Managing the raising of research productivity

Professor Phyllis TharenouExecutive DeanFaculty of Social and Behavioural SciencesFlinders University

A Golden Rule for individuals to improve Research Outputs:

2 or 3 or 4 for 1

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Agenda

• Measuring research performance– Research outputs • Publications, external research income

• How to improve research performance– Increasing capacity• Recruitment, PhD students, data analysis support

– Supporting areas of research strength – Associated systems to support research– Developing a culture for research– Conclusion: Strategy

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Why measure school research performance?Evidence-basis to make decisionsAssess progress eg uni goals, ERA criteriaCompare to benchmarksDecide where to focus: For example —

Support areas of strength or progress, or Improve areas of weak performance, or Leave some disciplines/schools focused on teaching

Decide what to focus on to improve or support: For example —Quantity &/or quality publications Research income and which type of grants% of staff with PhDs % of research active staff Others

Measuring Research Performance

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What do you measure?Total publications (include A1, B1, C1, E1); quality eg A*/A; also per FTE Total research grant income or per FTE (Cats 1-4; all count in ERA ) HDR load and time enrolled (and completions)Research-active staff, non-research active

Benchmark measures: Always over time eg 5 year trends,Against other schools, faculties, external benchmarks eg ANZAM

What level eg institutes?, schools?, faculties?

Measuring Research Performance

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Research Performance: Publications• Why publications are so important; eg– Lead to government funding eg ERA– Quality/quantity influence other successes in research

• eg ARC grants, invitations, reputation, promotion– Main measure of research activity

• Journal ranks: a measure of quality – Ranking of impact factors eg

• Web of Science Journal Citation Reports • Also other schemes eg Scopus: SJR at scimagojr.com &/OR

– A publicly available, credible ranking scheme eg • Oz Business Deans Council, others• A*, A, B, C, unranked

– Also have ranks for Teaching journals egCurrie & Pandher. 2013. Management education journals’ rank and tier by active scholars. Academy of Management Learning and education, 12 (2), 194-218.

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Research Performance: Publications• Citations– Why important

• Measure of quality, counted for some disciplines in ERA• Leads to other successes

– Count no. of cites and benchmark for: (1) a person’s publishing career: h-factor (2) an individual paper– At least 3 schemes:

• Web of Science/ISI, • Scopus, • Google scholar/Publish or Perish harzing.com/pop.htm(Harzing, Anne-Wil. (2010) The Publish or Perish Book: your guide to effective and responsible citation analysis. Tarma Software Research Pty Ltd, Melbourne, Australia).

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Research Performance: Publications How to increase a paper’s citations

Publish:– In journals with large readership nos. (eg international)– In a top journal by quality measures i.e., hi impact factors – A new contribution, a quality research design, top theory– On a hot topic or one of broad interest with lots of scholars– As part of a research program over time; where your name is known– Using a direct title representing the topic– In a journal that researchers in the field get or is easy to access– etc.

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Research Performance: External IncomeCategory 1 grants (eg ARC, NHMRC)

To help attain:Improve track record/ROPE: publication quality/quantity Provide training on writing/strategy, workshop drafts Give expert ‘stranger’ feedback on drafts Develop team applications Apply strategy (eg success rates) eg Linkage 45% vs Discovery 22%

Cat. 2 (other public sector) and 3 (industry/for profit companies) grants

May not be competitiveCan be nontraditional research income if Research Office assesses as it as research in full or part

Ensure reported for HERDC, train prof & academic staff to ensure submitted

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Research Performance: Cont’d Cat. 2 & 3 grants

Cat. 2 (other public sector) and 3 (industry/for profit companies) grants

eg consulting projects; government non-research fellowships (eg ALA); at times PhD scholarships

Contract researchConsulting that involves research (clearly identified)Grants from professional associations

For example:Cat 2: Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, Endeavour Awards, AUSAID tenders and grants eg Australian Leadership Award Fellowships;Cat. 3: ICAA, Fullbright scholarships, Ian Potter, for-profit companies if part or all of consulting can be assessed as researchOthers eg private companies if part is research

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Research Performance: Cont’d Cat. 2 & 3 grants

Participation in research panels to enable greater chance of selection for Cat. 2 grants– Various government departments & orgs. set up own panels of

academics from successful tenders eg• Australian Public Services Commission , DIISRTE & DEEWR, FACSIA

– Work is project/contract mgt, report writing, data collection etc.– eg 2013 Request For Tenders for panels of researchers:

• Leadership, Learning and Development Panel (Capability Development)

• Executive Search and Recruitment Panel • eLearning Support Services and Solutions Panel• Research Services Panel• Participatory Planning, Research and Evaluation Panel• Provision of Social Policy Research, evaluation and investment in

data and professional development service.

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Research Performance: External Income

Category 4: CRCs (including nodes)Especially for gaining PhD scholarships

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Hiring is most successful way of quickly improving research performance: expensive

Research leaders Mid level staff with research records or lower level with potential

Strategic hiring What selection criteria — ARC success, top/A* publications

Who does it — PVC/Exec Dean, Head – needs $s, part of uni strategySources — domestic and international scholarsHow

Identify and actively pursue possible top recruitsHire to develop a research area or support an area of strength

Also may need initial $ support eg hire other staff, PhD student scholarships, infrastructure

Capacity: Recruitment

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To work with academics and publish together: increases publication rate

Sources eg own honours students, international applicants Provide support to complete in good time and to publish

Sufficient no. of supervisors to take good applicantsGood supervision eg operational fb, regular meetings, otherScholarships and loadingsConference paper support linked to PhDInfrastructure where neededSupport for data collection Support for assistance with, and training in, data analysis techniques

Capacity: PhD Students

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Fulltime research fellow for faculty or large school to work with staff and students to gain research outputs: expensive

Eg for:Submission of journal articles Analysis for student theses – PhD, HonoursSupport grant applications esp. Category 1

Tasks:Guides/helps with design of data collection and data analysisDevelops capacity in practical data analysis, underlying statisticsLectures research methods with staff

To retain a good research fellow egIs an author on journal articles they do analyses for & helps writeGive teaching opportunities, other developmentProvide opportunity for a permanent position and promotion

Capacity: Data Analysis Support

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Support areas of research strength: egSchools or Departments/Disciplines, orGroups/discipline clustersCentres/institutes

Staffing, training, mentoring, other support, infrastructure

Decide which areas to develop – 3 or 4Provide support to grow research groupsTake advantage of opportunities to hire leaders who can develop research groups and will attract staff, postdocs, and PhD students

Supporting Areas of Research Strength

Associated Systems to Improve Research Workload Models

Proportion of activities for balanced role eg 30-50:30-50:20Include time for targeted research achievements eg carrying out Cat. 1/ARC grants, PhD supervision within time (???past or current research outputs)Increased teaching or other loads for non-researchers

Teaching-focused roles if university policy allowsAlign new teaching developments with research strengthsConsultative

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Associated Systems to Improve Research Performance Management

Determine non-research active staff (do more of other things)

Determine if should be teaching-focused staffAssess if research professors continue in that role based on outputsDetermine individual research goalsDiscuss staff retirement or transition out if needed, be careful

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Associated Systems to Improve Research Research Management

Support by Heads of SchoolsSchool policiesWorkload modelsConference support for full papers that give submissionsPublishing support eg databases, other infrastructureMentoring, research clusters, training

Research leadership in schools eg Director of research, HDR coordinator, Honours coordinatorMentoring by research mentors/profs/assoc profs

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Associated Systems to Improve Research

Research Management (continued)Faculty support:

Specialist expertise & across-faculty trainingTraining & development of staff skills (eg pubs/A*, ARC grants)Small Research Grants scheme On draft ARC grants eg reader feedback, expert adviceData analysis support

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Associated Systems: CompensationRewards for gaining specific targeted research outputs eg loadings??Research-only positions for top researchers with specified outputs eg ARC grantsSupport for regular international research conference participation linked to outputs where

Submitting full papers with refereeing, subsequently submittedCan make collaborations, form alliances for research; and Can keep up with top international scholars

Support for travel to events of top/A* local research networksSupport for PhDs to publish eg prizes, full conference papers submitted linked to thesis

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Associated Systems: Developing a Staff ProfileHire staff with PhDs as a matter of policyConsider expensive nonresearch active staff close to retirement for transition outSupport ECRs/postdocs: mentoring, encourage applications to available university schemesSupport future research leadersReward research active staff to retainActively replace research active staff/leaders who leaveIn particular areas, improve completions of PhDs by staff

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Ensure regular signals that support research while supporting good teaching eg

Strategic recruitment; selection criteria include relevant research outputs (PhD, publications, ext. grants) dependent on levelRegular training for research outputsMentoring programsSchool seminar programs, Working paper series Small grants schemes, top research conference support Regularly measure research performance and present backCelebrate success of researchers at all levels

Support successful research groups and individualsSupport ECRs, PhDsStrategically support research initiatives if linked to outputs eg

Visitors’ programs, conference attendance, HDR activities, school small grant schemes

Developing a Research Culture

Conclusion: Strategy• Develop resource allocation and investment to reward research

performance and build areas of research strengthFocus investment into priority areas with potential for successInvest in internal grant funding schemes to support research projects with high potentialSupport development programs for publishing eg workshops, teamsLink investment in their research activity to a person’s performance outputs

• Develop stretch, realistic targets for research outputsSeek improvement in ERA rankings (eg from 1 to 2, 2 to 3)Help staff apply for Cats 2, 3 & 4 income not just Cat 1/ARCForm strong links with industry groups and government agencies

• Manage staff performance and recruit research-active staffRecruit top researchers who can work with others internally to gain ARC grants and publish in top journals Align new appointments with priority areas of research strength

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Conclusion: StrategyDevelop a common measure of research performance for all academics to influence decisions on support, roles and workloads

“Encourage” staff in balanced portfolio roles to be research active

Ensure roles, workloads and performance management processes foster research focus and support research excellent staff

Reward research in workload schemes but tricky

• Support scale and focus: eg research strengths & teamsSupport collaborating where possible to create critical mass Support possible new research centres (eg hi-performing areas)

• Support new researchersBuild a cohort of national and international PhD students and integrate them with research teams

Support gaining of & resources for PhD students to complete

Support development of promising ECRs through workloads, targeted funding and development schemes eg mentoring

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