Alison Hitchens
Associate University Librarian, Collections, Technology, Scholarly Communication
University of Waterloo
Ian Milligan
Associate Vice President, Research Oversight and Analysis
University of Waterloo
The Canadian federal government, through the Tri-Agencies, has mandated all Canadian research institutions to adopt institutional research data management (RDM) strategies and argue “that research data collected through the use of public funds should be responsibly and securely managed and be, where ethical, legal and commercial obligations allow, available for reuse by others where ethical, legal, and commercial obligations allow.” Recognizing that this is not just a rote compliance requirement but rather an opportunity to foster research excellence on campus, the University of Waterloo’s Library, Office of Research, and IT unit teamed up to develop both this institutional strategy and to imagine how the future of RDM support on campus could look. The process revealed a confusing array of resources, services, guidelines, policies, expectations, and working methods that researchers must navigate as they strive for research excellence (or compliance). This session will explore the institutional coordination of data services in a decentralized environment that includes core services, fee-based services, and external services, all while keeping researcher workflows and disciplinary expectations in mind.
https://uwaterloo.ca/research-data-management-institutional-strategy-project/