Recognition and Rewards
The Recognition and Rewards programme aims to establish a more balanced and modern approach to recognising and rewarding scientists. Our objective is to create greater space for diverse scientific talents and to enhance the evaluation of academic contributions. In collaboration with the Universities of the Netherlands and research funding bodies, Radboud University is committed to implementing the necessary changes.
The assessment of scientific performance has been primarily based on quantitative metrics such as research output, citation counts, and acquired grants. This narrow focus has often resulted in insufficient recognition of other essential academic responsibilities. Today’s societal challenges also require increased collaboration and multidisciplinary approaches. This calls for a new way to recognise and reward academics and their academic work.
In 2019, the Universities of the Netherlands (UNL), in partnership with other knowledge institutions and research funders (NFU, KNAW, NWO, and ZonMW), published the position paper Room for Everyone's Talent. This paper laid the foundation for a national Recognition and Rewards programme, aimed at fostering a broader and more inclusive approach to the assessment and appreciation of scientists' contributions.
Key areas of focus
The Recognition and Rewards programme is centred on core themes:
- Academic career profiles
- Balancing the individual and collective
- Emphasising quality over quantity
- Promoting Open Science
- Encouraging Academic Leadership
- Taking stock, share and learn
- Engaging in open and reflective dialogue
Academic career profiles
We strive, in accordance with the national programme, for recognising and rewarding a broader range of skills and talents to support the diversity of academic career trajectories. This transformation involves:
- Diversification: encouraging specialisation in one or more academic domains
- Dynamisation: allowing profiles to evolve in one’s career
This shift is reflected in new academic profiles that emphasise teaching, research, (societal) impact, academic leadership, and patient care (in university medical centres). While research and teaching remain central to Dutch academia, this broader approach provides greater flexibility for academic careers.
Balancing the individual and collective
We strive for an interplay of talents in our academic work. Not only to enable diversification and dynamisation of academic profiles, but also to foster collaboration. In this transition, it is important to look at the expertise and competences of the teams that academics are part of and to recognize and reward to the joint work.
Emphasising quality over quantity
We strive for a more comprehensive definition of academic quality. This requires a different way of assessing the work of individual academics and their collective team contributions: a shift from quantitative performance indicators towards a more holistic evaluation of contributions in research, education, (societal) impact, and academic leadership.
The Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment (CoARA) is a collective of organisations committed to reforming the methods and processes by which research, researchers, and research organisations are evaluated. Together we are developing new ways for evaluating research quality.
Promoting Open Science
We strive for greater societal impact. This means that we aspire to more closely engage with society, for example by involving them more in research and sharing research results more widely. Making research findings more accessible - Open Science - requires a different attitude towards the publication of our research data.
Academic leadership
We strive for an environment in which - at all levels - there is an attention to academic leadership. Every individual scientist has a role in this process. Only by taking joint responsibility can we facilitate the transition to a different way of recognising and rewarding scientists' academic work.
Taking stock, sharing and learning
We strive to provide insight into what is already happening in Recognition and Rewards so far, jointly evaluate current practices and identify areas for improvement.
Engaging in open and reflective dialogue
We strive for inclusive, open and socially safe conversations, not just sharing achievements and results but engaging in discussions in a way that fosters recognition and rewards. Realising the core principles of Recognition and Rewards depends on changing our dialogue.
This is what we do
In line with the national agreements, Radboud University has also developed a Recognition and Rewards vision. We focus on four key pillars: quality, cooperation, diversity, and human scale. The university’s vision document outlines the current status and future aspirations for each of these pillars.
Translating this vision into daily practice requires concrete actions, and Radboud University is actively engaged in several initiatives to support this transition.
We need YOU
Cultural change requires collective effort. We invite the academic community to participate actively in discussions and initiatives related to Recognition and Rewards. Whether through structured conversations, participation in projects, or proposing innovative ideas, every contribution is valuable in shaping the future of our academic work.
For example, participate in activities such as the mmmAcademia card game, designed to facilitate meaningful discussions on Recognition and Rewards. Feel free to share your ideas with us as well.
erkennenenwaarderen [at] ru.nl (Share your ideas with us)
News
Blogs
Are you curious to know how this programme is shaped and what is involved? With this blog series, project leader Jacqueline Drost will take you through what is happening behind the scenes and what is to come.
The first blog will be published soon.
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Contact
Do you have questions about or ideas for the Rrecognition and Rewards programme? Please share it with us.