At CERN, personnel turnover is a regular part of daily life. Colleagues come and go, while others remain within the Organization but transition to new status and roles. This dynamic environment is particularly prevalent among early-career professionals. Conversely, member of personnel with indefinite contracts are less likely to leave—a great asset for CERN in terms of knowledge retention. However, this stability can sometimes lead to stagnation and routine within a specific role or organisational unit.

For those longing for the excitement and variety they experienced earlier in their careers, there are ways to rekindle that spark. One such opportunity comes from the internal mobility scheme. Unfortunately, one major barrier to internal mobility is the lack of personal networks, which is often essential for discovering new roles.

To address this issue, the Staff Association is launching the Job Swap Network—an initiative designed to connect colleagues and facilitate internal mobility by leveraging shared networks. The concept is simple: Initiate informal and confidential discussions related to internal mobility and later identify potential opportunities for members of personnel to “swap” roles, either across departments or within different units of the same department, while respecting the needs of the Organization.

Last month, the Human Resources department hosted a webinar on internal mobility, emphasizing that every staff member must take ownership of their career. While policies and principles are in place to support mobility, successful transitions often depend on informal connections and networking.

The Job Swap Network is a complementary initiative aimed at supporting those with limited access to such networks. Once a potential job swap is identified, this marks only the beginning of the journey, as several key actors must agree: the staff members involved, their current and future hierarchies, and the Human Resources department. Today, the Human Resources department will oversee the formal process, ensuring compliance with internal mobility procedures.

The initiative was presented at the Staff Association public meeting on 4 April  by the members of the Job Swap Network Working Group: Maria-Elena Angoletta (SY-RF), Christophe Delamare (HSE-TS), Michael Jeckel (EN-AA), and Jens Vigen (RCS-SIS), all of whom are delegates of the Staff Association. It is open to all CERN staff, including those on limited-duration contracts.

Interested colleagues are welcome to reach out to individual members of the Working Group directly or contact the entire group via SA-Job-Swap-Network@cern.ch. As a staff member, you are free to choose whom you wish to speak with and how to initiate the conversation. All conversations will be informal and strictly confidential. Initial meetings will be scheduled as soon as possible; however, please note that members of the Job Swap Network will need to accommodate these discussions alongside their regular professional responsibilities.

In future iterations, some data collection may be necessary to help facilitate potential swaps—but participation is always voluntary, and anyone can withdraw from the process at any time. All collected information will be deleted if the participant chooses not to continue.

The Staff Association aims to demystify & enhance internal mobility and make our networks available to as many colleagues as possible. While we cannot guarantee that this initiative will make internal mobility easier overnight, we believe that sharing networks can foster a more dynamic and engaged CERN community.

Let’s give it a try!