Attaching Importance to the Training of Young Researchers and Promoting the Echelon Construction of the Research Institute

Lixian CUI, Jinli LIU, Yingjie WANG

Changli Fruit Tree Institute, Hebei Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences, Changli, 066600 China

Abstract This paper analyzes the current situation of training young scientific and technological talents, attracting talents and making good use of talents in Changli Fruit Tree Research Institute of Hebei Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences. There are some problems, such as lack of talent recruitment planning, and lack of follow-up training mechanism. This paper puts forward some measures, such as formulating a scientific recruitment plan, making a follow-up plan for talent training, building an ability-and performance-oriented evaluation mechanism for scientific and technological talents, so as to attach importance to the training of young scientific research talents and promote the echelon construction of the research institute.

Key words Young researchers, Training, Echelon construction

1 Introduction

Taking Changli Fruit Tree Research Institute as an example, this paper offers the thinking about talent training, and it is recommended to use the cause to keep talents, create conditions to gather talents, innovate mechanisms to encourage talents, and fully mobilize the enthusiasm and creativity of all sides to promote all kinds of talents to stand out constantly.

2 Analysis of the current situation

2.1 Some practices in training young scientific and technological talent

2.1.1

Increasing the investment of training funds. Young researchers are potential force in the talent echelon. In view of the fact that they have the active thinking, new research methods, good foreign language foundation, strong receptive ability and high level of computer application, youth scientific research funds are set up first at institute level to support a number of innovative exploration projects, and provide financial guarantee and training opportunities for young researchers to research beforehand, clarify research directions and apply for scientific research projects. Second, a scientific research subsidy system has been established to give appropriate rewards to the applicants for the project. For all approved scientific research projects, a certain incentive fund will be drawn according to different levels of the project and the amount of funds, and a corresponding incentive system will be established to reward the project team that undertakes the project. This has further stimulated and mobilized the enthusiasm and creativity of scientific and technological talent.

2.1.2

Strengthening academic exchanges at home and abroad and holding regular academic seminars. It provides a good platform for young scientific and technological talent to carry out academic exchanges and show their talent. It is necessary to actively expand channels and create conditions. In the past three years, experts from New Zealand, Australia, France, the United States and other countries, as well as domestic experts in this field, have been invited to give 14 academic reports, and more than 20 team members have attended academic conferences at home and abroad. It broadens the horizons of young scientific and technological talents. It has cooperated with Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Tianjin Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China Agricultural University, Hebei Agricultural University and other scientific research institutes to jointly undertake scientific research projects. The Institute leaders also actively support and participate in academic activities organized by young scientific research staff, which are suitable for the characteristics of young people, such as symposiums. These measures have effectively promoted the growth of young researchers.

2.1.3

Knowing the talents well enough to assign them jobs commensurate with their abilities and training the young backbone researchers. No matter in the national fund project or the provincial fund project, we can see a group of young and middle-aged researchers undertaking the research task. Our institute has selected and appointed a group of young backbone researchers with excellent thinking and high professional quality to hold leading positions in the research room. For example, currently, there are eight principal and deputy directors in the research room, with the average age of 44 years, of which the youngest is 34 years old. A scientific research team dominated by young and middle-aged people has been formed, and our institute stipulates that the researchers with master’s degree must apply for the provincial natural science foundation and doctoral graduates must apply for national funds to support young researchers to participate in major projects and act as leaders of key projects. By assuming responsibilities, guiding the way, and setting up a platform, we can make the backbone young researchers have pressure, motivation and a sense of achievement, so as to speed up the growth of the backbone of young researchers.

2.1.4

Strengthening continuing education and improving overall quality. In order to adapt to the new situation, continuing education for in-service personnel is particularly important. It is necessary to continuously update, supplement and expand the knowledge structure of in-service personnel. Over the years, Changli Fruit Research Institute has always actively encouraged young people to study for degrees. So far, five people have obtained doctorates while working. In addition, it has strengthened the foreign language learning for young researchers according to the specific conditions of each researcher, encourage them to participate in foreign language training organized in the Institute and intensive foreign language training in colleges and universities outside the Institute, so that they can achieve the goal of skillfully conducting academic exchanges in a foreign language.

2.2 Some practices taken to attract talents

Therefore, Changli Fruit Research Institute aims at enhancing the strength of the research institute based on the social needs, and seizes the opportunity to speed up the pace of introducing key and urgently needed talents.

2.2.1

Building a platform to attract talents. At present, the Institute has national and provincial science and technology platforms such as Hebei Branch of the National Apple Improvement Center of the Ministry of Agriculture, North China Fruit Tree Observation Field Test Station of the Ministry of Agriculture, and Hebei Wine Grape Engineering and Technology Research Center, which are the platforms for exchange of experts at home and abroad. Every year, the Institute undertakes a series of scientific research projects such as the National Modern Agricultural Industry Technology System Plan, the Science and Technology Support Plan of the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Industry Science and Technology Plan of the Ministry of Agriculture, the National Youth Natural Science Foundation, the Science and Technology Support Plan of Hebei Province, the Agricultural Science and Technology Achievements Transformation Fund Project of Hebei Province, and the Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province. It has created a good platform for young scientific and technological researchers. The Institute has acquired a large number of advanced scientific research equipment, such as flow cytometer, capillary electrophoresis apparatus, gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer,

etc.

, which provides a favorable hardware guarantee for talent training and seizing the commanding heights of discipline construction.

2.2.2

Recommending talents with the help of academic platform. Changli Fruit Tree Research Institute actively creates conditions, encourages outstanding young and middle-aged researchers to participate in academic exchanges at home and abroad, strives to create high-quality departments and key disciplines, and actively recommends young and middle-aged outstanding researchers to participate in the work of academic organizations at all levels. At present, five young and middle-aged experts of the Institute serve as vice-chairmen, board members and members of the provincial professional societies. There are two young and middle-aged experts with outstanding contribution at the provincial level.

2.3 Some ways to make good use of talents

2.3.1

Establishing strict assessment mechanism. We will conscientiously make plans for scientific and technological innovation and scientific and technological services, decompose and assign the tasks to various departments or natural persons, conduct a half-yearly assessment, and link the assessment results with rewards and punishments. In terms of selecting and employing talents, we should adhere to the separation of evaluation and employment, in order to objectively and impartially evaluate the level and ability of professional and technical talents, encourage talents to create more results, emphasize setting up posts according to needs and employing people according to their posts, and tilt the appointment work to the backbone of middle-aged and young researchers. It is necessary to hire competent people not merely on the basis of seniority and academic qualifications.

2.3.2

Improving the incentive mechanism. The

Detailed

Implementation

Rules

for

Promoting

the

Transformation

of

Intellectual

Property

Achievements

has been formulated, reflecting "three priorities", focusing on rewarding the front-line and major scientific researchers, on rewarding those with original and influential scientific research achievements, on awarding those with scientific and technological achievements such as patented technologies with independent intellectual property rights. The reward system for publishing SCI and EI papers is implemented.

2.3.3

Putting talent guarantee service in place and giving some corresponding follow-up services. The spouse’s work has been solved in a timely manner, and their practical difficulties in life have been solved, which are conducive to the growth of talents and the exertion of their abilities. The Institute creates good living and working conditions for young scientific and technological talents, so that young and middle-aged talents have the opportunity to display their talents as soon as they arrive at the unit, have a relaxed environment in which they can work without worries, which will strengthen their confidence to devote themselves to their careers and work hard.

3 Problems

3.1 Lack of planning for talent recruitment

Talent recruitment does not proceed from the overall development strategy of the unit and the actual situation of promoting the long-term construction of disciplines, but only starts with the application made by the employing department, and there is a lack of planning for talent category, talent quality and talent development.

3.2 Imperfect incentive mechanism for talent training

There is no follow-up training mechanism for hired talents, let alone a training system for talents with different expertise and different qualities. People with different expertise cannot get the right position and lose their goals.

4 Recommendations

4.1 Making a scientific recruitment plan

Talent recruitment should focus on the development needs of the scientific research cause of the unit, and it is necessary to make plan in advance, seriously sort out the talent demand in the long-term development of the discipline, formulate a reasonable talent recruitment plan, and implement the recruitment work step by step.

4.2 Developing a follow-up plan for talent training

With the combination of scientific and technological innovation, scientific and technological services and personal expertise, it is necessary to build a tailor-made platform for everyone, provide development opportunities, truly form a working mechanism for people to make the best use of their talent, and arrange planned channels for further studies and promotion.

4.3 Giving full play to the role of old experts in "passing on, helping and guiding"

It is necessary to take a variety of measures, such as on-the-job training, self-study for improvement, and skill training, to focus on training and using young scientific research researchers, strengthen the construction of reserve echelons of scientific and technological teams, and prevent talent gaps. It is necessary to strengthen the training of practical skills and attach importance to the cultivation of compound experts with multiple abilities, good at both scientific research and production. It is necessary to build a young and middle-aged echelon with a reasonable structure, who are pioneering and innovative, and work together in harmony.

4.4 Trying to establish an ability-and performance-oriented evaluation mechanism for scientific and technological talents

It is necessary to improve the evaluation indicators, methods, and scoring standards, and clearly define the job responsibilities, tasks, assessment indicators and contents, as well as the assessment cycle for the introduced talents.