Event recap: Workshop on International Talent Attraction in Research in Austria: Spotlight on the HR for Excellence Award and RESAVER

On September 25, EURAXESS Austria co-organized this event in Vienna focused on attracting and retaining international research talent. The event spotlighted two major initiatives established by the European Commission: the HR Excellence in Research Award, which promotes better working conditions and career development for researchers, and RESAVER, a pan-European occupational pension scheme to support financial security for researchers across borders. As such, these are tools for institutions wishing to enhance their strategy to attract and keep research talent.

Around 40 participants from human resources and research management and other areas interested in talent attraction as well as representatives from the Association of ERC grantees (AEGR) and the Marie Curie Alumni Association (MCAA) exchanged views on strategies for attracting, supporting and retaining international research talent.

We would like to thank all speakers and participants for the open and inspiring discussions, and the Central European University for hosting the event. The agenda and slides are available below and we encourage all who did not have the chance to participate, to get in touch in case of further interest and questions. For the HR Excellence in Research Award, you can contact lil.reif@ffg.at from the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (lil.reif@ffg.at), and for RESAVER agustin.calvo@resaver.eu.
 

9:30  – 10:00 Registration and welcome coffee
Moderation: Lil Reif, Austrian Research Promotion Agency / Euraxess Austria.

10:00 – 10:20 Welcome and Introduction
• Sabine Koch, Head of Department Higher education planning, Federal Ministry of Women, Science and Research
• Slaven Misljencevic, policy officer, D.G. Research and Innovation of the European Commission

10:20 – 11:15 Round Table on Attracting International Talent to Austria, chaired by Martina Hartl, BMFWF, with: 
• Heidemarie Pichler, Head of HR Development, Technical University Vienna 
• Martin Rummel, Chairman ÖPUK
• Toma Susi, Associate Professor, University of Vienna; former Steering Board member of CoARA; Board of Directors of AEGR (Association of ERC Grantees) 

11:15 – 11:45 Coffee break

11:45 – 13:00 Spotlight on RESAVER: Why, What and How
• Financial stability and attractiveness for researchers, Indi Seehra, HR Director LSE and Board member RESAVER
• Non-Profit pan-European pension fund RESAVER, Agustin Calvo, Growth manager RESAVER
• Implementing Resaver in Austria: a practical example by CEU, including the researchers’ perspective, Liselotte Schoel, HR Director CEU and Board member RESAVER
• Local adaptation and tax advantages, Martin Zinsler, expert at AKTUAR 

13:00 - 14:00 Networking Lunch

Where
CEU's Vienna campus
Located in Favoriten, the Austrian capital's multicultural 10th district
Quellenstraße 51-55, 1100
Vienna, Austria