Archive internal news

The rETHink project officially concluded at the end of 2023 with the dissolution of the project organisation. We sat down with ETH President Joël Mesot, the initiator of rETHink, and Secretary General Katharina Poiger, who acted as the project leader, to learn about rETHink’s achievements and the future of organisational development at ETH.

The teaching and research performance of professors is subject to continuous assessment. But what about their leadership qualities? Workstream 3 in the rETHink project has addressed this issue and proposed a differentiated solution that takes into consideration the specific features of the scientific setting and the university.

The role of the academic departments at ETH Zurich is to be strengthened. Workstream 4 of the rETHink project has analysed what this means for the organisation of these decentralised units. Concrete proposals have since been drawn up. Mirian Berrocal, Coordinator for D-BIOL, and Giovanni Salemme, Coordinator for D-HEST, offer an initial assessment.

ETH’s growth presents a number of challenges to its central administrative services and processes. Increased use of digital technologies should provide some relief. A digitalisation strategy has therefore been drawn up for the administration of ETH Zurich in the context of the rETHink project. In this interview, members of the working group explain what this strategy involves.

rETHink seems to have quieted down in recent months – but appearances can be deceiving. The project’s six workstreams have been hard at work fleshing out solutions for the future of the university. Smaller projects have already been implemented, and decisions have been made regarding the trajectory of bigger changes, says President Joël Mesot.