1. Building research data management
services:
a data librarian‟s view
Robin Rice
Online Information
London: Nov 21, 2012

2. Overview
• Defining research data management
• Developing a Research Data Management
Policy at your institution
• Researcher vs institutional responsibilities
• Supporting and training researchers
• Other candidates for library-based RDM
services

3. Defining RDM
• An umbrella term to describe all aspects of
planning, organising, documenting, storing
sharing, and preserving data.
• It also takes into account issues such as
data protection and confidentiality.
• It provides a framework that supports
researchers and their data throughout the
course of their research and beyond.

4. University of Edinburgh Research
Data Mgmt Policy
• Passed by Senate in May, 2011
• Library-led: developed by committee led
by Library & Collections Director
• Involved academic champions
• Written by ex-DCC consultant
• Deemed „aspirational‟
• Complimentary to
funders‟ policies

5. Edinburgh policy content: worldle

6. Roles & Responsibilities
• Who will support your researchers‟
planning?
• Who has responsibility during the research
project? Who has archival responsibility?
• Who has rights in the data?
• Are students considered?

7. Tips for policy development
 Know the drivers for your own institution.
 Practice the art of persuasion.
 How big is your kirk? Seek alliances.
 Who is your high-level champion?
 Agree a style – mandate or enabling?
 Postcard from the future: what will it
achieve?

8. Supporting and training
researchers
• Online guidance for academic staff
• Embedding RDM training into
postgraduate programmes (MANTRA)
• Tailored support for Data Mgmt Plans
(customising DMP Online tool)
• Training librarians & IT staff
• Awareness-raising across
schools and departments

9. RDM guidance for academics

10. MANTRA online training course

11. DCC‟s DMP Online tool

12. Training liaison librarians
• DIY training facilitated by data librarians:
Topics:
• Data management planning
• Documenting & organising data
• Data storage & security
• Ethics & copyright
• Data sharing

13. Other candidates for library-based
RDM services
• Data discovery – portals, catalogues
• Open data repositories
• Archiving and preservation services
• Metadata & standards (curation)

14. Data discovery (and use)

15. 15

16. Archiving and preservation
services for research data
• Should the institution be doing this?
– EPSRC says so
“Research organisations will ensure that EPSRC-funded research
data is securely preserved for a minimum of 10-years from the date
that any researcher „privileged access‟ period expires or, if others
have accessed the data, from last date on which access to the data
was requested by a third party.”
• How to do digital preservation: “Know what
you’ve got and keep the bits safe.”
• – Tim Gollins, TNA

17. Metadata & standards (curation)
• Librarians are more interested in (at least
some kinds of) metadata than
researchers.
• Librarians are in a position to bring to light
emerging standards for data types to
researchers and benefits of use.
• Librarians have a natural „cross-
disciplinary‟ viewpoint.

18. Challenges for Librarians in RDM
• Finding time to pursue new activities
• Developing new kinds of partnerships
• Establishing credibility in a new area of
expertise
• Learning new skills; „getting techie‟
• Getting hands dirty with unpublished
material
• Adapting rapidly to opportunities

19. Links
• University of Edinburgh policy
– http://www.ed.ac.uk/is/research-data-policy
• Research data guidance
– http://www.ed.ac.uk/is/data-management
• MANTRA online training
– http://datalib.edina.ac.uk/mantra/
• UoE Data Library
– http://www.ed.ac.uk/is/data-library
• Edinburgh DataShare
– http://datashare.is.ed.ac.uk/