Implementation: raising awareness

Following a high profile launch in 2008 by the then Minister of State for Science and Innovation, widespread distribution of hard copies and many local and regional launch events for both research staff and senior staff raised initial awareness of the Concordat. Related activities have continued since, including many facilitated by Vitae regional Hubs.

Additionally, Vitae’s programme of annual UK and regional Hub events cover topics relevant to the career development of research staff. Annual events include:

• Vitae Policy Forum, targeted at institutional senior managers
• Vitae researcher development conference, includes a specific research staff strand and targeted workshops 
• Vitae research staff conference for members of research staff associations
• Vitae Connections using Vitae resources to develop the skills and careers of researchers, including research staff.

Throughout, Vitae has raised awareness of the Concordat through targeted communications to all stakeholders, including:

• regular Vitae news updates
• regular Vitae Hub newsletters
• a set of Concordat briefings, translating the principles of the Concordat into benefits, actions and examples of case studies for senior managers, staff developers, human resources specialists, careers specialists, principal investigators and researchers
• regular articles on research staff in ‘Overview’, Vitae's twice yearly bulletin for supervisors and principal investigators
• briefings for research staff and principal investigators on the Vitae Researcher Development Framework, which expresses the knowledge skills and attributes of successful researchers
• the research staff section of the Vitae website including links to research staff communities
• a research staff blog launched in 2009, where research staff can post articles on the experience of being a member of research staff, career development, applying for jobs, practical tips, and work-life balance