Projects "Leadership culture and change"

Revising management mission statement and management tools

All introductory events for new professors and supervisors are now mandatory and are held on an ongoing basis, now also in English. The feedbacks from new employees have been positive, and the requirement that the attendance is mandatory is gaining acceptance.

The five introductory events cover relevant principles and objectives of the University of Bern on leadership topics:

  • ‘Welcome to the University of Bern - The Executive Board welcomes you ’
  • ‘Fundamentals of human resources management’
  • ‘Fundamentals of financial management’
  • ‘Employee appraisals - leading with goals’
  • ‘Good Teaching at the University of Bern

In the coming months, further development of management training is on the agenda, particularly in the area of leadership for postdocs.

 

Further information on leadership training can be found here (UniBE intern)

Professional Change Management

The rapid pace of change in today's world places great demands on the employees of the University of Bern. To ensure that everyone can cope well with change and is well supported in this process, managers are to be trained in professional change management.

Change management is seen as an integral part of the “Leadership culture and change” action area and is therefore no longer pursued as a separate topic. A kind of toolbox is to be made available to managers to support them in change processes, using the basis of the Canton of Bern, which will publish a new website with a toolbox in spring 2025. The University of Bern is in close exchange with the Canton of Bern, where change management guidelines have already been developed and change agents have been deployed to provide support. In fall 2025, the Canton of Bern also publishes a toolbox to support managers in change processes. A corresponding website and the adapted toolbox for the university will be published  in due time. In addition, role profiles are being developed to support the various positions in the change process; customised training courses are being offered for employees, managers, HR and change agents.

 

Status: August 2025