The Human Resources Strategy for Researchers (HRS4R) is considered a tool to put the principles of the European Charter for Researchers & the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers (The Charter and Code) into practice. The implementation of the Charter & Code principles by research Institutions render them more attractive to Researchers looking for a new employer or for a host for their research project. The European Commission recognises with the 'HR Excellence in Research Award' the institutions which make progress in aligning their human resources policies to the 40 principles of the Charter & Code, based on a customized action plan/HR strategy.
The European Charter is a set of general principles and requirements that specifies the roles, responsibilities, and entitlements of Researchers, as well as those of employers and/or funders of Researchers such as ourselves. It seeks to ensure that the relationship between such parties contributes to successful performance in the generation, transfer, and sharing of knowledge, and to the career development of Researchers.
The Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers consists of a set of general principles and requirements to be followed by employers and/or funders such as ourselves when appointing or recruiting Researchers. It aims to improve recruitment and to make selection procedures fairer and more transparent, and it proposes various means of judging merit: Merit should not be measured merely on the basis of the number of publications but on a wider range of evaluation criteria, such as teaching, supervision, teamwork, knowledge transfer, management and public awareness activities.
SETU Waterford aims to be an attractive, supportive and stimulating environment in which to carry out research and recognises the importance of providing its researchers with the necessary training and support environment to develop their careers and become more competitive and mobile.
In May 2014, SETU Waterford received the HR Excellence in Research award in recognition of the university’s on-going commitment to adopting the 40 principles of the Charter and Code, making it the first Institute of Technology, now Technological University since May 2022, in Ireland to receive this designation.
In order to assist Researchers and other staff with their familiarity of the European Charter and Code of Conduct, the university has produced a useful postcard-style document providing an outline of each of the principles for both Researchers and also for Employers/Funders. This is a useful document that can be kept for quick reference. A preview is shown below but a printable PDF document may also be downloaded and printed double-sided on A4 paper.