Collect and share best practices on reform of research careers at organisations.

Descriptor: Best practices highlight the experiences and lessons learned from various organisations and can help organisations to develop more efficient and effective regulations and policies. Organisations aiming to reform research careers could first orient themselves by collecting and openly sharing best practices on research careers from their and other organisations.

Review and improve inclusion of researchers in governance and decision-making bodies.

Descriptor: Researchers are often not sufficiently engaged and involved in the decision-making bodies at their organisations whereby their voices and views may not play a role in policy making. Early-career and senior researchers could be more proactively engaged and empowered to play an active role in governing their organisations and co-creating policies for researchers.

Include researchers and research support staff in activities to reform research careers.

Descriptor: Any reform of research careers aims to improve the lives of researchers and is supported by research support staff. All discussions and actions to reform research careers could directly involve researchers and research support staff (including human resources officers and research managers) to gather their input and align with their specific interests and needs.

Engage with key stakeholders to align national regulations and policies on research careers.

Descriptor: National regulations and policies can form a barrier to reform research careers, can change on a short-term basis, and may need to be aligned with other regulations and policies as well as across other organisations and stakeholders. Organisations could advocate for and support alignment on a national level to ensure clear and stable regulations and policies.

Engage with key stakeholders to improve long-term stability of funding for research careers.

Descriptor: Stable and predictable multi-annual funding is needed to ensure the long-term stability and attractiveness of research careers. This is relevant for both core/baseline funding and competitive/project-based funding for research. Organisations could advocate for and support reforms for more stable and predictable national funding for research careers.

Engage with key stakeholders to fund and implement pilots to reform research careers.

Descriptor: Research careers are part of an interlinked web of regulations, policies, funding, activities, and stakeholders. Reforming research careers is a complex process whereby any changes require careful planning and resources and can have unforeseen results. Organisations could advocate for and implement funded pilots to test new reforms of research careers.

Engage with key stakeholders on national implementation of Council Recommendation.

Descriptor: The Council Recommendation is aimed mainly at countries which need to implement the recommendation at national level and coordinate implementation across key stakeholders in their countries. Organisations could advocate for the adoption of the recommendation and support alignment of the implementation of the recommendation in their countries.

Raise awareness of Charter for Researchers and HR Excellence in Research Award.

Descriptor: Researchers are often not aware of best practices on research careers, best practices on the rights and obligations of researchers and their employers or funders, or organisations recognised for best practices. Organisations could promote the Charter for Researchers and HR Excellence in Research Award and make their researchers aware of these initiatives.

Endorse Charter for Researchers and apply for/renew HR Excellence in Research Award.

Descriptor: The Charter for Researchers offers principles for attractive research careers and the rights and obligations of researchers and their employers or funders. Organisations could endorse the Charter for Researchers and apply for or renew the HR Excellence in Research Award as well as engage in communities of practice on the charter at national and European level.

Endorse RESAVER Pension Fund and join consortium of RESAVER member organisations.

Descriptor: RESAVER is a pan-European occupational pension fund which allows mobile researchers to remain affiliated with the same pension solution across countries and employers and allows organisations to define their own contributions and investments. Organisations could support mobile researchers by endorsing RESAVER and joining the RESAVER consortium.

Collect and share best practices on employment contracts for researchers and TTLMs.

Descriptor: There are many different types of employment contracts and TTLMs for researchers across organisations and countries. Organisations aiming to improve the stability of research careers could first orient themselves by collecting and openly sharing best practices on employment contracts and TTLMs for researchers from their and other organisations.

Review and improve percentage of permanent/open-ended contracts for researchers.

Descriptor: Permanent/open-ended employment contracts can provide researchers with a guaranteed career path and long-term career stability but the overall percentage of such contracts at organisations may be low. Organisations could review the status of permanent/open-ended contracts for their researchers and increase the percentage at their organisations.

Review and improve duration of fixed-term contracts dependent on needs of researchers.

Descriptor: The duration of fixed-term employment contracts may be too short to provide researchers with adequate short-term employment stability or fully cover the tasks assigned to them. Organisations could review the duration of fixed-term contracts for their researchers and increase the duration dependent on the types of contracts and needs of their researchers.

Define a threshold for percentage of fixed-term contracts and monitor compliance.

Descriptor: Fixed-term contracts can offer short-term employment stability for researchers but the overall percentage of such contracts (which should take into account inherently fixed-term positions) at organisations may be high. Organisations could define a maximum threshold for the percentage of fixed-term contracts for their researchers and monitor compliance.

Define a threshold for successive number of fixed-term contracts and monitor compliance.

Descriptor: There may be no limit or a high limit on the number of fixed-term contracts which a researcher may have in successive order at organisations (before being let go or receiving a permanent/open-ended contract). Organisations could define a maximum threshold for the number of successive fixed-term contracts for their researchers and monitor compliance.

Review status of TTLMs and regulations relevant for TTLMs at national and local levels.

Descriptor: There may be existing examples of TTLMs and regulations which are relevant for TTLMs at the national and local level in a country. Organisations aiming to develop new or refine existing TTLMs could orient themselves by surveying the landscape of TTLMs and checking for current regulations and policies which are relevant for TTLMs in their country.

Define conditions and procedures for all participants in new/refined TTLMs.

Descriptor: The development of new or refinement of existing TTLMs requires legal alignment with national regulations and agreement on the conditions and procedures for all participants. Organisations could define the conditions and procedures for new TTLMs in alignment with national regulations and in discussion with their researchers and research support staff.

Develop an action plan to structure implementation of new/refined TTLMs.

Descriptor: The implementation of new/refined TTLMs at organisations needs to be planned and rolled out in successive recruitment and assessment cycles with the participating researchers. Organisations could develop an action plan with clear actions and timelines to structure and monitor implementation of TTLMs with feedback/revision loops built into the planning.

Coordinate implementation of new/refined TTLMs and monitor implementation.

Descriptor: The roll-out of new/refined TTLMs at organisations requires multi-annual coordination and monitoring in successive recruitment and assessment cycles with participating researchers. Organisations could implement new/refined TTLMs and monitor progress whereby the implementation could be adjusted where necessary based on feedback from researchers.

Engage with national research-funding bodies on need for long-term funding for TTLMs.

Descriptor: Stable and long-term national funding is critical to implement TTLMs which provide participating researchers with permanent/open-ended contracts after positive assessment. Organisations could engage with national research funders and advocate for the need to provide stable funding to stimulate and maintain employment of researchers on TTLMs.

Collect and share best practices on improving working conditions of researchers.

Descriptor: There are many aspects of the working conditions of researchers which could be reformed at organisations to improve the daily lives of researchers. Organisations could first orient themselves by collecting and openly sharing best practices which showcase how to improve the working conditions of researchers and provide organisations with options to select.

Ensure recruitment and progression are open, transparent, and merit-based.

Descriptor: Researchers who are being evaluated for new grants and jobs or career progression are entitled to understand a priori the evaluation criteria and ad hoc the evaluation outcome. Organisations could ensure that the recruitment and progression of researchers at their organisations is based on open, transparent, and merit-based principles of evaluation.

Communicate clearly on rights and obligations of researchers and organisations.

Descriptor: Researchers are often not fully aware of their rights and obligations as researchers or the respective rights and obligations of their own employers and funders. Organisations could communicate more clearly on the rights and obligations of their researchers and their own rights and obligations towards researchers (especially during recruitment and progression).

Review and improve remuneration for researchers to be competitive and commensurate.

Descriptor: Remuneration for researchers needs to be (inter)sectorally competitive and commensurate with their position and experience in order to attract and retain talented researchers. Organisations could review and improve the remuneration for their researchers (especially early-career researchers) where remuneration levels are not strictly nationally defined.

Review and improve support for researchers to access social protection benefits.

Descriptor: Researchers may not be aware of or have access to relevant social protection benefits including benefits for unemployment, healthcare/sickness, parental leave, invalidity, and old age/survivorship. Organisations could review and improve their support for researchers (especially early-career researchers) to be aware of and access social protection benefits.

Review and improve support for flexible working conditions and work-life balance.

Descriptor: There is an increasing need for researchers to have more flexibility in their working hours and working environment as well as an increasing awareness of mental health issues and overwork among researchers. Organisations could review and improve their support for flexible working conditions and ensure an adequate work-life balance for their researchers.

Review and reduce bureaucratic and administrative obligations of researchers.

Descriptor: Researchers are increasingly being required to fulfil bureaucratic and administrative duties which are often seen as unnecessarily burdening and taking valuable time from performing their core activities of research and education. Organisations could review and reduce such bureaucratic and administrative obligations and support researchers with these obligations.

Review and improve support for academic freedom and protection from interference.

Descriptor: Researchers need to be safeguarded to conduct research and education on their chosen subjects in a working environment which is free from ideological and foreign interference. Organisations could review and improve their support for the academic freedom of their researchers and protection for their researchers from ideological and foreign interference.

Review and improve support for equality, diversity, and inclusion of researchers.

Descriptor: Research careers need to be safeguarded to ensure the fair treatment and full participation of all researchers and especially groups which have historically been underrepresented or discriminated against due to identity and disability. Organisations could review and improve their support and raise awareness for the equality, diversity, and inclusion of researchers.

Identify scope of precarity and tailor support to reduce precarity of researchers.

Descriptor: The issues responsible for the precarity of research careers can differ across different profiles of researchers, organisations, sectors, and countries. Organisations could first identify the scope of precarity for and in discussion with their own researchers (especially early-career researchers) and then tailor support measures to reduce the identified issues.

Collect and share best practices on professional development of researchers.

Descriptor: The professional development of researchers is typically a priority for organisations and there are many existing examples of the skills and career development of researchers. Organisations could first orient themselves by collecting and openly sharing best practices which showcase the diversity of support for the professional development of researchers.

Review and improve support for professional development of researchers.

Descriptor: Researchers require continuous professional development with the different profiles of researchers often needing specific skills/competences and career development support. Organisations could review and improve their support for the professional development of their researchers and tailor support measures to the specific needs of their researchers.

Raise awareness on skills/competence frameworks and skills/competences for researchers.

Descriptor: Researchers are often not aware of the skills/competences which they have acquired or need whereby skills/competence frameworks (such as ResearchComp and RM Comp) can help them to identify relevant skills/competences. Organisations could raise more awareness on skills/competence frameworks and skills/competences for their researchers.

Raise awareness on existing talent development programmes and platforms for researchers.

Descriptor: There are many existing online talent development programmes and platforms which can readily help researchers with their skills and career development (including EURAXESS and the ERA Talent Platform). Organisations could utilise and raise awareness on existing internal and external talent development programmes and platforms for their researchers.

Integrate skills/competence frameworks and skills/competences into researcher profiles.

Descriptor: Researcher profiles (such as the R1-R4 researcher profiles) typically identify the relevant skills/competences which researchers need at different career stages. Organisations could more systematically integrate skills/competence frameworks (such as ResearchComp and RM Comp) and skills/competences for researchers into their own researcher profiles.

Integrate skills/competence frameworks into professional development of researchers.

Descriptor: Existing skills/competence frameworks for researchers (such as ResearchComp and RM Comp) are useful for identifying relevant research and transferable skills/competences for researchers. Organisations could more systematically integrate relevant skills/competence frameworks for researchers into their professional development programmes.

Raise awareness on and add research integrity to professional development of researchers.

Descriptor: Research integrity is fundamental for realising responsible research and education whereby researchers (especially early-career researchers) need to be educated in research integrity. Organisations could raise awareness on and add research integrity and codes of conduct on research integrity (such as by ALLEA) in their professional development programmes.

Raise awareness on and add Open Science to professional development of researchers.

Descriptor: Open Science is vital for the open collaboration of researchers and the open sharing of research results whereby researchers (especially early-career researchers) need to be educated in Open Science. Organisations could raise awareness on and add principles and practices related to Open Science in their professional development programmes.

Raise awareness on and add triple-I mobility to professional development of researchers.

Descriptor: Researchers need to be mobile to collaborate and develop their careers across different disciplines, organisations, sectors, and countries whereby they need to be educated in interdisciplinary, intersectoral, and international mobility. Organisations could raise awareness on and include triple-I mobility in their professional development programmes.

Provide professional career development counselling with experts/mentors for researchers.

Descriptor: Researchers can benefit greatly from individual and professional counselling sessions with internal and external experts/mentors on their future career development. Organisations could provide professional career development counselling with experts/mentors for researchers (especially early-career researchers who are near the end of their contracts).

Collect and share best practices on supporting triple-I mobility of researchers.

Descriptor: There are many existing (inter)national and local schemes and measures to encourage and support the interdisciplinary, intersectoral, and international mobility of researchers across Europe. Organisations could first orient themselves by collecting and openly sharing best practices highlighting the benefits of and support for the triple-I mobility of researchers.

Identify (inter)national and local barriers to triple-I mobility of researchers.

Descriptor: There are many barriers which may restrict the mobility of researchers including legal (such as regulations), financial (such as lack of funding), contractual (such as strict conditions), practical (such as lack of time), and social (such as pressure from a supervisor) barriers. Organisations could identify barriers to triple-I mobility to improve their support measures.

Review and improve support for triple-I mobility of researchers.

Descriptor: Researchers are often not aware of the benefits of and opportunities for triple-I mobility and need to be encouraged and supported to be mobile. Organisations could review their national and local support for triple-I mobility and improve their measures to encourage and support their researchers to be mobile across disciplines, sectors, and countries.

Develop platforms and tools to support triple-I mobility of researchers.

Descriptor: Digital platforms and tools (including websites with enhanced functionalities and apps) can help researchers more easily search for and engage in opportunities for triple-I mobility. Organisations could develop digital platforms and tools to share opportunities and support the collaboration and mobility of researchers across disciplines, sectors, and countries.

Organise events to stimulate triple-I mobility opportunities for researchers.

Descriptor: Online and physical events can help bring researchers and relevant stakeholders from different disciplines, organisations, sectors, and countries together to stimulate potential research collaboration and employment opportunities for researchers. Organisations could organise events aimed at creating opportunities for the triple-I mobility of researchers.

Raise awareness on and support transfer of social protection entitlements.

Descriptor: Researchers may not be aware of social protection entitlements (such as pensions) which they have acquired (via mandatory or voluntary schemes) and how to transfer them across employers, schemes, and countries (using tools such as RESAVER). Organisations could raise awareness on and support their researchers in transferring social protection entitlements.

Promote value of PhD and related skills/competences to non-academic sectors.

Descriptor: Non-academic sectors are typically not aware of the value of a PhD degree and the related skills/competences acquired by doctoral graduates which can lead to missed employment opportunities and a lack of recognition of doctoral employees. Organisations could promote the value of the PhD degree and related skills/competences to the non-academic sectors.

Review and improve support to attract and reintegrate returning researchers.

Descriptor: Organisations can benefit from the return of talented researchers from abroad by offering attractive positions and conditions and financially, legally, and administratively supporting their return and reintegration. Organisations could target the research diaspora abroad and review and improve support measures to attract and reintegrate returning researchers.

Review and improve support for dual positions of researchers across boundaries.

Descriptor: Dual positions in different organisations, sectors, and countries can help to realise the triple-I mobility of researchers, stimulate the knowledge transfer of research results, and provide researchers with more flexibility and diversity in their careers. Organisations could review and improve their support for creating and facilitating dual positions of researchers.

Engage with key stakeholders on supporting balanced circulation of researchers.

Descriptor: Realising a more balanced circulation of researchers and addressing relevant barriers requires the coordination, alignment, and support of key stakeholders across different organisations, sectors, and countries. Organisations could engage with (inter)national and local stakeholders to better align and support a more balanced circulation of researchers.

Collect and share best practices on reforming researcher assessment.

Descriptor: There are many existing best practices of reforms to improve the assessment of researchers from individual organisations, university alliances, and national and European initiatives and projects. Organisations could collect and share such best practices to learn from and build further on the examples to develop their own reforms for researcher assessment.

Identify national and local barriers preventing reform of researcher assessment.

Descriptor: There may be barriers at the national level (such as employment regulations) and local level (such as the complex interplay between assessment and the research process as well as the resistance of researchers to change) which can hinder reforms to researcher assessment. Organisations could attempt to identify any barriers to reforming researcher assessment.

Integrate a qualitative and responsible quantitative approach into researcher assessment.

Descriptor: Researchers are assessed mainly on peer-reviewed publications in journals with a high impact factor whereby quantitative bibliometric indicators (such as publications, citations, Journal Impact Factor (JIF), and H-index) are typically used and abused. Organisations could take a more qualitative and responsible quantitative approach when assessing researchers.

Recognise diversity of roles, activities, and outputs of researchers in researcher assessment.

Descriptor: Researchers are predominantly assessed on the basis of their publications yet they need to perform many other research, education, and related activities in their work. Organisations could support the shift away from the hyperfocus on publications to a greater recognition of the wide diversity of the roles, activities, outputs, and impacts of their researchers.

Recognise research integrity principles and practices in researcher assessment.

Descriptor: Researchers need to be incentivised and rewarded to encourage them to apply research integrity and align with relevant codes of conduct in their research and education activities. Organisations could integrate research integrity into researcher assessment by recognising research integrity principles and practices by researchers when they are being evaluated.

Recognise Open Science principles and practices in researcher assessment.

Descriptor: Researchers need to be incentivised and rewarded to encourage them to apply Open Science and engage in knowledge valorisation in their research and education activities. Organisations could integrate Open Science into researcher assessment by recognising Open Science principles and practices by researchers when they are being evaluated.

Recognise triple-I mobility principles and practices in researcher assessment.

Descriptor: Researchers need to be incentivised and rewarded to encourage them to engage in interdisciplinary, intersectoral, and international mobility in their research careers. Organisations could integrate triple-I mobility into researcher assessment by recognising all relevant triple-I mobility activities by researchers when they are being evaluated.

Educate researcher evaluators about reformed criteria for researcher assessment.

Descriptor: Researcher evaluators play a leading and decisive role in researcher assessment and need to be made fully aware of (the value and reasons for) any reformed criteria for assessment so that researchers are assessed fairly according to new criteria. Organisations could inform and educate their researcher evaluators about reformed criteria for researcher assessment.

Monitor reforms in researcher assessment for any negative and unwanted effects.

Descriptor: Reforms to researcher assessment can impact upon the daily lives of researchers and their research and education activities which could lead to unforeseen negative and unwanted effects for organisations and their researchers. Organisations could monitor and adjust their reforms in researcher assessment for any unforeseen negative and unwanted effects.

Sign Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment and join CoARA as a member.

Descriptor: The Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment from the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment (CoARA) proposes a common strategy and action plan to reform research assessment. Organisations could sign the agreement and join CoARA to learn from and align strategies with other organisations as well as engage their researchers in CoARA.

Collect and share best practices on recognition and support of diverse research careers.

Descriptor: There are many career paths open to researchers inside and outside of academia as well as support measures at organisations to help researchers diversify their careers. Organisations could collect and share best practices on the recognition and support of diverse research careers to develop their own measures and better support the careers of their researchers.

Raise awareness on diversity of research careers including non-linear and hybrid careers.

Descriptor: Researchers are typically not aware of the diversity of research careers and the career options available to them inside and outside of their organisations as well as the possibility of non-linear and hybrid career paths. Organisations could raise awareness on the diversity of research careers and career paths inside and outside of academia among researchers.

Review and improve recognition and support of diverse research careers.

Descriptor: Researchers are usually not recognised and may even be penalised in evaluations for having followed diverse and non-traditional career paths or lack adequate support at their organisations to engage in and transition to more diverse career paths. Organisations could review and improve their recognition of and support measures for diverse research careers.

Review and improve diversity of internal career path options for researchers.

Descriptor: There may be limited internal career path options for researchers at their organisations or researchers may not be aware of other internal career path options beyond the position of a researcher. Organisations could review and improve their internal career path options for researchers and support researchers who may want to transition to other internal careers.

Define clear and distinct profiles for research managers and research technicians.

Descriptor: The professions of research manager and research technician may not be clearly defined or recognised at organisations and offer researchers alternative career path options beyond the position of a researcher. Organisations could define clear and distinct profiles for research managers and research technicians including their roles and responsibilities.

Review and improve professionalisation of research managers and research technicians.

Descriptor: The professions of research manager and research technician may not be fully developed at organisations whereby research managers and research technicians may not be adequately recognised, supported, and rewarded in their careers. Organisations could review and improve the professionalisation of their research managers and research technicians.

Review and improve support for entrepreneurship and knowledge valorisation.

Descriptor: Entrepreneurship activities (such as developing spin-offs and start-ups) and knowledge valorisation activities (such as ensuring the societal uptake of research results) can help researchers to transition to more diverse careers. Organisations could review and improve their support to researchers to engage in entrepreneurship and knowledge valorisation.

Create support offices and hubs for entrepreneurship and knowledge valorisation.

Descriptor: Support offices and hubs can offer tailored support to researchers for entrepreneurship and knowledge valorisation activities and bring researchers in contact with relevant external stakeholders for future collaboration and employment opportunities. Organisations could create such support offices and hubs for entrepreneurship and knowledge valorisation.

Educate researcher recruiters about value of diverse research career paths.

Descriptor: Recruiters for research grants and careers need to understand the value of diverse research careers and applicants with diverse and non-traditional career paths so that they do not negatively bias or penalise such candidates in evaluations. Organisations could educate internal and external researcher recruiters about the value of diverse research career paths.

Track career paths of alumni researchers and create a network of alumni researchers.

Descriptor: Long-term career tracking of researchers is needed to understand the career paths of researchers and the diversity of research careers whereby bringing alumni researchers in contact with each other can create new networking and career opportunities. Organisations could track the long-term career paths and create a network of their alumni researchers.

Adopt European definition of ‘researcher’ in organisational regulations and policies.

Descriptor: The definition of what a researcher is and does as well as their roles and responsibilities can differ across organisations, sectors, and countries. Organisations could adopt a common European definition of ‘researcher’ (such as proposed in the Council Recommendation) in their regulations and policies to support common understanding and interoperability.

Collect and share best practices on use of R1-R4 profiles and ESCO classification.

Descriptor: There are existing examples of the use of the R1-R4 researcher profiles to categorise the different stages of researchers and ESCO classification to categorise the skills/competences, qualifications, and occupations of researchers. Organisations could collect and build on best practices to develop their own guidelines to use the R1-R4 profiles and ESCO classification.

Adopt R1-R4 profiles or map existing researcher profiles onto R1-R4 profiles.

Descriptor: The R1-R4 researcher profiles need to be incorporated into existing policies and practices on researcher profiles at organisations and either be adopted as they are or mapped onto existing profiles. Organisations could adopt the R1-R4 profiles or map existing researcher profiles onto the R1-R4 profiles to support common understanding and interoperability.

Raise awareness of and develop clear guidelines on R1-R4 profiles for researchers.

Descriptor: Researchers are largely not aware of the R1-R4 researcher profiles or the descriptions used in the profiles or the reasons for using the profiles. Organisations could raise awareness on the R1-R4 profiles and develop clear guidelines and communications on the profiles and their use inside and outside their organisation so that this is clear for their researchers.

Refer to R1-R4 profiles in grant/job advertisements and relevant communications.

Descriptor: The R1-R4 researcher profiles support the interoperability of communications about and for (different stages of) researchers across organisations, sectors, and countries and especially about available grants/jobs for researchers. Organisations could refer to the R1-R4 profiles in their grant/job advertisements and relevant communications targeted at researchers.

Raise awareness of and support adoption of R1-R4 profiles in non-academic sectors.

Descriptor: The R1-R4 researcher profiles are unknown in the non-academic sectors which offer a wide range of research careers and could benefit from using the R1-R4 profiles to better recruit researchers in their research career advertisements. Organisations could raise awareness of the R1-R4 profiles and better support their adoption among non-academic stakeholders.

Integrate ESCO classification into research grant/job advertisements and portals.

Descriptor: The ESCO classification offers standardised terms and descriptors (and a specific label for research) for skills/competences and occupations across languages and sectors which can be used to categorise grants/jobs for researchers. Organisations could integrate the ESCO classification into their research grant/job advertisements and relevant grant/job portals.

Engage with key stakeholders on national adoption or mapping of ESCO classification.

Descriptor: European Parliament and Council Regulation 2016/589 requires that European countries either adopt or map their national classifications of skills/competences and occupations to and from the ESCO classification. Organisations could engage with key stakeholders to support the national adoption or mapping of the ESCO classification.

Provide recommendations for future revisions of classifications in ESCO classification.

Descriptor: The ESCO classification will be updated based on eventual changes to the landscape of skills/competences, qualifications, and occupations for researchers. Organisations could identify relevant obsolete, changing, and emerging skills/competences, qualifications, and occupations to provide recommendations for future revisions of the ESCO classification.

Engage with key stakeholders on interoperability and comparability of research careers.

Descriptor: Creating interoperability and comparability of research careers across organisations, sectors, and countries requires the engagement and alignment of relevant stakeholders on diverse regulations, policies, and practices for research careers. Organisations could engage with key stakeholders to ensure the interoperability and comparability of research careers.