RESEARCH MANAGEMENT coaching (REACH)

Institution management coaching

Monthly coaching webinar
preparations

  1. Agree on a date for monthly zoom meetings with HR&S and
  2. set up a joint WhatsApp chat-group, (with time we will have our own platform).
  3. Assign a local team-leader and a local deputy team-leader.
  4. Team leaders compile:
    • The names of the participants in the team, their affiliation, degrees, and their different roles in the group.
    • Time of entry to the coaching programme for each team member and the expected duration.
    • Exactly which type of support that is planned to be provide to each of the team member and the related budget line (if any).
    • The expectations of what the supported team member will achieve as a result of the support.
    • The actual achievements in relation to the expectations at the end of each year, and
    • The expected sustainable impact from the coaching.

Progress markers

The progress markers are adjusted to the context of the site of the coaching.

LevelONE
Each team member:

  1. Has access to good internet to be able to efficiently attend coaching sessions.
  2. Has a written time management plan.
    • With good meeting performances.
    • Time set aside to do key work.
  3. Keeps a personal updated ROPE road-map.
LevelTWO

Each team-leader

  1. Keeps an updated ROPE Road-map for the team.
  2. Team-leaders present a written vision and mission for the team concerning international equal partnership.
  3. Each team-leader develops an annual report describing the programme in general,
    the output, the progress markers, sustainable impact and a financial report.
  4. A stakeholder analysis is made that describes how to manoeuvrer the team ROPE road-map within the institution.

Each team member

  1. Access to well-functioning advanced scientific equipment.
  2. Training on “the scientific method”.
  3. Workshops on scientific supervision.
  4. Workshops on seeking research grants.
  5. Workshops on developing and submitting manuscripts for publication.
  6. Workshops on motivation, team-building, net-working, knowledge-sharing and time-management.
  7. Each supported researcher submits two manuscripts per year.
  8. Each supported researcher submits two grant applications per year.
  9. Each supported researcher presents scientific findings at one conference or meeting per year.
  10. Accounting, accountability and transparency procedures are written down and implemented.
  11. Team-leaders presents and follows-up on business plans.
  12. Team-leaders presents annual reports.
  13. Researchers with training ambitions give training sessions on a topic chosen by the researcher every year, within 6 months  after having published two papers. External students pay a small fee.
  14. Researcher with entrepreneurial ambitions implement scientific findings through social enterprising, within one year after having published three papers on the topic.
  15. Runs monthly seminars with national invitations.

LevelTHREE

  1. Each team-leader keeps record of what motivates each team-member, and acts to empower the team-members in the relation to the motivation.
  2. Scientific capacity strengthening procedures according to the above are part of the institution curriculum and annual reviews shows that the progress markers at levelTWO are met.
Sustainable impact
  1. The targeted department benefits from a sustainable economy.
  2. Scientific capacity strengthening procedures according to the above are part of the institution curriculum and annual reviews shows that the progress markers at levelTWO are met.

Coaching Agenda

  1. Introduction of ROPE_Coaching.
    Cecilia presents the ROPE tool and  supports with developing a road-map.
    • Identify individual ambitions and outcome challenges.
    • Identify joint challenges and make them group challenges.
    • Discuss the different parameters and agree on progress markers including for example;
      • Access to quality internet and quality network. A network is a collection of computer systems and devices that are linked together utilizing LAN, WAN, CAN, or HAN.The internet is a global system that connects various sorts of electric devices worldwide.
      • Access to good enough computer.
      • Time management.
  2. Ensure sustainable economy
    • Identify potential sources of income and address those.
      • Collaborate with Institutions that offers REACH financial support at institutional level.
      • Empower staff to achieve research grants.
      • Sell laboratory services.
      • Provide policy briefs for efficient communication with the government.
      • Arrange continuous round table discussions with government and private sector representatives.
      • Social enterprising targeting the implementation of scientific findings: Reaching the target audience, value proposition & customer segment, the lean business model, performing customers survey interviews and analysis, get commitment from the first few customers / scale with new customers, business model, boot-strapping, strategy for change, start / scale-up loans.
    • Identify areas of costs and balance those with the income.
      • Develop business plans and ensure customer care
    • Implement procedures for transparency and accountability in all areas of governance and finance.
  3. Ensure generation, dissemination, and implementation of scientific findings_Support coaching of researchers.
    • Implement REACH coaching for academic staff_ scientific capacity strengthening procedures.
    • Training supervisors on scientific supervision.
      • A separate mini ROPE will be developed to guide supervisors with their assignments.
    • Ensure access to scientific literature.
      • Empower librarians.
    • Reward researcher who publish with maybe EUR 300 per paper.
    • Schedule one week of focused manuscript writing and one week of focused grant application writing per year.
    • Empower technicians.
  4. Ensure access to functioning advanced pieces of equipment_Implement FAST & Support coaching of technicians.
    The purpose with the “HR&S Functioning Advanced Scientific Equipment” (FAST) Support programme is to support laboratories and Scientific Institutions with the selection, transportation, installation, calibration, operation, maintenance, servicing, use and decommissioning of advanced scientific equipment. Each programme builds on the Real-time Outcome Planning and Evaluation tool (ROPE) which measures whether the support provided by the enabled the partners to be successful.
    • A. Equipment procurement and delivery.
    • B. Equipment use & maintenance.
    • C. Construction of laboratories.
    • D. Operational & Financial plan development.
    • E. Laboratory business idea.
  5. Support for women_Coaching
    • Arrange with senior women role-model mentors for junior women who
      would like to have this. Set up a meeting schedule and rewards for the
      mentors.
    • In case the interest is large, coordinate a local network of lady support.
    • Identify and address gender related outcome challenges.
  6. International collaboration_Participant Engagement
    • Develop equal partnership relations with senior and junior
      researchers within the same discipline; locally, regionally and
      globally.
    • Join networks. When joining suitable network, be active. Join discussions, support colleagues, share knowledge, give advice.
  7. Ensure institutional capacity with effective and efficient operations_Coaching
    • Ensure motivation, team-building, net-working, knowledge-sharing and time-management.
    • Accounting, accountability and transparency procedures are written down and implemented.
    • Bureaucracy and hierarchy often make progress inefficient.
    • Make stakeholder analysis.
    • Involve policy makers in the strategy for change.
    • Team-leaders presents and follows-up on business plans.
    • Team-leaders presents annual reports.
    • Researchers with training ambitions give training sessions on a topic chosen by the researcher every year, within 6 months  after having published two papers. External students pay a small fee.
    • Researcher with entrepreneurial ambitions implement scientific findings through social enterprising, within one year after having published three papers on the topic.
  8. Review the SfC road-map_Coaching
    Reflect again on ambitions and outcome challenges. Re-reflect also on progress markers and start to measure progress markers. Team-members develop a set of activities and mile-stones and may also develop individual SfC Road-maps guiding the individual efforts to reach individual goals. Team-leaders develop SfC Road-maps for the entire team.
    • Discuss the different parameters and agree on progress markers including for example;
    • Intrinsic motivation.
    • Stakeholder analysis.
    • International equal win-win partnership.
    • Agree on dates and venues for monthly local och coached knowledge sharing sessions, where the SfC related topics are discussed, including outcome challenges, activities and milestones. A coordinator for the logistics around the meetings is assigned, including venue, the agenda and snacks. Progress markers shall be agreed on including submitting two manuscripts per year and two grant applications per year. The meetings shall be well planned, well attended and generate outcome.
    • Measure progress markers. The progress-markers are measured during October – December every year and a report is developed due 31 December and shared.
    • Measure Baseline, 31 December the year prior to the the start of the coaching.
  9. Review the SfC road-map_Continuous coaching 
    • Measure progress markers.
  10. Literature review_Coaching.
    • Search the internet for resources from Author Aid concerning literature review.  
    • The university librarians often have access to keywords to main databases through a collaboration with INASP, but the researchers and the technicians are not aware of this opportunity. Thus i) Establish a relation and facilitate communication between librarians and researchers.
      ii) Encourage workshops by the librarians for the researchers and technicians on increased access to literature.
    • Go through referencing software, including End-Note. Ensure that each researcher has access to End-Note.
    • Go though search databases including where to upload own publications and thesis.
    • Ensure access to literature and literature review coaching
      • Bi-annual training for each department by librarians and supervisors where;
        • Information is shared about how to develop a hypothesis and the related importance of quality literature reviews targeting recent literature.
        • Information is shared about INASP, AuthorAid and Research4Life.
          • Keywords to literature databases are distributed.
        • Training and coaching is provided on developing literature search profiles.
        • Information is shared about reference managers ( Mendley and EndNote).
  11. Computer rooms
    • Ensure quality Computer Rooms with access to computers, internet and electricity.
      • The band-width is adjusted to ensure the highest possible internet capacity.
  12. Review the scientific method_Training.
    Cecilia offers a one-hour reminder presentation on “Scientific method”.
  13. Review the SfC road-map_Coaching
    • Measure progress markers.
  14. Laboratory work & access to advanced functioning scientific equipment (FAST)_Coaching
      • Compile resources from the Royal Society of Chemistry, https://edu.rsc.org,  that address the group challenges.
        • Presentation of resources: Each group member selects a topic and gives a presentation during the monthly meetings, the discussions are compiled into a small report.
          When each group members has presented minimum one topic each a compilation of the topics chosen is made. A coordinator for internal training is assigned. A schedule for addressing the resources identified in the monthly sessions is agreed on and implemented.
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