Besides on-the-job technical training, IMDEA Materials Institute is committed to train the Institute’s scientists and staff in “soft” or transversal skills. Those competences are relevant to a broad range of occupations and sectors (academic research or teaching career, specialization in a given field or a career at industry or other type of organization) and are the building blocks for the development of the "hard" skills required to succeed on the labor market.
Below you can consult the history of courses that have already taken place and the ones that are currently under preparation. These courses are mainly targeted to Research Assistants and Associates.
Literature search. Introduction to writing scientific papers. How to prepare and deliver effective presentations
15th October 2015. 3 hours
Delivered by: Teresa Pérez-Prado (Senior Researcher at IMDEA Materials) &Miguel Ángel Rodiel (Technology Manager at IMDEA Materials)
Content:
- Library search & papers writing
- Effective presentations
Introduction to project management. Project management my PhD
25th February 2016. 2 hours
Delivered by: Germán Infante (Project Manager at IMDEA Materials)
Content:
- Why do I need management skills?
- What is a project? What is project management?
- An introducion to project management
- An overview of all project management areas, with special focus on the application to a PhD Thesis
- Useful resources
R&D&i funding systems and opportunities
31st May 2017. 2 hours
Delivered by: Fernando Gómez (Project Manager at IMDEA Materials)
Content:
- Get an innovative idea to be funded
- Support programs along the R&D chain
- The European R&D&i framework program H2020
- Project proposal structure
- Case study: from idea to a successful project
Preparation and evaluation of R&D&i project proposals
11th October 2017. 3 hours
Delivered by: Miguel Ángel Rodiel (Technology Manager at IMDEA Materials) & Claudio Lopes (Senior Researcher at IMDEA Materials)
Content:
- Preparation of R&D&i proposals
- Evaluation of R&D&i proposals
Economic-business basic concepts
2nd March 2017. 2. 5 hours
Delivered by: Mar García (Financial Manager at IMDEA Materials)
Content:
- What does economics means in general terms?
- What is economic and financial information used for?
- Main economic and accounting concepts
- R&D&i project budget
- Case study
Intellectual and industrial property basic concepts. Protection and transfer of research results
21st September 2017. 4 hours
Delivered by: Diego Gutierrez (FOURLAW abogados)
Content:
- Patents, copyrights, designs and know-how
- Ownership, management and exploitation of results
Communicating at the workplace
17th November 2017. 7 hours
Delivered by: Roberto Espinosa (Economist with a strong interest in sales, leadership, entrepreneurship and innovation)
Content:
- Best known methods about email communications
- Leadership and teamwork
- Giving and receiving feedback
- Effective meetings
- Goal setting
- Negotiation
Practical advice for writing and defending an excellent PhD Thesis
6th April 2018. 1 hour
Delivered by: Miguel Herráez, Joseba Múgica and Carlos González (IMDEA Materials Institute)
Content:
- Before writing
- Writing
- Formatting the document
- Defending the Thesis
- More recommendations
Professional management of R&I projects under H2020 collaborative schemes
17th April 2018. 7 hours
Delivered by: Eva García (RTDI)
Content:
- Introduction
- Professional management of projects. PMI standards
- Management of H2020 projects
Science communication
13th & 20th June 2018. 8 hours
Delivered by: Luis Quevedo (filmmaker, podcaster, producer and TV personality)
Content:
- Pre-work
- What the media wants and how to be a proactive communicator
- "MoJo" Mobile journalism basics and other tools
- Non-traditional communication, non verbal language, visuals and more
- On-camera, mock interviews and feedback
- Take home package: a brief survival book on how to deal with the media
How to prepare for a recruiting process. Personal experiences of PhDs working in academia and industry
September 2018. Hours to be defined
Delivered by: To be defined
Content (tentative):
- Interview process and tips
- Boosting transferable skills
- Working at the bench in industry vs academia
- Making the transition from academia to industry
From research to enterprise: an introduction to startup creation and management
12th, 13th & 18th September 2018. 12 hours
Delivered by: Marco Laucelli (Tech maker building lovely digital product based on analytics, AI, blockchain and distributed architectures. Business Design. Product Management, Service and Operations, everything as a service. Entrepreneur)
Content:
- The startup as an experiment
- The problem: identifying and validating the problem
- Customer development: discovering the customer
- The Solution: unique value proposition
- The Pivot: discovering the right opportunity
- Modelling the revenue streams: revenue models and validation
- Being unique: the unfair advantage, IP, competitive advantage, barriers
- Reaching the customers: channels and metrics
- Basic Financials for startups
- Team, culture and processes
- Startup management, the hardware case
- Pitching to Investors: business plan, resources, needs, risks
Creativity techniques and thinking tools
November 2018. 7 hours
Delivered by: To be defined
Content (tentative):
- Boot camp on design thinking or another useful approach to creativity
- What is creativity?, how to spot a creative researcher?, who is creative?, creativity and research envoronments
- Are science and creativity compatible?, the importance of creativity in generating ideas, designing research methodologies, constructing experiments, analysing data, ...
- Good practices for creative researchers: help building a possitive research culture, level and quality of communication with research colleagues, make time and space for creativity, developing and sustaining your personal creativity, ...
Economics and finances for scientists and engineers. Basics for the design of a business plan
February 2019. 14 hours
Delivered by: To be defined
Content (tentative):
- Introduction to economics and finances: what is this used for?, why is this important in science and engineering?
- How to be conversant with an economic / financial department: main concepts / terms, understanding a company's financial statements
- Elements of a business plan. Case study: elaboration of a specific business plan (including profitability of the potential investment / putting numbers to the plan (cash flow, IRR, NPV and other valuation criteria)).
Scientific writing vs proposal writing: how to write papers that get cited and proposals that get funded
May 2019. 14 hours
Delivered by: To be defined
Content (tentative):
- What makes a good scientific writer?
- Scientific writing vs proposal writing
- Writing scientific papers and articles for trade journals
- Writing a proposal: what the best grant writers do (and you should too).
Career management and recruitment processes. Academia vs industry
September 2019. 7 hours
Delivered by: To be defined
Content (tentative):
- Creating a career development plan
- How to prepare for a recruitment process. Academia vs industry: structure your résumé, write cover letters according to job description, realize that applications differ depending on the country, present yourself confidently and convincingly, main (and useful) job search sites
- Getting to know different academic career paths. Real experiences.
Managing your time
November 2019. 7 hours
Delivered by: To be defined
Content (tentative):
- Organization and planning: how to make the most of time and resources
- Management / Optimization of decision-making
- Orientation to results.
Options for the exploitation of research results
December 2019. 4 hours
Delivered by: To be defined
Content (tentative):
- Commercialization channels (IP exploitation, spin-off, consultancy)
- Knowledge transfer channels (publishing, conferencing and networking, standards, policy …)
