Advisor (f_m_x) Competency Development & Career Coaching GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
GFZ is Germany's national centre for solid Earth research. We advance the understanding of dynamic processes to address global challenges, from mitigating the impacts of natural hazards and sustaining our habitat amid global change to responsibly managing georesources. We are part of the Helmholtz Association, the largest German scientific organisation. With around 1,200 employees as well as ca. 500 guest researchers, we contribute to the Helmholtz Research Field Earth and Environment, aligning cutting-edge research with societal relevance and international collaboration. Our work integrates multidisciplinary studies across Earth's system components, leveraging advanced technologies and infrastructure to research solutions and to transfer our knowledge to society. We are doing this according to our vision: “Taking the pulse of our Earth to safeguard a habitable planet”.
For the Talentmanagement team as part of the Human Resources department we are looking for an:
Advisor (f_m_x) Competency Development & Career Coaching
The Career Center is part of the Talentmanagement team at the GFZ and actively promotes the professional development of all postdocs at GFZ. We provide support for systematic career planning, offer advice on career-related issues, and promote networking within and outside academia.
We are looking for a dedicated and motivated individual to join our talent management working group within the Human Resources department. You can expect a dynamic working environment where innovation, teamwork, and personal development are key priorities.
Your responsibilities:
- Conceptual development and independent delivery of workshops, trainings, and other formats on career development topics for individuals at different career stages (e.g., postdocs, supervisors)
- Conduct structured career coaching sessions
- Analyse the training, coaching, and networking needs of early-career researchers using qualitative and quantitative methods
- Organisation and facilitation of career-related formats featuring external speakers
- Strategic identification and engagement of external speakers on career development within and beyond academia
- Strategic development and maintenance of the professional alumni network of the Career Center (from GFZ and external organisations)
- Coordination of larger career development programs from application to evaluation (e.g., Compass Mentoring Program, LeapIn Job Shadowing Program)
- Documentation of career development events and support in preparing reports
- Inspiring collaboration and active involvement in Helmholtz networks on career-related topics, including occasional business travel (1–2 times per year)
- Occasional creation of subject-specific content for Career Center promotional materials, website design, and newsletters
- Collaboration within the Talentmanagement working group (e.g., Graduate Programme, Welcome Center) on joint projects
- Occasional work on third-party funding applications
- Occasional representation of other areas of the Talentmanagement working group, e.g., in the organisation and delivery of events
Your qualifications:
Essential Qualifications:
- A completed master’s degree and a PhD in social sciences (e.g., with an emphasis on Work and Organisational Psychology, Business Psychology, Adult Education, Human Resource Management, or Business Administration) or natural sciences (e.g., with a focus in Geosciences)
- Additional qualification, e.g., a coaching/trainer certification
- Proven experience in scientific research or in the academic teaching context
- Demonstrated experience in the conceptual design and independent delivery of workshops or training programmes in relevant areas of career development and/or the development of social, methodological, or personal competencies
- Strong expert knowledge in strategic career development (e.g., academic appointment procedures), self-presentation skills (e.g., preparing professional application documents and interviews), and networking (e.g., use of LinkedIn)
- Solid experience in career coaching or career counselling for early-career researchers
- Experience in conducting qualitative and/or quantitative evaluations (e.g., online questionnaires) using relevant tools (e.g., LimeSurvey)
- Excellent communication skills in working with diverse stakeholders (e.g., postdocs, principal investigators, research group leaders, and HR departments)
- In-depth understanding of the German university and non-university research system
- Advanced proficiency in German and fluent proficiency in English
Desirable Qualifications:
- Confidence in networking, e.g., within (and outside) the GFZ, the Helmholtz Association, and the German research landscape
- Experience in preparing and working on external funding proposals
- Experience in event management and the use of relevant software (e.g., Indico)
- Proficient use of social media (e.g., LinkedIn)
What we offer:
- Ambitious and varied tasks in a dynamic and international research environment
- State-of-the-art equipment
- Public service benefits
- Extensive training opportunities
- Professional career advice offered by our in-house Career-Centre
- Flexible working hours and conditions
- Support with finding a good work-life balance offered by benefit@work
- Institute day-care centre on site
- Working at the Albert Einstein Science Park on the Telegrafenberg in Potsdam
- Workplace within walking distance of Potsdam main train station, or just a short ride on the shuttle bus
Fixed-term: 2 years (the option of continued employment in the next funding period is still under review)
Salary: The position is classed as salary group 13 according to “TVöD Bund ”. The salary group is determined on the basis of the Collective Wage Agreement and the respective personal qualifications.
Working hours: Full-time (currently 39 h/week); The position is generally suitable for part-time work.
Place of work: Potsdam
Apply
Have we piqued your interest?
Required documents: CV, letter of motivation, grades
Desirable documents: certificates
Please use our online application form only.
Important Technical Note:
Currently, email addresses associated with domains such as @hotmail.com, @outlook.com, or @live.de may experience occasional delays or restrictions in receiving messages. To ensure smooth communication during the application process, we recommend using an alternative email address and providing an additional contact method (e.g., a phone number).
The GFZ actively promotes diversity and explicitly welcomes applications from all qualified individuals, regardless of ethnic and social origin, nationality, gender, sexual orientation and identity, religion/belief, age and physical characteristics. We also promote an inclusive working environment in which everyone can fully develop their own talents. Anyone who has been recognised as severely disabled, will be given preferential consideration in the event of equal suitability and qualification in accordance with the provisions of the German Social Code IX. In case of further queries regarding gender equality, please do not hesitate to contact our Equal Opportunities Officer.
“Diversity in perspectives” is one of GFZ's core values. As an integral part of supporting diversity at our centre, we actively promote women in science and in leadership positions. We among others do this through our gender equality plan and the cascade model measures which we actively implement to enable sustainable equal opportunities in academic career paths. The GFZ thus committedly strives for gender equality in science, including in leadership positions, and strongly encourages women to apply.
Your personal data will be processed for the purpose of conducting the selection procedure on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 b, Art. 88 GDPR in conjunction with Art. 26 of the Data Protection Act for the State of Brandenburg. After completion of the procedure, application documents will be deleted in compliance with data protection regulations.
In case of any further queries relating to the field of activity, please contact Dr. Elena Stasewitsch via email. If you have any general questions about the application process, please contact our recruiting team at our phone number +49 (0) 331-6264-28787.
Reference number
11304
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About the employer
GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
The GFZ is Germany’s national center for research on the solid Earth. We advance the understanding of dynamic processes to address global challenges—ranging from mitigating the impacts of natural hazards and preserving our environment in times of global change to the responsible management of natural resources. We are a member of the Helmholtz Association, Germany’s largest scientific organization. With approximately 1,200 staff and around 500 visiting researchers, we contribute to the Helmholtz research area “Earth and Environment,” combining cutting-edge research with societal relevance and international collaboration.
Our work integrates multidisciplinary studies of Earth’s systems and leverages advanced technologies and infrastructures to explore solutions and bring our knowledge into society. We do all this in line with our vision: “In tune with the Earth—to preserve it as a habitable planet.”
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