Over nine months in 2011 Edith Cowan University Library successfully completed an ANDS funded Seeding the Commons project. The project team were tasked with developing a data management plan and policy, identifying and describing a selection of datasets and producing training for researchers at the university. As part of the project, the library team learned new skills, including conducting data interviews, describing data using RIF-CS, and understanding the many issues surrounding the management of research data. In this webinar Constance and Julia will discuss how they approached the project, the lessons learned along the way, and how the benefits are being taken forward in 2012

1. ANDS Webinar
Data Management: Policies and People
27 April 2012
Constance Wiebrands & Julia Gross
Edith Cowan University

2. Seeding the Commons (StC)
at ECU

3. Seeding the Commons at ECU
Our objectives:
1. Describe twelve datasets
2. Design training for researchers
3. Draft a research data management policy

4. StC Policy … what we did
 Reviewed ECU policies that related to research data
 Invited ECU research policy expert onto StC project
team
 Reviewed exemplar policies (Monash, QUT)
 Attended Research Data Policy Seminar at Uni
Sydney
 Data Management Plan template drafted (examples
UOW and QUT)
 Data Management Plan template went to StC
Steering Ctee for input

5. StC Policy … what we learned
 We needed to work within ECU policy
framework
 ECU had a policy, but not widely known
among researchers
 Still need to work on procedures and
guidelines
 Fleshing out the detail for researchers
 Need a bottom up, and a top down
approach

6. StC People … what we did
 Buy in from DVC (Research and Advancement)
 Met individually with key players:
 Director Research Office, Assoc Deans Research
Faculties, Research Centres, IT, Records, Graduate
School, Ethics, Training and Development
 Communication
 global email to all researchers
 individual emails to targeted researchers
 StC project webpage

7. StC People … what we did
 Committees
 StC Steering Ctee. reps from key areas
 Working group, reps from Library + Research Office
 Met with researchers individually
 Worked with Graduate Research School for
Training
 targeting online HRD Orientation program

8. StC People … what we learned
 Communication
 need to be catchy, capture attention of researchers
 message needs to be “what’s in it for me”
 helps to include endorsement of a senior person … name
dropping!
 Researchers
 are busy, need to follow up, persist, and sometimes work
through a research project assistant or PA
 Gained an understanding of difficulties of
sharing data in some areas.
 How to overcoming objections (eg Ethics and IP)
 With research data one size does not fit all

9. Data librarian position
 ECU used ANDS funding to establish a research
data position
 Data librarian worked with the project team
 During the project the research data librarian
learned new skills, and
 Gained an understanding of research data
across disciplines
 Conducted data interviews, working in pairs
 Wrote up interview, project abstract etc
 Learned how to create data records manually,
using RIF-CS schema

10. Data librarian position
 Collaboration is key
 Role crosses over many areas in the
university
 No one person can know everything
 Need to discover where the expertise lies
 within the organisation
 outside the organisation … ANDS, eResearch
community etc
 Where to now?
 Mainstreaming research data management

11. This project is supported by the Australian National Data Service (ANDS)
ANDS is supported by the Australian Government through the National
Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy Program and the Education
Investment Fund (EIF) Super Science Initiative

12. We will now answer
your questions