and changes in the organization has a rationale behind it, especially linked to the growth of the institution and consequently of the Grants Office.

3 years ago, staff turnover in the Office was minimal, in fact it was seen as an strenght of our organization: the department was growing but no one left the institution. But in 2021 and especially in 2022 we have had many departures and arrivals of staff.

Recruiting new staff has been a challenge in 2022 for several reasons:

- very high demand for research manager profiles by all research centers, i.e. competition between centers

- few profiles on the labor market with previous training in research management or basic research knowledge

The objective of the round table is to share between the participants the situations they have experienced and to see which strategies they have, in their institution, in terms of incoming, training for newcomers, talent retention strategies…
In this round table we will try to answer questions as

Which are, in your opinion, the main reasons for the increase in the turnover of research managers in the institutions in 2021 and especially in 2022?
Which strategies does your institution have for hiring skilled personnel?
In terms of training, do you think there is a sufficient pool of training courses for new research managers? Which elements should this training offer include?
Which strategies does your institution have in place for staff retention? Do you have your own career path and training itineraries for non researchers?