RDM's new Head of Human Resources, Emma Engel, reflects on her first six months in post.
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I've been RDM's first Head of HR for six months – time has flown!
As you know, RDM is full of lots of great people doing wonderful work. However, it is a complex and somewhat disjointed department - you can't find everyone in one place and it can be difficult to know who to look for.
THE TEAMS I'VE JOINED
I've found tremendous people and teams beginning to work together in various areas - many of which you may not know about.
I'm part of the RDM Strategic Team, which supports the Head of Department, RDM Heads of Division, Divisional Business Managers and PIs with strategic initiatives and departmental planning and budgeting.
Every week I attend 'Exec', which is an operational meeting involving:
- Keith Channon (Head of Department)
- Jane Sherwood (Head of Administration and Finance)
- Sarah Ball (Head of Strategic Research Development)
- Eleanor Cameron (Finance Manager)
- Jacqueline Pumphrey (Head of Communications)
- And me!
In this meeting we have spent quite a lot of time planning for the Departmental Review and writing the Self-Evaluation Document with the Senior Leadership Team, which has been submitted to the Review panel.
Every two months I go to a meeting of RDM’s senior professional leaders, where senior officers from RDM Strategic and Business Managers from RDM's five Divisions meet together.
Also every two months I take part in RDM's Senior Leadership Team (SLT).
I sit on the following committees where excellent work is being done to improve the working culture of RDM so that all will be able to thrive here:
Most recently, as part of the RDM EDI Committee, I worked as part of the team that got the successful reaccreditation of our Athena Swan Silver Award.
The newly formed RDM HR Practitioners Network has now got off the ground and made a good start on sharing best practice and finding joint solutions to common issues.
HOW CAN I MEET MORE OF YOU?
I'm privileged to be included in the new RDM Leadership Programme 2024-5 cohort where I have started to meet and work directly with some researchers and professional services staff.
I've attended several excellent Head of Department Q&A sessions (see videos of last two Q&A sessions about the departmental review) with a networking lunch, and in October I enjoyed meeting new students at RDM’s Induction Day for new graduate students.
The Researcher Association put in a lot of effort to host an excellent RDM Careers Day on Thursday 28 November. We heard from people who had gone on to successful and varied careers following a DPhil and or post-doc positions in RDM. It was a great chance to network and see the lovely Magdalen College. I would highly recommend this annual event which was inspiring, interesting and had some excellent practical advice from Dr Susan Black of the Careers Service.
Recently the University has launched the Charter for Career Development for Researchers (much of which also applies to Professional Services Staff), which I think is essential in helping RDM achieve its research aims. I am working with SLT to propose how RDM can implement some of the HR elements soon. Let me know if you have any great ideas you'd like to share.
More generally, I’m working to understand all the people who help make up RDM, including those not directly employed by us, but who are a vital part of our community, such as honorary senior clinical lecturers, visiting students and industry visitors. This will help with a better understanding of our workforce, which can inform our future people plans. I’m getting to grips with the various systems and processes, particularly in relation to Researchers, that are unique to MSD due to the interplay with OUH; identifying any areas with room for improvement. I’m working closely with Central and Divisional HR colleagues to roll out initiatives within RDM, for example in relation to upcoming changes in the HR system (People XD) that will enable the online requesting/confirmation of annual and other types of leave.
I've not yet met as many PIs or researchers as I’d like, and I would love to do this more. Do get in touch to invite me to meetings that you think might benefit from my perspective. I can advise on proactive people plans that support RDM's vision and mission.