Technology Centre Prague
The Department of Strategic Studies of the Technology Centre Prague (TC Praha) is a unique Czech workplace providing a wide range of services for R&D&I policy, development of international cooperation in these areas, technology transfer and development of innovative entrepreneurship. TC Praha has been providing expert analytical and conceptual services for strategic decision-making of public authorities of the Czech Republic in the areas of research and innovation policies continuously since 2000. Over the years, TC Praha has demonstrated its ability to provide quality independent information for the development and implementation of R&D&I policy at the national and regional level of the Czech Republic, as well as at the international level. Examples from recent years include, among others, comprehensive background documents for the preparation of the National R&D&I Policies of the Czech Republic, comprehensive methodological-analytical-organisational support for the formulation of the National Priorities for R&D&I of the Czech Republic or a comprehensive assessment of obstacles to the participation of ‘new’ EU Member States in the EU Framework Programmes prepared for the European Parliament. TC Praha is a highly specialised workplace that systematically develops new approaches for foresight and technology assessment in the framework of R&D&I policy. This has also made TC Prague a highly respected and sought-after partner for international cooperation in the areas of socio-economic contexts of technological development and R&D&I policy.
Centre for Gender and Science
The National Contact Centre – Gender and Science (NCC), as a part of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, is a unique specialized workplace focused on gender issues in R&D&I in the Czech Republic and in the region of Central and Eastern Europe. In this area, the NKC carries out European and national studies that serve as a basis for the preparation of expertise and proposals for measures for the state administration, as well as for institutional solutions on the part of research organisations in the Czech Republic. NKC’s research focuses mainly on the evaluation of gender equality policies at EU and Czech level, monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of gender equality plans in research institutions in the Czech Republic, as well as in providers, preparation of statistical analyses of the development of gender representation in R&D&I, research on the transformation of the R&D&I system, evaluation of scientific work from a gender perspective, evaluation of scientific careers, academic mobility, the combination of work and family and the employment of doctoral graduates in R&D&I and on the labour market, and last but not least, gender-based violence in the academic environment.
National Training Fund
The National Training Fund (NTF) is an independent non-profit company that has long been involved in analysing the labour market, education and innovation in their interconnectedness. NTF uses a wide range of quantitative and qualitative analytical methods, conducts its own questionnaire surveys, semi-structured interviews and focus groups. As an integral part of the Centre of Excellence for Competitiveness Research of the Czech Republic, NTF is dedicated to human resources analyses and was involved in the evaluation of R&D&I policies of the Czech Republic, analyses of innovation capacity of the Czech Republic (INKA) and mapping of RIS3 specialization domains of the Central Bohemia Region. NTF analysed the readiness of the business environment and educational institutions in the regions for new technological trends and also participated in the preparation of national strategic documents in the areas of human resources development, lifelong learning and the Work 4.0 and Industry 4.0 initiatives. National Training Fund was one of the key partners of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in the creation of a system for monitoring and forecasting labour market developments. Recently, NTF has been more closely involved in the analysis of the preparation of human resources for R&D&I, the conditions for the start and development of their careers, as well as the demand of the labour market, including the corporate sector, for qualifications in connection with technological progress. NTF acts as an expert consultant for the Czech Republic within the European agency Cedefop in the preparation of periodic forecasts of skills needs.
EURAXESS
The Centre of Administration and Operations of the Czech Academy of Sciences operates EURAXESS Czech Republic, providing information and advice to researchers moving across international borders. EURAXESS assists researchers from abroad in the bureaucratic process of obtaining long-term residence permits for scientific research purposes. It collaborates with Czech research institutes in preparing for the arrival of researchers from abroad, coordinates the procedures for obtaining necessary permits, advises on the latest legal changes, and offers expertise in completing the required paperwork. EURAXESS works closely with the Czech Ministry of the Interior on each individual case and, when authorized through a power of attorney, can carry out certain bureaucratic tasks on the researcher’s behalf.
