“In Führung gehen” (“Leading the Way”)

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Objectives of the Initiative

The initiative “In Führung gehen” is a mentoring programme directed at career-oriented female employees in research and in scientific and technical administration at Helmholtz Association.It aims at increasing the share of women in decision-making and management positions within the association, both in research and in administrative and management positions.

The short term objective of the initiative is to provide support to gifted and qualified young women towards the next career move and to prepare them for leading positions. In the long run, the initiative seeks to seize the potential that especially talented and qualified women at Helmholtz Association hold with a view to responsible and leading positions. Yet another aim is the creation of strong links between the female high potentials at Helmholtz Association.

Which barriers in the career stages of females does the initiative address?

Experiential knowledge and an efficient network are prerequisites for a successful career and excellent research management. “In Führung gehen” addresses the shortage of women in higher positions in science, by providing targeted support and advancement for talented and qualified young women at Helmholtz Association. The initiative seeks to encourage and empower women on their way into management positions, accompanying them and providing role models and skills.

Demonstrable success of the initiative

The initiative is well accepted by the target group. Since its start in 2005, there have been 154 mentees. Applications far exceed the number of available spaces:

• In 2009, there were 67 applications (approx. 2/3 scientists, 1/3 administration, aged 27-48); only 31 could be accepted into the programme.
• In 2010, there were 61 applications (34 from scientists, aged 30-45), of which 30 could be accepted into the programme.

A comprehensive and structured evaluation is planned for the future. Interviews on the basis of questionnaires to be filled out by participants and mentors have already started.

Participants of the programme benefit from participation regarding their career’s development. However, progress in participants’ career’ should not be attributed solely and directly to participation in the programme.

Motives for launching initiative

The mentoring programme was initiated by AKFIFZ, the working group of equal opportunities commissioners at Helmholtz Association, in 2004 along with the adoption of an integrated and comprehensive strategy for equal opportunities at Helmholtz Association (“Five-Point Programme to Promote Equal Opportunity”).

The mentoring programme forms an integral part of this strategy. Its specific aim is to countervail the drop-out of promising female employees in view of leading positions, thus to increase the share of women in these positions.

Equal opportunity measures in the organisation before the initiative

There were single equal opportunity measures at some member institutions of the Helmholtz Association, but no corporate approach for all Helmholtz centres as is provided by the programme “In Führung gehen”.

Target group(s) of the initiative

Direct target groups:

• Female scientists at the Helmholtz Association who have completed a PhD in the last two to five years.
• Female employees at Helmholtz Association in administration and management positions at the beginning of their careers who seek to achieve leading positions

Indirect target groups:

As indirect target groups, all employees at Helmholtz Association can be named, as the initiative aims at achieving structural change in corporate identity and awareness.

Implementation of the initiative

In 2004, Helmholtz Association adopted an integrated and comprehensive strategy for equal opportunities. In this context, the mentoring programme was also set up. The mentoring programme was and still is one of five central components of the Five-Point Programme to Promote Equal Opportunity at Helmholtz Association. The other components are a management academy as well as measures in the fields of career re-entry positions, flexible working hours and childcare facilities.

The programme started in 2005, then named “Helmholtz-Netzwerk-Mentoring”. During the first years, the initiative was externally ministered. In 2009, it was re-named “In Führung gehen” (“Leading the Way”) and is now run by the Helmholtz Association Head Office.

The programme cycle is one year. It comprises three main elements:

1. Mentoring: The initiative supports the formation of mentoring couples. Mentors are men and women holding responsible positions at Helmholtz Association but also at other research organisations, universities, the business sector and at a variety of other public and private institutions.
2. Qualification: During the programme’s cycle, three two-day workshops are offered. During these workshops, central issues and challenges such as conflict management, performance appraisals, change of roles from colleague to superior etc. are covered.
3. Coaching: Participants are offered three two-hour coachings. During these coachings, participants have the opportunity to deal with and reflect topics that are of individual relevance.

Another cross-cutting asset of the initiative is its networking component, both within the scientific community of Helmholtz and beyond.

Female employees of Helmholtz Association are invited to apply once a year. Announcements are published primarily on the internet (www.helmholtz.de). Potential participants are also addressed personally.A steering committee headed by the Vice President of the Helmholtz Association who co-ordinates the key issue “Equal Opportunity” conducts the selection process.

The initial equal opportunity programme “Netzwerk-Mentoring” was externally evaluated and subsequently restructured in 2008. In 2009 the new equal opportunity programme “In Führung gehen” which is now managed by the Helmholtz Association’s Head Office has been implemented. The steering committee is in charge of its monitoring.

The initiative is assigned one full-time position plus overhead costs.

Factors of success

• Flexible curriculums, i.e. workshop-design after an in-depth-analysis of each participant’s individual needs.
• Support and guidance by experienced mentors holding responsible positions at Helmholtz institutions and other organizations, enterprises etc.
• Professional individual coaching as a process to enable the participants to achieve their full potential.
• Steady contact to participants and systematic inquiries (questionnaires) as prerequisites for the continuous evolution of the programme.

Obstacles, barriers to implementation

Admission is limited to 30 places versus a multiplicity of applications. On the other hand, “In Führung gehen” is and shall remain an exclusive programme for young female high-potentials.

Lessons Learned

• Avoid redundancy with equal opportunity programmes offered by the individual research centres of the Helmholtz Association.
• Following the external evaluation, coaching was introduced as a new component of the programme. In addition, the programme was assigned directly to the president of Helmholtz Association, enhancing the programme’s status and importance.

Benefit for the organisation

• Development of the female potential for an area which is traditionally associated to men.
• The programme represents one of the Association’s talent pools.
• Identification of the participants with the Helmholtz Association as a whole.

Sustainability of the initiative

The programme is well established and its future existence is secured.

One aspect adding to the sustainability of the initiative is the fact that former mentees often subsequently commit themselves as mentors.

Transferability

In principle the programme structure can be transferred to each research institution with a similar organisation: a range of research centres in various places headed by a president who is inter alia responsible for the general strategy and the implementation of corresponding measures.

Systematic Approach

“In Führung gehen” is part of the Five-Point Programme to Promote Equal Opportunity adopted in 2004. Besides mentoring, this programme comprises:
1. Helmholtz Management Academy:
Training programme preparing for top-rate positions
2. Career re-entry positions: Special positions created to facilitate re-entry into science and research careers after a family break
3. Flexible working hours
4. Childcare provision
The programme is also part of the organization’s Talent Management Strategy.

Innovation

Workshops are designed towards the individual competence needs of the participating young women (there are no standard curricula).

Professional coaching is offered on demand, addressing the individual participant’s concerns.

Monitoring / Evaluation

Yes

Summary: This initiative is good practice because...

… it is an example of an organisation-wide women advancement programme at one of Germany´s largest science organisations. It is well established and is embedded into the organisation’s overall strategy to promote gender equality (Five-Point Programme to Promote Equal Opportunity) but also is part of the organisation’s overall talent management system. The mentoring programme benefits from engaging with excellent researchers from within the organisation as well as from external organisations.

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