Data management planning

3TU.Datacentrum Symposium on Research Data Management

TU Delft, May 26th, 2014

Madeleine de Smaele - m.m.e.desmaele@tudelft.nl

Good data management is all about making informed decisions

Why manage research data?

• It saves time

• Simplifies your life

• Increases research efficiency

• Ensures research integrity

• Makes it easier to share

• It’s required

What is involved in RDM?

• Data Management Planning

• Creating data

• Documenting data

• Accessing / using data

• Storage and backup

• Preserving data

• Sharing data

Data Management Plans

DMPs are often submitted with grant applications, but are useful whenever you are creating data to:

• Make informed decisions to anticipate and avoid problems

• Avoid duplication, data loss and security breaches

• Develop procedures early on for consistency

• Ensure data are accurate, complete, reliable and secure

• Save time and effort – make your life easier!

What do funders want?

• NWO

• Horizon 2020

• ZonMw

3TU.Datacentrum offers you

DMP template – how it works

Six common themes

1. Data collection

2. Data storage and back-up

3. Data documentation

4. Data access

5. Data sharing and reuse

6. Data preservation and

archiving

Data collection

Can you describe the data you will be creating/collecting?

• Description of the data; including type of data, amount or estimated number of files

• File formats

• Version control

KNMI-mast Cabauw

Data storage and back-up

How do you ensure that during your research all research data are stored securely and backed up or copied regularly?

Image: http://jessalingel.tumblr.com/post/66108958850/this-is-not-an-archive

Data documentation

How will your data be documented to help future users to understand and reuse it?

• Metadata

• Methods

• File naming

• Identifiers

CC-BY Image courtesy of Flickr user Cea

Data access

How will you manage access and security?

• Copyright and Intellectual Property Rights

• Limitations on access

• Access criteria

• Who is in control

Data sharing and reuse

How will you share the data?

• Any sharing requirements

• Audience for reuse

• When will you publish

• Where will you publish

Image: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_science

Data preservation and archiving

Which data should be preserved, and/or shared?

Selection based on:

• What has to be kept e.g. data underlying publications

• What can’t be recreated e.g. environmental recordings

• What is potentially useful to others

• …..

Benefits of sharing data

Why should you consider sharing research data that you collect or create in the course of your research?

• Validation of research

• Making publicly funded research available publicly

• More citations

How to start?

• Download our template

• Contact us for advise and support

• Watch our short video: