The Digital Research Commons Pilot team is asking the McMaster community to share its thoughts about the current state of digital research support.
Among the many ways to provide feedback this fall are attending a virtual town hall and completing an online survey.
“We are looking for the full picture of where digital research support is at to help inform where this support could be,” said Angela Di Nello, senior manager of the Digital Research Commons Pilot at McMaster University Library. “We’re asking the research community to provide feedback on the preliminary findings and identify anything that requires more investigation or is missing.”
The Digital Research Commons Pilot is a three-year project that will determine how McMaster can create a more connected, capable, and user-focused approach to digital support for its researchers. The goal of the pilot is to improve access to systems, services, software, and training for researchers across the institution.
The Digital Research Commons Pilot team has drafted a first report, McMaster’s Evolving Digital Research Support Landscape, based on preliminary findings. Engagement in the coming months will help provide further feedback on and validation of this report.
The Digital Research Commons Pilot is supported by the Provost’s Strategic Alignment Fund. It is co-sponsored by the Office of the Vice-President, Research; McMaster University Library, and the Office of the Assistant Vice-President and Chief Technology Officer.
The initiative is co-led by Di Nello; Jay Brodeur, associate director of Digital Scholarship Services at McMaster University Library; Ranil Sonnadara, special advisor to the Vice-President, Research, and Tracy Dallaire, director of information security services at McMaster.
Dallaire encourages everyone involved in research at McMaster to take a few minutes to share their input.
“It is critical we hear from our community in the coming months to help us ensure that we are meeting the needs of our researchers,” she said. “Whether it’s providing access to services and software, or additional training and support, our vision is to build a more connected, capable, and researcher-focused approach to digital research support.”
How to get involved
Virtual town hall
A virtual town hall entitled McMaster’s Evolving Digital Research Support Landscape is being held on Nov. 27, 2023 from 2:30-3:30 p.m. ET. Everyone is welcome.
Survey
Feedback can be also provided though the Digital Research Commons Pilot fall 2023 survey. The deadline to complete the survey is Jan. 31, 2024.
Have questions or comments? Send an email to the DRCP team.
Helpful links
McMaster’s Evolving Digital Research Support Landscape fall 2023 report
