"Dialogue remains key."
New guidelines governing the outside employment and other activities of ETH staff and professors were introduced on 1 January of this year. We sat down with Lukas Vonesch, Head of the Human Resources Consulting department, to learn more about the rules.
Mr Vonesch, at the beginning of the year a new set of guidelines was introduced, specifically the ‘Guidelines concerning conflicts of interest and conflicts of commitment in connection with the outside activities of professors and other employees of ETH Zurich’. What’s the background here?
Both the federal government and the general public have become increasingly aware of possible conflicts of interest. They expect that ETH employees don’t have any outside pursuits that are incompatible with their employment at the university. ETH wants to avoid potential conflicts like conflicts of interest, conflicts of commitment or risks to its reputation. At the same time, we also want to provide employees with a framework for pursuing activities outside the university.
For many years now, we have had the Personnel Ordinance for the ETH Domain, which sets out the rules on conflicts of interest and outside employment. So, these principles are nothing new. However, the new guidelines more clearly and concretely spell out the terminology, criteria and processes that are at play. This promotes transparency, raises awareness and helps to detect any conflicts of interest, conflicts of commitment or reputational risks to ETH Zurich at an earlier stage.
So what has changed for employees who want to pursue outside jobs or activities?
Professors were already required to report their outside activities and/or have them approved. What’s new is that all employees have to report their outside commitments, depending on the type and scope, via ETHIS and may also need to have them approved by the university. You can find an overview of the process and a list of outside activities requiring approval here [Outside employment and other activities | ETH Zurich].
What about employees already engaged in outside employment or activities that have already been reported via other channels within the university? Do they still have to file a report on ETHIS?
As a general rule, all outside activities requiring reporting or approval have to be reported via ETHIS. This also applies to ongoing activities or activities that have already been reported elsewhere within the university but that are not yet in ETHIS. Under the new process, all reports and approvals for outside activities are recorded in one place, making them easier to process.
According to the guidelines, outside pursuits are generally allowed as long as there are no conflicts of interest or conflicts of commitment. These terms play a key role when evaluating an employee’s jobs or activities outside the university. Employees need to be able to independently evaluate whether their outside pursuits create any conflicts of interest or conflicts of commitment. Why is this required of employees and how should they go about it?
That’s correct. Both of these terms form the core of the new guidelines. All outside activities need to be evaluated for possible conflicts of interest, conflicts of commitment and reputational risks to the university. Employees need to report their activities and assess them according to these criteria. Supervisors should acknowledge receipt of their employee’s report and talk to them directly if anything is unclear. It’s important for employees to exercise personal responsibility, and discussions help to promote transparency and openness and to identify flexible solutions if need be. Holding certain offices or roles outside of ETH is subject to approval from the relevant authority at the university.
ETH supports outside activities where possible, and in most cases they can be approved. Outside activities strengthen our network and expand our knowledge as well as provide valuable experience. Many ETH employees are asked to contribute their know-how outside of ETH, and these employees want to play their part. This can be beneficial for all parties, including ETH Zurich. With that said, employees’ outside pursuits need to be compatible with their jobs at the university.
Let’s say that an employee reports their outside employment and that a conflict of interest or commitment is detected. How are these conflicts handled? Are the requests for approval automatically denied?
Most outside activities don’t actually have to be approved, just reported. But even if they just have to be reported, this provides an opportunity for employees and supervisors to discuss and align on the issue so that they can identify potential conflicts and come up with countermeasures as needed.
For outside activities that need to be approved, all potential conflicts of interest or commitment and reputational risks have to be carefully weighed: Is the outside activity compatible with the employee’s main job at ETH? Might the activity become incompatible in the future? What kind of steps would need to be taken to make the employee’s job and their outside activity compatible again? Steps could include involving other people in certain decision-making situations, adjusting the employee’s workload or making sure that the employee undertakes their outside activity strictly as a private person, not as a representative of ETH Zurich.
As I’ve already mentioned, it’s also desirable for ETH if employees have outside commitments. We are confident that we can find solutions to potential conflicts and that we can approve almost all outside activities.
What would happen if an employee’s outside activity is ideological in nature and doesn’t line up with their supervisor’s personal views or the views of ETH as an institution? Can these kinds of activities be approved at all?
The private activities of employees should be respected. People’s personal views can’t be allowed to play a role here, even if an employee’s free time activities or political activism don’t match the personal views of their supervisor. The important thing is that the person’s outside pursuits are compatible with their job at ETH Zurich.
The new guidelines spell out the conditions for pursuing outside activities, and the dialogue between employees and supervisors remains a key element here. It’s important to work together to identify potential conflicts and discuss possible mitigation measures. Outside employment and other activities can create a diverse range of personal and professional benefits for everyone involved. Usually it’s possible to combine the employee’s personal interests and the interests of ETH Zurich, allowing the university to support employees’ outside pursuits.