Guidance: Writing an RDM strategy

Context

The purpose of a Research Data Management (RDM) strategy is to provide a structured framework that guides how an organisation supports and enables good data management practices across the research lifecycle. It aligns data-related services, policies, tools, and training with the organisation’s vision and mission, ensuring that research data is managed in a way that is efficient, FAIR, and compliant with institutional and funder requirements.

Vision describes the state that an organisation wants to enable. An example vision could be “Our researchers apply good Data Management practices so that the produced research outputs are available to the global research community according to principles of Open Science, Reproducible Research and FAIR”.

The mission then defines the overarching objectives required to achieve the vision, along with the approaches to reach them, such as software services, tools, policies, consultation services, documentation, training, and outreach. It serves as a foundation for guiding the organisation’s activities that support and enable the vision..

To be effective in guiding RDM activities, the strategy needs to be communicated to all relevant staff. Expected impact from defined objectives should be monitored and used to regularly update and revise the strategy.

Guidance

1. Define the Intended beneficiaries of the organization’s RDM efforts

   Determine what the target user-base(s) for your RDM activities are. Who do you serve?

   Determining the intended demographic for your data management practices is crucial. The scope outlines who the services will directly benefit — for example, are you targeting researchers within a specific institute or nationwide researchers? Understanding your scope gives you a definitive audience and subsequently paves the way to align your strategies to meet their specific needs.

2. Determine existing policies and guidelines that govern the organisation’s activities

   Identify what existing policies and guidelines exist that your organisation should adhere to.

   These can contain larger objectives that might influence the vision and mission of the RDM activities. Delving into the existing governing policies and guidelines, be they local, national, or international, allows your organisation to create a strategic plan that is aligned and compliant with larger objectives.

3. Formulate vision and mission statements

   Formulate a vision statement that describes a desired future state that your organisation wants to enable, given the identified beneficiaries and existing governing policies. Define the vision within the foreseen context of the future research landscape at a predefined time point.
   Formulate mission statement(s) that specifies overall objectives to work towards the vision, and the approach(es) to reach those objectives.

4. Identify existing resources and those that need to be obtained

   Determine the human resources, technical infrastructure, and other necessary amenities your organisation currently possesses and what else will be required to achieve the established objectives. Addressing these aspects not only aids in the strategizing process, but also helps in devising funding models and budgets.

5. Devise activities to accomplish the mission

   Specify what activities your organisation will engage in to fulfill its mission.

   This could include the development of specialised software, implementation of specific policies, provision of consultation services, initiation of supportive services, creation and distribution of documentation, organising training, and conducting outreach initiatives.

6. Establish mechanisms for monitoring and evaluation

   Set up ways to monitor the progress and impact of the activities.

   This step involves determining key performance indicators (KPIs) that provide concrete means to gauge your strategy’s progress. This not only verifies if your actions are steering the organisation towards its objective, but also allows for adjusting measures if needed, thereby maintaining strategic flexibility.

7. Establish routines to disseminate the strategy to staff

   Make the strategy available and findable to all staff. Set up the procedures needed to make all relevant staff aware of the content of the strategy.

   Make the strategy easily accessible to all members of your organisation, e.g. by publishing it on a web page. Organise events to present the strategy, and make sure it is part of the onboarding process for relevant staff. Include a communication plan in the strategy.

8. Review and update

   Define mechanisms to regularly review and update the strategy as RDM practices, technologies, and requirements change over time.

Be aware that in distributed or federated structures, e.g. involving multiple partner organisations, going through these steps will entail serious efforts of harmonisation and agreement across all partners to establish a viable strategy.

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