Points of Contact for Employees
Table of Contents:
The goal of our Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems is to make a valuable contribution to science while fostering a culture of openness and respect. If you're a staff member of MPI-IS and notice any issues or have ideas for improvement, we welcome your input. Please contact your institute's managing director(s) as listed here or share your specific comments, questions, or suggestions through our Suggestion Box
Wherever people come together, there will be conflicts and problems. If you find yourself in a difficult situation, you do not have to find a solution by yourself. Your supervisor is always your first point of contact when it comes to conflicts within your team or with people from other groups.
If your supervisor is involved in the conflict, or if you would generally prefer more distance and confidentiality, there are further points of contact that will provide help and advice for finding a solution, as listed below. Different points of contact are available depending on whether it is a conflict with superior, peer, or subordinate staff members, whether you feel discriminated against due to your personal situation, or if you are currently unable to perform the way you wish you could, owing to professional or private issues.
The representative of the scientific coworkers participates in meetings of the Scientific Council of the Max Planck Society (MPG), and he or she makes the voice of the scientific coworkers heard at the institute and society levels. The representative of the institute’s scientific coworkers is elected for a period of three years by all scientists with a long-term contract.
Whether in daily life at the institute or in special cases, the representative is available to help coworkers communicate their concerns and ideas to the Board of Directors or to the Chemistry, Physics, and Technology Section (CPTS) of the MPG's Scientific Council. The representative may not only express concerns and present ideas on behalf of the scientists but may also vote in the CPTS on key issues, including the appointments of new directors at other institutes.
The ombudsperson scheme fulfils an essential function of scientific management by offering all scientists at the institute the opportunity to receive confidential advice in cases of conflict related to integrity and good scientific practice. All employees of the institute who engage in scientific activity elect the ombudsperson for their site for a term of three years. Conversations with the ombudsperson are confidential.
Regulations and further information can be found in the following resources:
- Rules of Good Scientific Practice (deutsch) (English)
- Regulations on Ombudspersons (deutsch) (English)
Your primary contact is always the ombudsperson at your local MPI-IS site; for contact details see below. If circumstances do not support contacting this person in a specific case, the ombudsperson of the CPT Section is at your disposal; for contact details please see the MPG intranet. If you do not wish to present your case to an ombudsperson within the Max Planck Society, or if several persons from different university and non-university research institutions are involved, you may also contact the Research Ombudsperson at the DFG (German Research Foundation).
The Gender Equality Officers ensure that the standard principles of equal opportunities are put into practice. They serve as the first contact person for co-workers in all matters of professional promotion and help to eliminate any discrimination. They are involved in all personnel, organizational and social measures affecting equal opportunities for men and women, balancing of family and gainful employment, and protection against sexual harassment in the workplace.
You should contact the Gender Equality Officer of your local MPI-IS site if you believe that the general principles of gender equality in the MPG are not upheld. As an alternative, you may also contact the MPG's central Gender Equality Officer; for contact details please see the MPG intranet. These conversations are treated as confidential.
You should also contact the Gender Equality Officers regarding matters of sexualized discrimination, harassment and violence. Furthermore, the Code of Conduct that was introduced at the beginning of 2018 highlights that the Max Planck Society does not tolerate any misconduct in this context; this document also specifies the procedure for handling conflicts in this domain.
Claudia Däfler
Gender Equality Officer, Tübingen
| mobil: 0178-7313394 |
| claudia.daefler@tuebingen.mpg.de |
The Works Council (Betriebsrat) is a body whose legal roles and responsibilities are defined by the Works Constitution Act (BetrVG). The members of the MPI-IS Works Council are the workforce representation of all staff members of the institute. If you contact the head or any other members of the Works Council regarding an issue you are experiencing, they are bound to confidentiality and will act only in coordination with you.
If you are a staff member with severe disabilities and feel discriminated against due to your status, you may contact the Representative for Individuals with Severe Disabilities at our institute. Another point of contact that is available to you is the General Representative Council for Individuals With Severe Disabilities of the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft.
Pursuant to § 98 of the Social Security Code (Sozialgesetzbuch), the Employer's Representative for Individuals with Severe Disabilities at our institute cooperates closely with the Representative for Individuals with Severe Disabilities, the Works Council and the authorities indicated in the Social Security Code.
This volunteer team consists of PhD students from the Stuttgart campus of MPI-IS, together with PhD students from the neighboring
MPI for Solid State Research (FKF).
We aim to enhance the student experience beyond the lab and to foster a sense of community across the MPI campus in Stuttgart. Our activities include:
- hosting community building activities, such as game nights and the Minerva Football Tournament
- organizing professional development workshops
- arranging industry and research lab tours via the annual PhD Trip
- serving as a communication channel between the student body and the MPI directors and administration
- disseminating information about the resources available to MPI PhD students, such as the PhDnet, professional counseling, and our various support personnel such as the Works Council and Gender Equality Officers
Representatives each serve a one-year term. New representatives are appointed biannually in April and October.
Please feel free to contact us at ds@is.mpg.de.
The current representatives are:
Malte Hendrickson
Intelligent Systems (IS)
| Office: 3P07 | |
Intelligent Systems (IS)
| Office: 5E15 | |
| nikolaos.papanikolaou@itp4.uni-stuttgart.de | |
External PhD Representatives
The external PhD representatives serve as a first point of contact for PhD students to raise issues to the central Max Planck PhDnet. They are elected annually by the PhD student body - one per institute. All external PhD representatives attend an annual General Meeting, during which various work-groups are formed to advocate for MPI PhD candidates.
The current representatives are:
The Max Planck PhDnet
The Max Planck PhDnet is a network representing the 4500+ PhD student researchers within the overall MPG; PhDnet leaders work mainly on improving working conditions and promoting scientific exchange. To access the PhDnet portal, select "Other Users" and "next", then enter your MPG login credentials (most likely your Max Planck email address). You can select "Forgot Password" to reset your login credentials. All MPI PhD students may access this portal.
If you need help in resolving personal problems and issues that impact your well-being at work, an Immediate Advisory Service (EMAP) is available through the Fürstenberg Institute: by telephone, online, or in person. Services are free of charge. Family members living in your household can also use this service free of charge.
Immediate telephone consultation
Do you have a short-term request with high priority and need quick support from our consultants? Then take advantage of our immediate telephone consultation service; the Fürstenberg Institute is responsible with a new phone number: 0800-387 78 36*
*From all other countries please use the foreign service numbers.
Are free calls from abroad possible?
The Fürstenberg Institute Family Service also offers various free and simple contact options for the European institutes abroad, e.g.: - by chat via the Fürstenberg homepage - by e-mail when using our EMAP service hotline from other European countries, the Fürstenberg Institute offers an immediate callback service by phone or by webinar, depending on the employee's preference.
How does it work?
To schedule an appointment, you can call 0800 387 7836. Phones are answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. When calling, make sure to tell the person answering the phone that you are an employee of the Max Planck Society. No further personal information is required. Depending on the issues you are dealing with, you will be referred to an expert that fits your specific situation in psychology, medicine, health science, psychosocial counselling, etc. The experienced team of counsellors offer extensive specialist knowledge and many years of consulting practice.
Specially trained counsellors are available for executives.
According to the mediation guidelines of the MPG, every employee is entitled to apply for arbitration in the case that complaints or disputes cannot be settled at an institute. Three arbitration advisors are appointed for the CPTS.
You can find a lot of useful information and local points of contact for various relevant topics including health support, psychological support, and relevant emergency numbers, on our Institute Wiki (Tübingen and Stuttgart campuses).
Victims of bullying, harassment, sexualized assault or discrimination according to the General Act on Equal Treatment (Allgemeines Gleichbehandlungsgesetz, AGG) are now also able to consult the law firm Wirsing Hass Zoller. The lawyers Dr. Christine Dross and Thomas Müller represent the law firm as confidants. The confidants will accept your information or complaints and give an assessment of whether these are likely to be legally relevant. It is up to you to decide if and to whom your report will be passed on. The confidants are bound to absolute secrecy if you wish so. They can discuss matters with you in German or in English, and you can contact them as follows:
Wirsing Hass Zoller - Rechtsanwälte Partnerschaft MbB
Maximilianstraße 35 C
80539 München
Dr. Christine Dross
Phone: 089 29 00 71-28
Email: dross@wirsing.de
Thomas Müller
Phone: 089 29 00 71-0
Email: t.mueller@wirsing.de