Knowledge institutions take action on open science in recruitment and promotion policies

This effort is much needed, as researchers and professional research support staff are increasingly committed to open science but are not yet consistently rewarded for their contributions. There is broad consensus that the transition to open science should not rely solely on the motivation of individual researchers; it must become an integral part of institutional policy, including recruitment and promotion policies. Valuing open science practices is also a priority for the national Recognition & Rewards programme.

In June 2024, Open Science NL launched a grant round aimed at 24 Dutch research-performing organisations, all affiliated with the national Recognition & Rewards programme. The organisations whose proposals were approved will each receive up to 50,000 euros to develop and implement plans next year to integrate the recognition and rewarding of open science into their HR policies for recruitment and promotion. Additionally, a project proposal for the national coordination of the local projects has been awarded funding.

Crucial for open science

Mariëlle Prevoo is Department manager Research Support & Development and Chief Open Science (UM) and together with her team applied for a grant. She highlights the importance of this programme: ‘We see recognising and rewarding open science as a crucial component of the UM Open Science policy. If open science activities are not recognised and valued, open science can never become the norm.’

According to Prevoo, the greatest challenge lies in getting the entire academic community on board: ‘Both the individual being evaluated and the evaluator must be able to appreciate the value of open science activities.’ To address this, UM will develop a train-the-trainer programme to ensure that all supervisors of scientists in the organisation acquire the necessary background knowledge. Prevoo explains that UM focuses on two key points in the project: improving the registration of open science activities, so they can form part of an evidence-based narrative CV, and training supervisors.

The University of Twente (UT) also receives a grant. Project leader Florian Schuberth explains why the project is significant: ‘To me, recognising and rewarding open science also means recognising and rewarding good research practices. For example, open science and scientific integrity are strongly interconnected: being open is frequently mentioned in the Netherlands Code of Conduct for Research. In light of current societal challenges and post-truth developments, I believe it is even more important that we train, recognise, and reward all university staff for their open science practices.’

Schuberth acknowledges that recognising and rewarding open science practices is not yet the norm: ‘This may be due to assessors’ lack of awareness of open science, uncertainty about how to reward such practices, or difficulties in formally recognising them within the current HR policy. We hope to address some of these barriers with the project we are launching with this grant.’

To achieve this, all stakeholders – academic staff, HR managers, and faculty committees – must align, Schuberth emphasises: ‘Furthermore, implementing revised HR policies will be another significant challenge. To tackle these challenges, we are developing an open science module in this project, which will be integrated into existing leadership training and briefings for HR staff and assessment committees. This module will introduce supervisors and committee members to OS and demonstrate how OS practices can be recognised and rewarded. I am really looking forward to working with a diverse team on this!’

National coordination and knowledge sharing

Inge van der Weijden from the Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) at Leiden University will lead the national coordination project. She emphasises the importance of collaboration: ‘For open science to be integrated into hiring and promotion policies, we must share best practices and align our approaches. This prevents duplication and, more importantly, gives the academic community clarity on career perspectives. Many members move between institutions, so this clarity is crucial. We will build on the solid foundation of the National Recognition and Rewards Programme to facilitate coordination.’

It is also important to align efforts in the Netherlands with international developments, van der Weijden adds. ‘Our initiatives must align with the latest advances in Europe and beyond. CWTS will collaborate with international projects like PathOS and GraspOS. We will also work closely with networks such as the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment (CoARA). This way, we will not work in isolation.’

Creation of the call