14th EARMA Annual Conference 25-28 June 2008 University of Barcelona

Dr. Ian Ragan, IMI Advisor to EFPIA, CIR Consultancy Ltd
Dr Ferran Sanz, Vice-Rector for Research Policy of Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Dr Philippe Cupers, DG Research, European Commission

Day one: 26th June 2008 Morning

CONFERENCE WELCOME & KEYNOTE ADDRESSES

Moderator: Wiktor M Kurzeja, President EARMA
Rapporteur: Dr Tracey Swift, University of Sheffield, UK

Welcome from Host Institution

Dr Josep Samitier, Rector, University of Barcelona

Opening Message

Mr Josep Huguet, Ministry of Innovation, Universities and Enterprise, Government of Catalonia

Conference Welcome

Mr Wiktor M Kurzeja, President of EARMA

KEYNOTE: The five Iniatives - Building Blocks of the European Research Area

Dr Anneli Pauli, Deputy Director-General, DG RTD Development of the European Research Area

KEYNOTE: Beyond Excellence: For Administrators, the Threat and Opportunity of Relevance

Mr William Cullerne Bown, Founder & Publisher of Research Europe

SESSION 1 – DEVELOPING RESEARCH MANAGERS & ADMINISTRATORS

Moderator: Dr Paul Craven, Vice President EARMA
Rapporteur: Teresa Waller, Brunel University, UK

PLENARY: EU Research Policy Making: Mechanism, Rationale and the Latest Developments

Prof. Brigid Laffan, University College Dublin, Dublin European Institute

PLENARY: Research Management in the European Research Area: Education, Communication & Exploitation

Mr Richard Granger, Independent Consultant

Day one: 26th June 2008 Afternoon

SESSION 2 (Parallel Discussions): ENHANCING the PROFESSIONAL STATUS OF RESEARCH MANAGERS AND ADMINISTRATORS

Discussion 2a: Addressing the Skills Gap: Identifying Basic Skills of European Research Managers and Administrators

Chair: Richard Granger, Independent Consultant
Rapporteur: Shirley Grimshaw, University of Nottingham, UK

Addressing the Skills Gap: Identifying Basic Skills of European Research Managers and Administrators

Consistent with EARMA’s vision to be the leading professional organisation representing research managers and administrators in the European Research Area, this session will explore the basic skill sets required. Three speakers will offer very short presentations to set the scene for the discussion on the essential elements of a Continuing Professional Development Programme (CPD). Speakers from other professional associations, both from US and Europe will share their experience on developing and administering their own certification/accreditation programmes. Drawing on these perspectives, the discussion will concentrate on what lessons EARMA can take forward as it seeks to develop a CPD programme for its members.

Kathleen Larmett, Executive Director, NCURA
Dr Brane Semolic, International Project Management Association (IPMA)
Gudrun Paulsdottir, European Association for International Education (EAIE)

Discussion 2b: Communicating and Disseminating Research Results: A Role for Research Managers and Administrators?

Chair: William Cullerne Bown, Editor, Research Europe
Rapporteur: Elsbet Vestvatn, Norwegian Social Research, NOVA, Norway

Communicating and Disseminating Research Results: A Role for Research Managers and Administrators?

Increasingly both national research funding agencies and the European Commission are placing greater emphasis on the communication and dissemination of results, particularly for applied research. Moreover, research organisations also recognise that they need publicity and enhanced reputation for research in order to demonstrate value for money. EURAB has identified that communication of research results is a part of a research manager and administrator’s portfolio. Depending on the type of research organisation, research managers and administrators are often aware of a variety of research projects in multiple disciplines, hence it could be argued that they are well placed to communicate good research stories back to funders and help their organisations develop a profile for research. This discussion will focus on what the future role may be of research managers and administrators in relation to communicating and disseminating research results.

Brian Johnson, Managing Editor of The Parliament Magazine
Simon Robinson, Senior Consultant, Intrasoft International S.A.

Day one: 26th June 2008 Afternoon

SESSION 3 – WORKSHOPS

Workshop 3a: How will you survive your first year as an EU Project Manager?

Chair: Peter Matthesen, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Rapporteur: Ann Jonsson, Lulea University of Technology, Sweden

How will you survive your first year as an EU-project manager?

The first year as a new EU-project manager is very difficult and support from an experienced project manager is much wanted. How to deal with contract negotiations and the start-up of the project? How to organise workflows and procedures? How to arrange and monitor for the financials? What to do when partners fail or go bankrupt? And most important of all How to report and deliver properly and on time? All these questions will be dealt with in this session by experienced representatives from national EU project management networks.

Sebastian Leroy, Head of European Affairs, ARMINES, France
Joanna Stalewska, Project Manager/INCO & JRC National Co-ordinator, National Contact Point for EU Programmes, Poland
Christine Patte, Project Manager, EDF R&D, France

Workshop 3b: Legal Issues in FP7

Chair: Theo Stamatiadis, IPR Helpdesk, Spain
Rapporteur: Cristina Borras, Agency for Management of University and Research Grants, Catalonia, Spain

Legal Issues in FP7

Whilst most consortium agreements in FP7 seem to have been negotiated using either DESCA or IPCA, there are other models such as EUGAR and IMG4. What are the differences between the models, particularly with respect to access rights, foreground, background and sideground IP and joint ownership? How do the variations affect researchers and their respective organisations? What advice should research managers and administrators be giving to their stakeholders about these issues?

Theo Stamatiadis, Legal Expert, IPR Helpdesk, Spain
Veli-Matti Helle, Legal Counsel, Helsinki University of Technology, Finland

Workshop 3c: Full Costs

Chair: Jan Andersen, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Rapporteur: Anna Groeninx van Zoelen, University of Leiden, The Netherlands

From Full Costs to Sustainable Research Funding

The integral cost calculation is not only a matter of the European Commission, but also the individual member states are increasingly insisting on the integral cost calculation with national subsidies. What are the effects of implementing (EU) integral costing within research organisations and what may be the consequences for universities for research funding in the long run? Are there limits to attracting external research funding due to matching problems? How is the sustainability of research funding perceived on a European level?

Pieter Jan Aartsen, Corporate Controller, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Mike Griffiths, Director of Research Services, University College London, UK

Day two: 27th June 2008 Morning

SESSION 4 – EARMA ACTIVITIES

Chair: Wiktor M Kurzeja, President EARMA

SESSION 5 – EARMA/NCURA Fellowship Exchange Programme

Chair: Wiktor M Kurzeja, President EARMA

The results of the recent surveys of EARMA and NCURA members will be presented, in the context of the proposed International Research Management Fellowship Programme. Plans for how to implement this Programme will be proposed and opened up to members for further discussion.

EARMA Executive Committee
NCURA International Neighbourhood

Day Two: 27th June 2008 Afternoon

SESSION 6 – WORKSHOPS and CLOSE

Workshop 6a: Research Administrators Adding Value
to Highly Competitive Research Applications

Chair: Dr Tracey Swift, University of Sheffield, UK
Rapporteur: Doris Alexander, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland

Research Administrators Adding Value to Highly Competitive Research Applications

Applications to the first ERC call for Starting Independent Grant Scheme was highly contested with a very small success rate, making the award of these grants highly prestigious for the individual researchers and their institutions. Research Managers and Administrators are often in a unique position to offer advice to individual researchers across a range of disciplines. They also have a role in advising their organisation and implementing strategic and targeted processes across the research organisation to enhance the quality and success rate of applications. Using the ERC SIG Scheme as an exemplar, this workshop will compare and contrast approaches employed by research organisations in the Netherlands, UK, and Belgium and the particular role research managers and administrators played in achieving success for their institutions and how this has influenced research strategy at an organisational level.

Maja Gcric Vrije, Universiteit van Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Stijn Delaure, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium
Anna Groeninx van Zoelen, University of Leiden, The Netherlands

Workshop 6b: Report from the EARMA FP7 Working Group

Chair: Anne Katrin Werenskiold, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Germany
Rapporteur: David Lauder, University of York, UK

FP7 Working Group

The FP7-Working Group has been initiated 15 months ago to monitor the development of FP7 in a close dialogue with the EARMA membership, to identify common concerns with FP7, to develop potential solutions to any issues identified and to communicate these to the European Commission. This process was initiated in a first FP7-WG Workshop during the 2007 EARMA conference in Warszaw. WG activities and achievements since the 2007 workshop will be reported and plans for the next year will be discussed with the workshop participants. Topics will include updates on the WG communication means, developments in financial issues (full costing), and the discussion of any potential issues within FP7 identified by Workshop participants. The identification of key areas of interest within the EARMA membership will be key to devising future deliverables by the FP7-WG.

Workshop 6c: The Role of Research Managers in Enabling Complex and Strategic Research Programme Funding Applications

Chair: Denise Wallen, University of New Mexico and NCURA, US
Rapporteur: Peter Matthesen, University of Copenhagen, Denmark

The Role of Research Managers in Enabling Complex/ Strategic Research Programme Funding Applications

An increasing number of competitive funding opportunities are arising which require cross-department or even cross-institutional collaborations. These can be considered strategic bids, in that they may represent a significant fraction of an organisation’s research income, or will affect a broad range of research sections. They are high-risk but with potentially high returns. Considerable resources need to be dedicated to submit these bids. This session will explore what services and functions research support offices can offer when proposing, compiling, and submitting such funding applications.

Dr Denise Wallen, Director, Research Development and Initiatives, Research Development Services, University of New Mexico and NCURA
David Mayo, Director of Sponsored Research, California Institute of Technology and NCURA
Dr. Ana Cruz, Promotion of R&D Projects, Instituto de Biomecánica de Valencia (IBV)