On behalf of the steering committee, I am pleased to announce a roadmap outlining DORA’s strategic plan to accelerate global research assessment reform over the next two years. The roadmap recognizes that signing the declaration is only a first step to creating meaningful cultural change in the scholarly community. Real change requires action at institutional, funder, national and international levels.
The roadmap describes three areas of focus that we will pursue to promote practical and robust approaches to research assessment: 1) increase awareness for the need to develop credible alternatives to the inappropriate use of metrics; 2) actively promote tools and processes that embody best practices in research assessment; and 3) extend DORA’s influence into new geographic regions and scholarly disciplines.
In addition, the roadmap details the tangible progress we hope to make over the next two years. Yes, we want to gather more signatures, especially from stakeholder organizations, but we also aim to make significant progress in curating a collection of good practices that can be used as a resource for organizations looking to making their own changes. Some excellent progress has been made, which others can now build upon.
The roadmap has been worked up by the new steering committee, which was formed in 2017 to oversee DORA’s strategy and activities. The committee is made up of dedicated individuals who represent key stakeholders in research assessment including funders, publishers, scientific societies, and researchers.
Your feedback on the roadmap is welcome. DORA has to be a community-led project if it is to succeed. Please reach out to our Community Manager, Dr. Anna Hatch (ahatch@sfdora.org) with any ideas or comments that you have. If you would like to stay-up-to-date with the latest news from DORA, sign up to receive news updates here.
Stephen Curry is a professor and assistant provost at Imperial College London. He is also the chair of the DORA steering committee.