1. UNDERSTANDING POLICIES
Case Study: The H2020 Project LEARN
Data Management Policies

2. Policy Development and Alignment
Leaders Activating
Research Networks
WP3
Policy Development and Alignment
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No

3. Outline LEARN - The Mission
Understanding Policies From Taboos to Policies
Model Policy for Research Data Management (RDM) at Research Institutions/Institutes
Further Developments and Outreach
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No

4. 1
LEARN -
The Mission

5. Mission
Produce an exemplar Research Data Management Policy (agreed by all Partners)
Produce a Policy and a Guidance which can be tailored by any University or Research Institution to meet their needs
Enhance Policy Coordination & Alignment

6. 2
Understanding Policies:
From Taboos to Policies

7. Looking for an Ontology From Taboos to Policies
Starting with some Taboos 1
Going over to related Principles 2
Going over to the creation of a Policy 3
Going over to Rules, Legislations and Regulations (canons, norms, guidelines) 4

8. Taboo
A taboo is something, which is forbidden or disapproved of, or placed under a social prohibition. “Thou shalt not delete scientific data“ “Thou shalt not destroy infrastructures” Usually a negative assertion. In society and academic environment taboos are accepted only if they are just a few.

9. Principle
A principle is a fundamental truth or proposition that serves as the foundation for a system of belief or behaviour or for a chain of reasoning. Research data are to be preserved Format: positive assertion: Derivation for an academic institution or an academic service provider: beliefs governing the organization’s (body) behaviour. Research data are to be kept FAIR - Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable. Research data infrastructures are to be kept accessible

10. Policies/ 1
A policy is…
a course or principle of action adopted or proposed by an organization (or individual);
“The Institution [name XY] will preserve its research data infrastructure always accessible and free to its members according to the FAIR principles”
- a development generated from the bottom (resulting from the action of individuals);
- a development generated from the top (resulting from the action of an executive);
N.B.: the original Greek ideal of “the projection of the volition of an individual” is expressed through the politeia and therefore included in this principle of action.

11. Policies /2 General assumptions concerning policies:
A single Policy: the policy is a single entity, it should not be in competition with other policies
Policy offers the frame for the generation of Rules
Policy is usually accepted after a while
Creators of Policy do not want to modify it
“Policies lag behind” (usually policies are oriented to the past. Most Policies are reflections of existing conventions)
Valid for long periods of time – and there is an end (expiry date)

12. Rules, Regulations/ 1
Rules are prescribing conducts or actions. They are generated by the founder of “orders”. Characteristics of rules are: - There may exist “lots of rules”: the number of rules can be „endless“. - Rules are not always clear (they often need interpretation according to the situation). - Rules are usually accepted, but often imposed procedures. - It is allowed to modify Rules by definition. - Rules are only valid during a specified period of time. - The Law is an expression of rules - Law (usually written order or direction or legal precept or doctrine)

13. Rules, Regulations /2 Example:
“Our University will maintain accessible our infrastructure each day from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 a.m and offer support only on Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. The research data, that are publicly funded are to be kept free and accessible to all members of our University each Sunday, from 9:00 to 12:00 a.m.“

14. From Taboos to Policies
Principles
Policies
Rules
Negative assertion
 few
“You shall not delete scientific data”
“Youl shall not destroy infrastrcutures”
Positive assertion   
more than „few“
“Research data are to be kept FAIR - Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable.”
“Research data infrastructures are to be kept accessible”
A course or principle of action. Policy offers the frame for the generation of Rules,
should not be in competition with other policies
“The Institution [name XY] will preserve its research data infrastructure always accessible and free to its members according to the FAIR principles”
Rules prescribe conducts or actions; define who what when and where should be done according to the Policy
“Our University will maintain accessible our infrastructure each day from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 a.m and offer support only on Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. “

15. A few words about KPIs KPIs
Generally KPIs follow policies and resulting legislations and regulations, and may be created according to the above mentioned workflow
KPIs offer some metrics with the aim to create a structure of reference for evaluating the effectiveness existing policies/rules
As stated, KPIs are mainly a response to some existing requirements resulting from policies or other kinds of rules:
- They facilitate comparison
- They are expressions of “values”
- They are instruments for creating statistics
- KPIs are element of a policy, because attempt to steer future developments through their introduction
- They are important tools for management

16. About KPIs/2
Conclusion: the use and adoption of KPIs is related to future developments that are depending on policies. KPIs will then offer a “screenshot” of existing situations, may also be used as a regulative instrument for future developments.

17. Why these differentiations?
It is important to identify the different semantic levels
Understand the differences between Taboos, Principles, Policies, Rules and Regulations
Understanding of the semantic hierarchy is useful in order to produce appropriate guidelines

18. 3
The Model Policy

19. How we started
Identification of Funders in the German speaking countries (DACH)
Collection of European RDM policies and first analysis
Production of 2 grid documents for policies:
Formal Elements
Content Elements
of policies

20. How we continued Creation of first model policy and guidance
Continuous involvement of LEARN Partners
Discussion of policy insights and results at 5 Partner Workshops in London, Vienna, Helsinki, Santiago de Chile and Barcelona
Co-operation in Mini-Workshops in the Latin America area to compare and standardise terminology and to foster policy alignment
12/2016 – 02/2017: Peer review process of Model Policy and Guidance

22. Intellectual Property Rights Handling Research Data
Preamble
Jurisdiction
Intellectual Property Rights
Handling Research Data
Responsibilities, Rights, Duties
5.1. Researchers are responsible for:...
5.2. The [name of research institution] is responsible for:…
6. Validity

23. Preamble
The [name of research institution] recognizes the fundamental importance of research data and the management of related administrative records in maintaining quality research and scientific integrity, and is committed to pursuing the highest standards. The [name of research institution] acknowledges that correct and easily retrievable research data are the foundation of and integral to every research project. They are necessary for the verification and defence of research processes and results. RDM policies are highly valuable to current and future researchers. Research data have a long-term value for research and academia, with the potential for widespread use in society.

24. Jurisdiction
This policy for the management of research data applies to all researchers active at the [name of research institution]. The policy was approved by the [dean/commission/authority] on [date]. In cases when research is funded by a third party, any agreements made with that party concerning intellectual property rights, access rights and the storage of research data take precedence over this policy.

25. 3. Intellectual Property Rights
Intellectual property rights (IPR) are defined in the work contract between a researcher and his or her employer. IPRs might also be defined through further agreements (e.g. grant or consortial agreements). In cases where the IPR belong to the institution that employs the researcher, the institution has the right to choose how to publish and share the data.

26. Handling research data (1/2)
Research data should be stored and made available for use in a suitable repository or archiving system, such as [name of institutional repository/archiving system, if applicable]. Data should be provided with persistent identifiers.
It is important to preserve the integrity of research data. Research data must be stored in a correct, complete, unadulterated and reliable manner. Furthermore, they must be identifiable, accessible, traceable, interoperable, and whenever possible, available for subsequent use.
In compliance with intellectual property rights, and if no third-party rights, legal requirements or property laws prohibit it, research data should be assigned a licence for open use.

27. Handling research data (2/2)
Adherence to citation norms and requirements regarding publication and future research should be assured, sources of subsequently-used data explicitly traceable, and original sources can be acknowledged.
Research data and records are to be stored and made available according to intellectual property laws or the requirements of third-party funders, within the parameters of applicable legal or contractual requirements, e.g. EU restrictions on where identifiable personal data may be stored. Research data of future historical interest and the administrative records accompanying research projects should also be archived.
The minimum archive duration for research data and records is 10 years after either the assignment of a persistent identifier or publication of a related work following project completion, whichever is later.
In the event that research data and records are to be deleted or destroyed, either after expiration of the required archive duration or for legal or ethical reasons, such action will be carried out only after considering all legal and ethical perspectives. The interests and contractual stipulations of third-party funders and other stakeholders, employees and partner participants in particular, as well as the aspects of confidentiality and security, must be taken into consideration when decisions about retention and destruction are made. Any action taken must be documented and be accessible for possible future audit.

28. Responsibilities, Rights, Duties
This policy for the management of research data applies to all researchers active at the [name of research institution]. The policy was approved by the [dean/commission/authority] on [date]. In cases when research is funded by a third party, any agreements made with that party concerning intellectual property rights, access rights and the storage of research data take precedence over this policy.

29. 5.1. Researchers are responsible for:
Management of research data and data sets in adherence with principles and requirements expressed in this policy;
Collection, documentation, archiving, access to and storage or proper destruction of research data and research-related records. This also includes the definition of protocols and responsibilities within a joint research project. Such information should be included in a Data Management Plan (DMP), or in protocols that explicitly define the collection, administration, integrity, confidentiality, storage, use and publication of data that will be employed. Researchers will produce a DMP for every research project.
Compliance with the general requirements of the funders and the research institution; special requirements in specific projects should be described in the DMP;
Planning to enable, wherever possible, the continued use of data even after project completion. This includes defining post-project usage rights, with the assignation of appropriate licences, as well as the clarification of data storage and archiving in the case of discontinued involvement at the [name of university/research institution];
Backup and compliance with all organisational, regulatory, institutional and other contractual and legal requirements, both with regard to research data, as well as the administration of research records (for example contextual or provenance information).
To ensure appropriate institutional support, it is required that new research projects are registered at the proposal stage at [name of research institution/central body].

30. 5.2. The [name of research institution] is responsible for:
Empowerment of organisational units, providing appropriate means and resources for research support operations, the upkeep of services, organizational units, infrastructures, and employee education;
Support of established scientific practices from the beginning. This is possible through the drafting and provision of DMPs, monitoring, training, education and support, while in compliance with regulations, third-party contracts for research grants, university/institutional statutes, codes of conduct, and other relevant guidelines;
Developing and providing mechanisms and services for the storage, safekeeping, registration and deposition of research data in support of current and future access to research data during and after the completion of research projects;
Providing access to services and infrastructures for the storage, safekeeping and archiving of research data and records, enabling researchers to exercise their responsibilities (as outlined above) and to comply with obligations to third-party funders or other legal entities.

31. 6. Validity
This policy will be reviewed and updated as required by the head of/the director of the [name the research institution] every [two years].  

32. Published in LEARN Toolkit in April 2017

33. 4
What else?

34. Guidance Document for Policy Development
Published in LEARN Toolkit:

35. Toolkit Part 3: LEARN Executive Briefing

36. an armoury of best practice for all research performing organisations
The LEARN Tookit:
an armoury of best practice for all research performing organisations
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No

37. LEARN Toolkit 23 Best Practice Case Studies in 8 sections
Policy and Leadership
Advocacy
Subject approaches
Open Data
Research Data Infrastructure
Costs
Roles, Responsibilities, Skills
Tool development

38. THANKS! Paolo Budroni, paolo.budroni@univie.ac.at
University of Vienna, Library and Archive Services
Head of Department e-Infrastructures
E-Infrastructures Reflection Group, Austrian National Delegate
Chair of GA of e-Infrastructures Austria Plus
H2020 Project LEARN – WP3 Policy Development and Alignment
Member of Management Board of Open Education Austria

39. Understanding policies for research data management –
policy development and alignment
Questions?