New Approaches in Research Assessment – From Bibliometrics to Goals-Oriented Approaches. The Case of Researchers’ Assessment for Hiring and Career Development in Romania

In recent years, there has been increased attention given to how research assessment is conducted at different levels -research proposals, individual researchers, research organizations. In this context, the current paper explores existing literature regarding current research assessment approaches, and especially recommendations provided through four reference documents on the topic: the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (2013), the Leiden Manifesto The aim is to provide a basis for analysing the legislative and normative framework regulating how researchers are being evaluated in Romania for hiring and career development, and then apply it to identify recommendations regarding how the latter can be improved. Some of the recommendations identified refer to aspects such as: the need to explore evaluation arrangements which incorporate research activity related practices, and that measure performance against research units' research goals; increased focus on qualitative approaches, and on scientific content, as opposed to performance in publication metrics; developing a broader list with indicators, including Open Science and societal relevance related; introducing the principle of transparency; developing a monitoring and evaluation framework.