Professor Mark van der Meijde, head of ITC's Earth Systems Analysis department, is a pioneer in talent development on both personal and team levels.
What's your take on the relationship between personal development and team development within ITC?
"In every department there is a tension between wanting to get things done and letting people go through their development to see how far they can go. As a manager I always look for the balance between the two. The best way for anyone to achieve job satisfaction is to do what he does best. However, ultimately, creating real impact is a matter of team effort. Before my days as head of the department, I noticed that young people were often solely used for the skills they had at that time. They were hardly given any space to develop and often called it quits within a few years. That is why, in my current position, I am committed to stimulating younger staff members and allowing them space. Consequently, they become more assertive and confident and have more productive interactions with senior staff members. All in all, this results in improved performance, individually as well as collectively."
How do you deal with people in your department who want to move up the ladder?
"We have agreed that people who are getting ready to take a senior step will first be offered a talent assessment. It's our way of ascertaining if someone's strengths are appropriate for the position he or she would be occupying. Are there any things we need to develop or adjust? Or does the new position involve too many aspects that the candidate simply wouldn't like and should we start looking for development in a different direction? I think we are the only department within ITC that does it this way. We do feel that it helps to manage the expectations people have about their careers."
In educational circles today it is often said that pressure keeps people from reaching their full potential. Is that something you recognize in your department?
"Absolutely, in my experience this is a phenomenon that many teachers are struggling with. A significant problem at ITC – maybe elsewhere in the UT as well – is that educational work tends to be very fragmented. This prevents teachers from continuously teaching from their intrinsic enthusiasm, and it's certainly a factor in the pressure they experience. Therefore, in my department we have chosen to work with smaller core teams, which allows us to focus more on expertise and gives people more responsibility for what they are doing. Bottom line, more enthusiasm, less pressure."
How do you view the topic of education based recognition and rewards?
"There are people who like teaching better than doing research. That's why we have launched the "rewarding teaching" initiative to bring education more into the limelight. How can we ensure that people who have invested lots of time in a senior qualification in terms of education are not only utilized properly but also rewarded fittingly? We are now also working on a pilot project to investigate possibilities for promotions based on education. Our approach is that education based rewards and promotions benefit the organization as well as the individual."
But how do you make performance in the field of education really measurable?
"Measuring is hard, because education is more of a process than a performance. Looking back at a process is always difficult. But what you can do is monitor the process as it unfolds. Once you start looking at education as a process in which you take steps and reach goals, it suddenly becomes very tangible. It becomes something that managers and organizations can relate to more, as well as a goal for the individual to strive for in the next few years – with the alluring prospect of a reward attached. In the end, it's not so much about what you achieve as it is about the challenge, the focus and the incentive to work towards that dot on the horizon."