A7 - Creating and embedding a Postdoc Charter - a tool to benefit both postdocs and team leaders
| Day | Day 1 |
|---|---|
| Session | A |
| Start time | 15.30 |
| Room | York |
|
Audience
|
Research Staff
|
| Code | A7 |
| Presenters |
Dr Elise Glen, Researcher Development Manager, Institute of Cancer Research Dr Celia Monteiro Domingues, Researcher Development Coordinator, Institute of Cancer Research |
Workshop overview:
At the ICR a postdoc is considered a transitional training period (max.7 years). This, together with many supervisors being highly research focussed sometimes with little experience or knowledge of careers outside the academic pathway, means taking career ownership early is paramount. To support postdocs to do this we developed a charter, to clarify the expectations and commitment from all sides. This deals with a range of common issues including: successfully managing the transition from PhD student to postdoc, avoiding overreliance on a research supervisor, managing the end of your contract and early career planning. The charter was informed and developed with extensive input from faculty, the postdoc association and HR.
This workshop aims to share how this charter was developed and embedded into organisational processes, linking to our Research and HR Excellence strategies. It will share what’s worked well, what hasn’t and what’s happened since the charter was implemented.
Workshop topics covered:
- Why have a postdoc charter? What problems are we trying to solve?
- Engaging faculty, postdocs and the wider institution
- How has the charter been embedded into institutional processes?
- What’s worked? What hasn’t? What’s happened since?
Themes covered:
- Engaging research leaders, principal investigators and supervisors in professional development
- Developing a pipeline of research talent through strategies to attract and retain research talent, and mainstreaming equality and diversity in the research environment
- Leadership development of early career researchers
Workshop outcomes:
By the end of the workshop, participants should:
- Have an insight into the challenges of postdocs and team leaders as well as the priorities of both parties
- Have an understanding of how a charter may be proposed, developed and embedded into their own organisations
Format:
Information sharing, structured discussion and sharing of experiences, best practices and ideas
