Have you ever struggled with a team member, who doesn’t seem motivated? Do you sometimes wonder how to lead without formal authority? Or do you feel "stuck in the middle" between your boss and the team you are leading as a postdoc?

Leading teams in the academic context is a challenging task. It can be inspiring and stressful at times. Some insights into communication and leadership skills can make a difference, for you personally and for your team.

This one and a half day training was designed to support those in prospective leadership positions with some insights and helpful leadership approaches to expand their skill set and gain suggestions for concrete situations at hand. Some of the topics that will be covered are:

• Understanding structural aspects of leading from a "sandwich" position
• Defining and clarifying one’s role and mandate as well as expectations
• Leadership styles and Situational Leadership
• Understanding social systems and team-development
• Building a network and support system
• Handling tricky situations from real life examples

The training will consist of short inputs, lots of practical exercises and experience sharing. We strongly recommend that participants come prepared with some real life situations and questions that will serve as a basis for practice and discussions.

Participation in both days is required.

Dr. Anette Hammerschmidt is a trainer and coach in the academic field as well as in the business world with over 20 years of experience.

Her main expertise lies in leadership topics as well as organizational and team-development, intercultural cooperation and self-leadership.

The advanced PhD and early postdoc years are essential for academic career development. During this period, scientists are often torn between conflicting priorities of intellectual independence, on the one hand, and meeting professional obligations towards their employers, on the other hand. Postdoctoral candidates are expected to develop an independent publication record, apply for external funding, create a distinct research profile, build a teaching portfolio, communicate their research, build a network, undertake research stays abroad, etc. etc. Which of these tasks are particularly important? What are the top priorities? How important is the habilitation? Which time frame is appropriate and compatible with my personal private priorities? Is an academic career what I really want?

The first part of the seminar will be dedicated to learning about and evaluating the various requirements for a long-term career in academia. Based on this, the participants will review their current academic profiles. Following this reflection, they will develop and specify their next goals and the major steps towards qualifying for a long-term academic career.