Welcome Message from Dr. Frank Heemskerk
Immediate Past President
European Association of Research Managers and Administrators
The opening of the International Neighborhood on NCURA’s website marks the beginning of a new collaboration between NCURA and research managers and administrators around the world. For this inaugural edition, I would like to share my thinking on the value of international collaboration among and between research managers and administrators from all national and institutional cultures.
When John Carfora asked me to write a piece for this new website, I was delighted. I had met John when he presented a paper at our (EARMA) Annual Conference in Europe, and I remember vividly subsequent discussions that John, Denise Wallen, and I had on a whole range of topics, from professional development and training to cultural differences across countries. Interestingly, the new International Neighborhood allows a wider audience to take up where our original conversation left off.
In Europe, every day we face the complexity of having to deal with many different languages, very heterogeneous bureaucracies, and substantially different legal systems. People are sometimes a bit reluctant to enter into international projects and agreements, and often prefer the safer confines of an environment we know how to negotiate. I suspect that this may be true for people in general and even for exploratory scientists: we know our own peers, our own disciplines, our own research institutes. Why venture out into a harsh world beyond?
The reason is that if we don’t participate in the International Neighborhood we will miss many opportunities to create value. Value that goes beyond making money through commercialization of applied research. Value based on the use of new knowledge and discoveries to enhance education through increased understanding. Importantly, we can learn from each other in the International Neighborhood, of different ways of doing things (to improve processes). In fact, we can create value that takes the form of new partnerships for key projects and better world-wide use of our facilities and capabilities. We can also learn from international discussions in general how they can benefit policy development and society at large. Therefore I’d like to initiate four areas for discussion.
I’d be interested to hear from you:
- How my notion of value creation through international collaborations is seen in North America.
- What are the largest barriers you perceive in implementing international/interdisciplinary projects?
- In what ways can a research manager help overcome these impediments?
- What information sources and professional training do you think would be required (need to be developed) to enhance the research environment to become more productive?
Perhaps we will learn good and useful approaches from each other – through the auspices of NCURA’s International Neighborhood – that is ours to populate with good thoughts and good will. I look forward to reading your contributions.
