Leadership in collaborations

The Leadership Gap in Science

Collaboration is essential for discovery, but as projects grow, so do the challenges of leadership. Skills like communication, decision-making, and conflict management are critical, yet underdeveloped in traditional research training or reserved only for senior academics. Traditional leadership programs focus on hierarchical organisations, leaving a gap when it comes to the distributed, non-hierarchical structures of international collaborations, where even early-career researchers may be entrusted with significant responsibility.

Fundamental Leadership Elements

Development is rooted in the practically based, universally applicable Resilient Leaders Elements (RLE) platform. RLE’s proven leadership programs have been successful in a variety of contexts as they support participants in building sustainable resilient leadership muscle. The core aspects focus on:

What I Do

• Clarity of Direction – having a vision and realistic strategy, aligning others to it, and staying determined through uncertainty.
• Resilient Decision-Making – making creative, robust, and versatile choices, with confidence to adapt when things don’t go as planned.

Who I Am

• Awareness – understanding yourself, appreciating the diversity of others, and reading the environment to act effectively.
• Leadership Presence – acting with authenticity, serving others, and intentionally inspiring achievement and cohesion.

Every leader has unique challenges: Through an innovative assessment process, your development plan is tailored to support and challenge you allowing you to take responsibility for your development and get the most out of your time.

Pilot Success & Participant Feedback

The pilot program, described in the CERN Courier, showed over 20% growth in participants’ leadership capabilities.

Your 12-Week Leadership Journey

Assess, practice & develop your leadership!

Growth takes focused effort over time, but even small changes can make a big difference. Over 12 weeks, 20 participants are coached through a program combining in-person and online learning to create a community of practice. Participants learn to support one another and grow through personalised challenge journeys.

• Kick-off workshops (2 half-days, preferably in person): immersive training, peer networking, and hands-on application of RLE tools.
• Workshops (2–3 half-days in 10 weeks, online or in person): structured sessions introducing leadership elements, group discussion, and collaborative work.
• Final session (half-day, online or hybrid): consolidating learning, sharing insights, and planning next leadership steps
• Clinics (2-3 one-hour sessions between workshops, online or in person): group reflection, accountability, and community building.
• Personalised challenges (~30 min/week): guided by self- and peer feedback, participants test new behaviours in real settings.
• Peer coaching & learning groups (~30 min/week): practicing leadership in supportive circles, building confidence and accountability.

Program Highlights

Is this training for me?

Quite simply: Yes!

Self-leadership is essential at every stage, but the Leading in Collaborations training program will have the biggest impact on:

• Coordinators managing multiple groups or conveners.
• Group/Activity Conveners overseeing multiple sub-groups.
• Sub-group Conveners guiding several team leaders.
• Team Leaders responsible for large teams (e.g. analysis contacts for 50+ people).
• PhD, Post-docs, Professors, and Engineers working in a team.

This program is for you if you want to:

• Learn about leadership in a structured way from certified trainers.
• Be empowered to lead a team without direct authority.
• Embed leadership development as a practice within your community.
• Create a culture where people are engaged and confident in leadership matters

Meet the Lead Facilitator

Certified RLE facilitator and experienced physics leader, Gabriel Facini brings his experience in one of the largest scientific collaborations in the world to guide participants through the program. His leadership background in ATLAS ensures the training is directly relevant to the realities of international science collaborations. An RLE facilitator’s role is to act as a coach to help participants unlock their own leadership strengths and apply the RLE tools to real challenges. This allows them to continue to grow and develop even after the program is completed.