Publications - MPIfG

118
MPIfG Report 1999–2002
Jürgen Lautwein, administrative
director
Administration and Personnel Development
The MPIfG has some 30 permanently funded positions, 14 of
which are for researchers. Other researchers at the institute are
funded by grants from foundations, the German government and
the European Union, and by doctoral and postdoctoral fellowships.
The institute also hosts visiting researchers from Germany
and abroad, whose stays last from one month to two years.
Projects conducted jointly with scholars from other countries
and with other institutions have increased in number and importance.
The staffs of the administration, the computer department,
the editorial and public relations unit, the library and the secretariats
are the infrastructural backbone of the institute. They provide continual
support for the research staff and contribute to the technical and organizational
development of the institute.
The institute encourages its employees to improve their professional skills by
taking part in continuing education programs, including in-house seminars. Two
female employees represent the interests of women at the institute. Student assistants
provide support for researchers and staff members.
The Max Planck Society (MPG) uses SAP, a commercial bookkeeping system,
which has enabled it to develop a budgeting procedure that facilitates more financial
flexibility for the institutes. This flexibility has been welcomed by the institutes,
which are called upon to increase their efficiency and fine-tune their project
planning in the face of decreasing funding for the Max Planck Society.
In 2002 the MPG started using SAP’s personnel administration program, SAP
Human Resources (SAP HR). Members of the MPIfG’s administrative staff cooperated
with their counterparts at other MPIs and with the administrative headquarters
of the Max Planck Society in Munich to customize SAP HR to meet the
needs of Max Planck institutes and have continued to be involved in optimizing
the program. In 2003, the new projects will be the implementation of cost
accounting and rating, and launching e-commerce for the MPIs’ purchasing.
The administration provides information and advice on project funding
opportunities and project management for the researchers.
Library
The library supports the institute’s research by providing the researchers and staff
with media and information and helping them find sources located outside the
institute. The library’s services include purchasing, classifying and lending mono-