Knowledge Orchard session on leadership: ‘It’s essential to interdisciplinary collaboration’
What do you need to move your interdisciplinary collaboration forward? The Knowledge Orchard event will help. Assistant Professor Eduard Schmidt, who is giving a session on leadership, gives a sneak preview.
Why is leadership so important to interdisciplinary collaboration?
‘Everyone within a group can show leadership. It’s a way to bridge gaps between groups and people. The culture of an academic discipline, its working methods and how research is discussed can lead to misunderstandings and complicate collaboration. Leadership helps align everyone around shared goals. It also highlights the value of combining different disciplines to tackle complex societal issues.’
What does leadership mean to you?
‘It can mean taking initiative in conversations or creating a safe environment. When you start interdisciplinary work, you may not fully understand each other. It can take courage to say, “I don’t quite understand what you mean” or “I’m not sure how to proceed”. That’s why it’s important to create a safe space and to emphasise that everyone’s views count.’
Come to the Knowledge Orchard!
The Knowledge Orchard is being held in PLNT Leiden on 28 November 2025. It’s an event aimed at strengthening interdisciplinary collaboration between academics, administrators and support staff from Leiden University. It also aims to spark or deepen collaboration in teaching or research with Leiden staff and external partners.
This workshop is offered by the Leiden Leadership Centre, HRM Learning & Development and the Young Academy Leiden, and is very interactive. Can you tell us more?
‘What I can already say is that: if you’re looking to just sit and listen, this might not be for you. The strength of this workshop lies in its mix of academic staff and staff from Administration and Central Services who focus on leadership development at the university. This means that when it comes to leadership, we can draw not only on academic literature but also on all kinds of experiences across different university teams. We’re going to explore this collection of knowledge and skills and translate it into practical steps that researchers, teaching staff, support staff and administrators can take.’
Can you share a practical step Leiden staff could take to improve interdisciplinary collaboration?
‘Make a real effort to understand the other discipline. A simple example would be if we at the Institute of Public Administration decided to offer a PhD programme in collaboration with the LUMC. Everyone is really enthusiastic, but we soon notice significant cultural differences: for example, with publishing articles. What content makes for a good article? Who gets listed as an author? Discussing expectations and methods early on can save you a lot of time and lead to more effective collaboration.’
What are you hoping to gain from the Knowledge Orchard?
‘I’m looking forward to the afternoon session with municipalities, provinces and other external organisations. Many such collaborations at the university are still monodisciplinary. I hope to show partners like these the value of working with groups comprising, say, a psychologist, a public administration expert and an archaeologist. Governments would benefit from this when tackling major challenges such as public health, the lived environment or climate change. Instead of receiving three separate reports that each explain part of the issue, they would receive one report that hopefully offers an integrated solution.’