Support beyond the Centre Co-creation in a Portable Research Ecosystem Imran Iqbal, Head of Research Operations – Department of Management Alessandra Marino, Grant Applications Manager – Research Division Peter Meister Broekema, Grant Applications Manager – Research Division Rachel Middlemass, Research Impact Manager – Research Division

Imran Iqbal, Head of Research Operations – Department of Management Key learning points Understand how mapping research support services and structures across an HEI helps maximise service delivery and minimise ‘transaction costs’ for researchers; Explore LSE’s approach to trialling integration of central and departmental support services; Think about how relevant good practice ideas and models (from LSE and others in the room) might be exported to home institutions.

Who are LSE? World-leading social sciences research institution Ranked very highly in REF2014 (though slightly less successful with impact than with outputs) International staff, students and outlook One of the main recipients of (EU) funding in SSH domain.

However… Department and central service division relations; Multiple points of contact Employee turnover Accuracy Communication Customer service Post/Pre award, REF, KEI

Exercise 1 (How) do you collaborate now?… In small groups: What is the biggest barrier to collaboration between the central research office and the faculties/departments in your institutions? How/where (around which key themes or types of activity) is collaboration most likely to happen at the minute? 10 minutes. Go!

Alessandra Marino, Grant Applications Manager – Research Division Background - 2016

Challenges … to maintain our leading position in the face of higher expectations for research excellence and greater international competition. …to improve service delivery in line with the School strategy (overcoming silos), providing targeted and tailored support.

The world outside Changes in the funding landscape from research to innovation; focus on impact; more thematic funding; more collaborative funding; match funding (employment!).

Inside the School Closer engagement with research ideas Requests for more sustained support to academics: Closer engagement with research ideas Project management support to the development of an application Liaising with partners and finding appropriate solutions for different types of collaborations Help with writing technical annexes Making all the support available from RD more visible.

Initiating change Top-down Growing awareness of RD role within and beyond the School as a vehicle for effective service delivery as well as income generation. Bottom-up RD staff carried out analysis of their performance and used this to set their own team objectives and a review of their activities (priorities and KPIs).

Top down response Two Research Development Managers (RDMs): work with academic departments to develop overall funding strategy and provide tailor-made training Three new Grant Application Managers (GAMs): focus on content of proposals and building deeper relations with a portfolio of academic departments and an Assistant GAM: focuses on costings, handovers and specific grants and compliance Knowledge Exchange and Research Manager: helps make sure that every application is “fully KEI-d” Knowledge Exchange Manager: manages internal KE funding and training to increase engagement across the School Research Impact Manager: helps maximise impact by channelling support and best practice from around LSE Partnerships Manager: develops connections with businesses, civil society and government and LSE’s academics.

Bottom-up response

Conceptualizing change Peter Meister Broekema, Grant Applications Manager – Research Division Conceptualizing change In a nutshell: “to move away from reactive to proactive support and to nurture researchers from research idea till the end of the project and BEYOND! AKA Portable Research Ecosystem Conceptualisation of iterative changes; Non formative; Guiding principle/strategy.

Portable Research Ecosystem

Portable Research Ecosystem Researchers no longer work solely in a responsive environment (or infrastructure) Instead, they are interdependent in an interactive ecosystem Research infrastructure goes beyond support and moves into co-creation Community interacting with their environment Interconnected and interactive parts

Portable Research Ecosystem Transferable ideas Scalable on different levels Adaptable and reflexive

Level: Research Division Deadline Impact policies funding audience Project end Research idea Policy team We expanded the roles of all the teams, so no clear pre/post award cut off, policy as infrastructure and communication as glue between the teams (newsletters what we are doing) Research Development Team (RDM/GAM) Impact team RD Communication Research Awards Team

Improving Coordination Between teams: Team news round-up Handover of projects Secondments Mentoring Between RD and units: Single point of contact Surgeries Tailored training sessions Staff exchange

...within LSE Collaborations with other Service Divisions Advancement (meeting, mutual bids) Finance Division (RIIF) Communications Division (Public Engagement) Communities of practice Training of staff Impact Forum

LSE Research Impact Forum A practical example of collaboration Rachel Middlemass, Research Impact Manager – Research Division LSE Research Impact Forum A practical example of collaboration To what need does the Forum respond? People with responsibility for impact support are scattered across LSE “Impact” is almost never in their job title; it is usually not in their description Most (think) they don’t know much about impact Most know very little about central support for KEI Many DO NOT LOVE IMPACT. They have been told to support it…. …because it is now a priority for everyone.

LSE Research Impact Forum Then Staff supporting impact isolated from one another and the centre Little awareness of central support Difficult to communicate key (REF) information and updates Difficult to coordinate school-wide activities Now Termly meetings for all impact staff and relevant central service staff Integrated into Research Division training programme (= coffee) Most departments represented Currently focused on information sharing and group therapy…

Every Forum includes REF updates from School REF Manager. Helps to: Ensure comprehensive and consistent messaging Coordinate School-wide REF preparation activities Presentation from ≥1 central support service about how they can help deliver impact or ICSs. Helps to: Increase awareness of central support functions Integrate support for Impact across those functions Increase uptake of that support External events round-up from all who have attended e.g. conferences, workshops. Helps to: Share relevant information Build community & ensure full participation Maximise value of funding attendance at external events

Closer to REF we may add More best practice sharing to: Share information about individual departments’ and centres’ approach to particular aspects of (REF) impact Discuss whether (and if so how) these can be exported / scaled up Case study workshops to: Solicit group input to tricky case studies Check that case studies have considered (and received) support from all relevant support services Work on impact template (or equivalent) to: Support consistent and comprehensive understanding of appropriate content (i.e. ensure all relevant angles covered) Make sure all relevant support service staff understand what data they can and should provide to UoAs to strengthen submissions

Benefits of PRE so far More income, mainly via larger grants More effective ways of communicating Better integration between the teams Bridging division between central services and departments Recognition / reputational advantages (ARMA, LSE awards)

Exercise 2 (How) can we integrate more? On a post-it note tell us what practical tips or “next steps” plans you will take back with you to your organization to improve collaboration and integration between central and local support staff?

Feel free to contact us: Imran Iqbal: I.Iqbal2@lse.ac.uk Alessandra Marino: A.Marino@lse.ac.uk Peter Meister Broekema: P.M.Broekema@lse.ac.uk Rachel Middlemass: R.Middlemass@lse.ac.uk