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| Country: | Austria |
| National Context: | Download |
| Region: | Salzburg |
| Name of Organisation: | Salzburg Research Forschungsgesellschaft mbH |
| Main implementing organisation: | Salzburg Research |
| Line of Business: | Research in the fields of network technologies, mobile systems, knowledge-based systems and social sciences. |
| Start Date: | 2007-11-01 |
| End Date: | 2009-02-28 |
| All | Women | |
|---|---|---|
| Number of Employees | 78 | 28.21 % |
| Employees in R&D | 49 | 18.37 % |
| Number of Employees in Top Positions | 4 | 0 % |
| Transferability of the initiative | Programme has been taken from another context (i.e. country, sector or size of organization) |
| Type of initiative referring to strategic objectives | individual |
| structural |
| Type of initiative, located on the stage of career progression of women scientists | Pre-University |
| Professional experience |
Short term
Since 2001 Salzburg Research conducted staff surveys every second year. In this project, a potential analysis was to analyse the demand of the employees of Salzburg Research for child care.
Long term objective
With the continuous growth of the company, strategic staff development and quality management became more and more necessary for the company. The project was started to make the re-entry into the company after parental leave easier.
• Work Life Balance: the difficulties to restart work after maternity leave.
• Lack of early familiarity for children (male and female) with science.
• The expected lack of technicians.
The objectives were all reached.
Short term
A potential analysis was conducted in order to validate the setup of a childcare facility at Salzburg Research. The results of the Potentials Analysis were implemented and a solution to install a company nursery was realized.
Furthermore the company developed a parental leave program for employees. In addition to the parent information folder employees of Salzburg Research claiming maternity and/or parental leave obtain a special parental leave folder with all information.
Long Term
The situation of returners after parental leave could be improved significantly. The company provides coaching and vocational training. Both during parental leave and for returners. Meanwhile a parental leave mentoring program was also set up. Everyone going on parental leave has a contact person in the company who keeps them up to date.
The first Equal Opportunity Project was implemented in 2005 and dealt with awareness-raising and visibility of gender issues (wording in written submissions, mission statement, documents, etc.). Today the entire QM system is written in a gender-sensitive style. For the constitution of job interview panels, it is mandatory to ask at least one man and one woman. In addition, the proportion of female scientists could be increased from 17,4 % to 18,4%in the year 2008.
Direct target group
Indirect target group
The FEMtech project was led by two female scientists and managed by a senior executive. The specific project included the management which was very well informed about the project and showed high commitment. The managing director supported presentations at team and divisional manager meetings and attended important meetings with the whole technology centre in Salzburg (Techno-Z) and the regional government of Salzburg for the initiation of the childcare facility. In addition the management appropriated additional resources e.g. for the printing of brochures as the FEMtech funds (max. 25.000€) were already exhausted.
Within the frame of the project “kids_JOIN_tech”, a survey of demand (Potentials Analysis) for a company nursery was carried out across the whole Techno-Z. As a first step, the project leaders visited childcare facilities and conducted talks with company nurseries, childcare facility operators, and the family department of the regional government of Salzburg to find out, how a childcare facility could be launched. The project leaders also contacted large companies nearby to find further proponents of the project. In addition talks were conducted with the operators of Techno-Z to explore suitable premises. Finally, the employees (~900) at Techno-Z were asked in a questionnaire about their expectation on a childcare facility and whether they intended to use them. The questionnaire also included questions on the main theme preferences (natural sciences, language, and creativity) and the extent of care. 56 persons registered their interest. The majority wished an all-year nursery with a crèche, opening times from 6.00 am to 7.00 pm and a focus on English.
Based on this initiative a company nursery at Techno-Z was set up.
Furthermore, the company developed a parental leave program for employees. Now they receive a parent brochure and the Salzburg Research Parental Leave Folder. The folder contains specific documents like guidelines, timesheets, and relevant paragraphs of the work agreement. Current statuary basis and general information around maternity protection, parental leave, parental part-time work regulation, and returning to employment are designed to provide employees with initial information.
It appeared that the subject of parental leave was an emotional and very personal matter associated with different experiences, which had to be taken into account in the development of the parental leave programme.
If a company is thinking about setting up a company nursery, it is advisable to contact companies with company nurseries to get more information on the different approaches. In addition it is necessary to deal with the (regional or location specified) statuary conditions.
It is also important that childcare or parental leave projects equally benefit men and women.
The managing director of Salzburg Research is convinced that it pays out for companies to lay the emphasis on mixed teams; therefore activities to make a reasonable Work&Life balance possible are needed. Thus men and women can gather experiences while working together and possible prejudices are eliminated.
Based on the initiative of Salzburg Research, the foundation stone was laid for the company nursery school at Techno-Z. Various concepts were designed and presented and the requirement analysis necessary for a positive response of the City of Salzburg was carried out. The employees of Salzburg Research now have the possibility to use the company nursery.
The good experience with both FEMtech projects resulted in the recruitment for a new project this time with a scientific gender focus. The already approved technologically oriented project deals with the inclusion of gender specific requirements in mobility supporting services. So the effort to raise gender alertness in the company was accompanied by integrating the gender topic in the research area.
The innovative aspect is traceable in the constitution of the small scientific effort in the nursery. The children are regularly animated to test and search for technological and physical solutions for every day phenomenons. For this purpose the nursery teachers collect information and field reports to stretch out their knowledge how to make children familiar with science and research.
The topic Work&Life balance was transmitted from wording towards ascertained practices. Employees wishing to go on parental leaves are well informed and the situation for returners could be significantly improved. The nursery teachers managed to transmit the original idea of making children familiar with technological and research work into the play.
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