The IfADo considers family commitments of its employees and also supports the male colleagues in the work-life balance through parental leave and flexible working hours in the highest
degree.
The IfADo strives to offer its employees a family-friendly working environment. About possibilities for individual arrangements the Institute enables particularly colleagues with young children as well as ill family members to keep the balance between family and work (e.g. individual working arrangements like reduction or flexible working hours, family-related part-time work, flexitime, working time honor, work opportunity in private environment).
Personnel development measures through agreements on re-entry, training during and after parental leave.
Measures to reconcile work and family at IfADo
Structured Graduate Programme: The PhD training at IfADo consists actually of four pillars (organizational framework; scientific training; academic embedment; skills training; more information here: www.ifado.de/ifadoen/careers/graduate-program/)
Fostering the compatibility of family and work: IfADo’s parent-child office helps to bridge gaps in care. IfADo has a family working room for those cases in which one parent can has to work in the presence of the baby / toddler. Moreover, parents can bring their children in care emergency on their work places (except potential dangerous zones, e.g. experimental and biochemical laboratory areas, institute workshop etc.). For this purpose a ‘mobile nursery’ can also be used in the offices of IfADo. The ‘rolling box’ was enabled from the SFB budget 1280 ‘Extincion Learning’ for equal opportunities measures (funded by DFG).
BUK GmbH cooperation agreement to a wide range of childcare and care responsibilities: Already since 2011 BUK cooperates with IfADo. The first building block for improving the reconciliation of work and family is the consulting service for IfADo around the ‘child care’. 
Since January 2014, a second block of consulting services around the ‘caring responsibilities’ have been added. Reconciliation of work and family is part of good corporate culture of IfADo. The Institute Board supports with this tailor-made offer of BUK consulting services a balanced work-life balance, because service for workers in care responsibilities for children or caring responsibilities for relatives are the basis for professional capacity.
Career building measures at IfADo
Mentoring: The Institute Board enables in alternate yearly two female doctoral students or postdocs / assistant professors to participate in the mentoring³ programme of the Career Net Ruhr. Mentoring is especially for the qualification of women in the natural sciences, the anchoring of gender aspects in research and teaching, the stabilization of the scientific careers of women in the postdoctoral phase and the qualifications and professionalism of scientists for a professorship at universities. Furthermore, young female scientists of IfADo are entitled to take part in the Leibniz-Mentoring Programme. More information here: www.ifado.de/ifadoen/program-women-in-science/
Technology diversity: In terms of increasing the diversity technology opportunities for interested female persons in the MINT area (mathematics – computer science – science – technology) IfADo addresses offers for different training levels (e.g. pupils, pupils trainees, training seekers, technical employees, student, scientists or postdoks). In order to inspire specifically young women (girls) before the study choice for technical and scientific contents, IfADo supports measures as women (girls) -Labor Day or the annual Girls’ Day.
Offer for apprenticeships: IfADo offers education as a laboratory assistant / for biology laboratory technicians in training alliance with the neighboring Leibniz Institute for Analytical Sciences (ISAS) and the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology Dortmund. In addition, accompanied by the Chamber of Commerce Dortmund, the institute offers apprenticeships for chemical laboratory assistants (Central Unit Analytical Sciences), office clerks / computer science merchants (administration) as well as for industrial mechanics (precision engineering) in the in-house mechanical workshop. More information here: www.ifado.de/ifadoen/careers/dual-vocational-education/
Offer for technical employees: IfADo actively supports qualification and training of technical staff (human resources).
Dortmund – Family-friendly science location
The network: IfADo is a member of windo e.V. (Society of Scientific Institutions in Dortmund; more information here: www.windo.de), the network ‘Science in Dortmund’ and cooperates with the Equal Opportunity Commissioners of the Science and Research Location Dortmund. windo e.v. would like to support the resident scientific institutions in reconciling family and work and to contribute to supported family-friendliness science location Dortmund. (More information here: www.windo.de/fileadmin/Downloads/Flyer_windo_AG_Familie_140605_fit.pdf).
Consideration of dual career couples: Windo e.V. is committed to a regional network to support Dual Career Couples (DCC). The goal is to gain a locational advantage in the regional scientific landscape through the support of the family members in order not only to win ‘Clever Minds for Dortmund’, but also to create the lasting decision to stay by opening up perspectives. In the competition for highly qualified people, the question of job opportunities becomes more and more important also for the partner. In order to increase the attractiveness of the offer for the strong applicants, the windo working group “Family friendly science location’ has launched the Dortmund network ‘Dual Career Couple Navigation’. (More information here: www.windo.de/fileadmin/Downloads/2014-08-19_sh__DCC_Navi_Fragebogen.pdf).
