The European Commission recognises NEIKER’s human resources strategy

• The European body has awarded the “HR Excellence in research” logo for generating and sponsoring the existence of a stimulating and favourable environment in research.
• The certification is part of HRS4R (Human Resources Strategy for Researchers), a tool made available by the European Commission to support universities and research institutions.
• The obtaining of this stamp reveals NEIKER’s commitment towards the professional development of researchers.

The Human Resources Action Plan for researchers, defined in 2019 by a working team from NEIKER, has been recently recognised by the European Commission with the “HR Excellence in Research” logo. With this certification, the regional institution identifies universities and institutions that generate and support the existence of a stimulating and favourable working environment in research.

“The use of this logo is an acknowledgement of the effort made in terms of working in a structured manner and with a well defined Action Plan to improve our company’s HR policies”, emphasizes Eva Ugarte, director of Human Resources at NEIKER.

Specifically, a working group created ad hoc that began operating in December 2019 has been charged with drafting this Action Plan, which covers different actions for a period of 5 years.

The award issued by the European body also denotes NEIKER’s commitment to adhere to a joint HR strategy at the European level and which is outlined in two documents adopted by the European Commission: the European charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for Recruitment of Researchers.

On the one hand, the Charter describes the functions, responsibilities and rights of researchers and their employers; and on the other hand, the Code is intended to improve recruitment, in a manner that ensures selection procedures are fair and transparent.

“The merit of a researcher should not only be measured by the number of publications, but also by a wide range of evaluation criteria such as education and teaching, supervision, teamwork, transfer of knowledge, management and public awareness activities”, adds Ugarte.

Also, NEIKER’s HR strategy, which is highly focused on researchers, is aligned with the strategy promoted by the Basque Science and Technology Network, which covers all the resources dedicated to research and which will be included in the new strategy Plan the technology centre is working on.

What does receiving the HR Excellence in Research logo entail?

Through the HR Excellence in Research logo, the European Commission publicly recognises research institutions that have aligned their human resources policies with the principles defined in the European Charter for researchers and the Code of conduct for recruitment of researchers.

The HR Excellence in Research logo is part of HRS4R (Human Resources Strategy for Researchers), a tool made available by the European Commission to support universities and research institutions. The ultimate goal of this logo is to develop a European labour market that is appealing to researchers.