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Griffith Pathways to Impact Program Framework Background

The research impact agenda is not new to universities, for more than a decade there has been strong motivation globally to assess the demonstrable benefits delivered through academic research. Motivations include developing a better understanding of how university research provides broad societal, economic, cultural, and environmental benefits, demonstration of effective public and private investments, and improving the operation of national innovation systems. In Australia, institutions have been capitalising from the learnings and case studies drawn from the UK Research Excellence Framework (REF) guiding researchers through the research impact landscape and embedding impact beyond academia in their research culture. The UK exercise –linked to research block funding seems to be succeeding in providing a line of sight between high quality basic research and tangible benefits and solutions for societies. While Australian government funding has not been linked to assessing impacts of university research yet, the Engagement and Impact Assessment (EI) part of the National Innovation and Science Agenda is periodically evaluating how well universities are translating their research into economic, environmental, social, cultural and other benefits. The impact agenda has changed how institutions are perceived and their reputation and recognition as major contributors to solving some of the most complex and real-world challenges.

Impact as guiding principle of the Research and Innovation Plan 2021-2025

The Pathways to Impact Program is key pillar of the Research and Innovation Plan 2021-2025 aiming at providing more structured support for researchers and a solid framework for the University to continue embedding impact into the research excellence landscape as well as in Griffith’s branding and promotion to external audiences. The Program reflects a change in research strategy at Griffith to recognise the dynamic and interdependent relationship between excellence and impact (in the broadest sense) in the way we direct our research efforts and in how we recognise and measure our performance as a university.

The Program will 1) improve our ability to identify existing breakthrough research and to tell our impact stories, and 2) support and guide researchers on how to plan for, value and recognise impact in its many forms.

Principles

• The Pathways to Impact Program recognises that impactful research already occurs in many forms and at manystages of maturity across Griffith.

• The Program intends to guide, support and recognise efforts and achievements as best practice and establishedmechanisms of impactful research.

• The Program will reinforce there is no standard pathway to impact; external evaluation exercises (e.g. REF, EI)have shown that evidence supporting claims of impact is highly diverse.

• The Program will encompass the entire spectrum of impact evidence and accommodate traditional academicmeasures through to indicators of contribution beyond academia, to guide researchers through recognising,documenting and promoting the many forms of and pathways to impact.

• The Program will support researchers understanding impact related requirements and definitions from fundingagencies and programs (e.g. ARC, NHMRC CRC, other) leveraging from guidelines and extensive externaldocumentation already available.

• The Program’s main objective is to benefit researchers with tools and advice for planning their research,identifying key users of their research and how to document evidence of engagement and impact.

• The Program will embed impact as a guiding principle in academic endeavour and as key element of the researchexcellence landscape for individuals, teams and the institution. It has two main ambitions i) to assist in the

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development of research with high aspirations of impact and ii) to document strong cases of impact and societal/economic/environmental benefits arising from research produced at Griffith.

• The Program will feed into the Academic Ecosystem of the Future by including mechanisms to develop and reward impactful research through existing academic processes (e.g. recruitment, career development, performance evaluation) and via new avenues such as awards, profiling, events and communications.

• Institutionally, the Program will enhance Griffith’s capacity to achieve societal, economic, cultural, and environmental benefits from research, and to promote stories of success in line with the University’s values and priorities. It will also provide a mechanism to identify and prepare strong impact case studies for independent assessment, such as through the Engagement and Impact submission in 2024.

Development of the Pathways to Impact Program occurs in three overlapping phases:

1. Defining and Understanding Impact

There are many valid definitions of impact, with each institution or agency implementing variations of a common underlying theme. We will adopt a broad definition of impact that advances our goal to be university of influence, through the development and application of new knowledge that delivers demonstrable benefits beyond the academy, and that supports and promotes research excellence.

Griffith’s research impact can vary from fundamental knowledge advancement, to societal, environmental, cultural or economic changes to policies and/or practices that are all grounded in academic excellence. The Program will capture and recognise both academic (or scholarly) and non-academic impact. A proposed broad definition is:

Research Impact is the demonstrable contribution that excellent research makes to societies, environments and economies, this can involve academic impact or any form of societal impact or both;

The Research Excellence Landscape

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where the Program would assist in recognising criteria and measures, as well as identifying factors that support impact (approach to impact) for different areas of scholarship.

2. Evidencing Impact

This Program will utilise the extensive existing material and resources to guide researchers defining and dissecting the impact in their own context, and promoting their projects based on a broad spectrum of types of impact and varying timescales. It is recognised that there are many great examples of research programs already having significant impact on individuals, communities, environments and organisations besides their academic disciplines.

Engagement and impact beyond academia

Indicators that can be used to demonstrate and measure societal, economic, cultural, and environmental benefits have been considered by many organisations internationally. There is no intention to reinvent these, but rather to guide researchers in identifying those indicators and stakeholders that would apply most meaningfully to their disciplines and context and can be used to evidence change and benefit. Being explicit about these factors is becoming increasingly important when writing research proposals and establishing collaborations.

The capacity to document evidence of impact linked to research outputs, funding and partnerships is the basis for constructing impact narratives enriched and matured over time. This is also highly valuable in demonstrating the value of research undertaken at Griffith to the wider community.

Academic impact

Traditionally, citation metrics are applied as an indicator of academic (or scholarly) impact in relevant disciplines, as well as journal and publisher reputation and peer review recognition especially in the humanities, arts and social sciences. Currently Academic Groups are developing research performance guidelines to promote high quality outcomes that are appropriate for each discipline and specific contexts.

Impact in academic and non-academic domains are by no means mutually exclusive. The Pathways to Impact Program will support evidencing of impact across the spectrum of research outcomes.

Collecting and recording evidence of intent and outcomes

Increasingly, funding bodies and stakeholders expect researchers to be able to articulate the value and benefits of their work. Through the Program, support will be provided to guide researchers in the development of brief impact narrative(s), which may be a simple statement of intent and/or a high-level view of benefits already being delivered through their research.

Providing researchers with an intuitive system to collect evidence of impact and records of engagement and assist in crafting well documented impact narratives is critical. This will aid in planning for and progressively capturing information and data that may evidence their impact, recognising that not all research will have direct or immediate practical application and that benefits of research can be delivered over varying timescales. An integrated (non-public) module within Symplectic Elements (with potential for integration with the Academic Portfolio system amd future inclusion in ASCD conversations). The more advanced and nuanced tool called Impact Tracker is for established impact cases and for key interdisciplinary programs, such as Beacons and Spotlights.

Key goals for Phase 1: • Socialise the Program with information on current and planned resources.

• Establish an information and resource hub.

• Light-touch training staged across all levels from basic awareness to advanced and discipline focused.

• Improve support for impact narrative development for priority funding proposals.

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3. Embedding an Impact Culture

Recognise and Celebrate

The Program will extend university level initiatives to celebrate impactful, influential research at every level and in every area of knowledge. Internally the university will identify and communicate our success stories and promote research and researchers that demonstrate influence within their discipline and beyond academia.

The Program’s framework will provide the tools and guidance to measure and document impact according to indicators and common measures within the different research areas; recognising research impact is ‘not a one size fits all’ scenario. The Program will progressively normalise impact related conversations into our research culture. For instance, increased reflection on short narratives about the researcher’s most influential or beneficial research contributions and more open questions about pathways to impact as part of career development process and evaluation will allow inclusive developmental planning, through more quality- and impact-driven conversations.

Enhance and Promote

The Program delineates the resources and support required centrally and within the Groups to enable researchers, elements and the university to embed impact into the research culture. Concerted and informed efforts to build, enhance and promote research impact are needed from offices across the University including Office for Research (including Ethics, Security and Development), Library (citation metrics, publishing, profiling), Marketing and Communications, Development and Alumni, and Griffith Enterprise.

A critical aspect of further embedding the research impact culture is implementing research marketing and communication strategies and branding to continue demonstrating the relevance and influence of Griffith’s world class research. An important opportunity exists through adoption of the UNSDGs framework as the underlying basis for indicators of societal impact. Wherever possible, impact case studies should be readily tagged with UNSDGs and usable for different purposes and varied formats, such as media releases and government briefings.

Key goals for Phase 2: • To promote an online Impact Toolkit, guiding researchers through the whole research life cycle, recognising that

not all research will have direct or immediate practical application and that benefits of research can be delivered over varying timescales.

• To provide guidance (e.g. workshops) for researchers to develop and profile their own brief impact narrative, which may be a simple statement of intent and/or a high-level view of benefits delivered through their research.

• To provide access to researchers to a simple system to readily collect and document their records of impact.

• To identify areas of the university that are already collecting and documenting evidence of engagement activities and impact, and to provide support with information capture through the tool Impact Tracker.

• To target and develop strong impact case studies for the EI 2024 submission. This will require comprehensive draft preparation and internal evaluation to identify the strongest cases once the ARC releases submission business rules.

Key goals for Phase 3: • To develop, improve and support models of research performance evaluation that recognise influential research in

academic and non-academic contexts at institutional and individual levels. • To develop schemes to celebrate and reward impactful research. • To align existing resources and initiatives with stronger focus on UNSDGs framework when appropriate. • To support enhancing and promotion of Griffith Experts profiles. • To link the outcomes of the Program to Griffith’s Research Communications Strategy and enhance Griffith’s research

visibility internally and externally.

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Key Activities - Implementing the Pathways to Impact Program

Key Activities (shading represents overlapping Phases 0-3) Timeframe Resources required

Socialisation of the Pathways to Impact Program (RC, comms, webpage) From Q1 2021 OR, PVCR office

Establish internal advisory group to help steer and champion delivery of key Program components From Q1 2021 PVCR, champions from Academic Groups,

OR, GE and other key reps

One on one support for planning research proposals and writing impact statements and narratives

Continuing and extending

Some coverage from RD & BIM Teams + Impact Officer required

Funding-focussed training sessions and workshops, (currently agency or discipline based)

Continuing and extending

Some coverage from RD Team + Impact Officer required

Technical implementation of Impact Module in Symplectic Elements Completed -

Pilot release of Impact Module in Symplectic Elements Q1 2021 OR + Change resources required

Internal resources hub, aligning and linking to internal and external resources, incl. definitions, guides and funding agencies requirements

From Q2 2021 Content coordination from OR + Web design + support required

Delivery of an Impact Toolkit for researchers (see example 1, example 2), including practical guides, tailored resources and targeted training

By Q3 2021 Impact Officer required

Establish tiered support model providing with resources to curate and maintain their Griffith Experts profile, including managing ORCID.

By Q3 2021 Experts support from OR + Library liaison team support

Phased institutional roll-out of Impact Module in Symplectic Elements From Q3 2021

OR + Change resources required

Technical implementation & early adopters testing of Impact Tracker Completed -

Expand access to Impact Tracker for targeted, high potential impact cases From Q3 2021 Impact Officer required

Preliminary identification and targeted curation of potential case studies for EI2024 (At least three impact case studies per 2-digit FoR)

From Q3 2021 OR with Advisory/Steering Group input, Impact Officer required

Unified, external-facing web presence, showcasing Griffith’s impactful research stories From Q3 2021 Impact Officer required + Web,

Marketing & Comms support required

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Cont.

Polished, well populated Griffith Experts profiles. From Q3 2021 Impact Officer required + Experts support

Consultation on alignment of discipline specific guidelines with the Program. From Q3 2021 OR with Advisory/Steering Group input,

And with Academic Groups

Implementation of Research Impact awards (see example) From Q3 2021 TBC

Regular internal and external profiling of impactful research at Griffith to embed in culture and promote significant achievements

From 2022 TBC

Robust candidate impact cases for the ARC EI 2024 submission documented in Impact Tracker and adapted to ARC guidelines.

By mid-2022 OR with Advisory/Steering Group input

(Impact officer, communicators, senior researchers)

Launch of events, university wide, discipline focused (showcase/ conference/ symposia/ policy leaders /stakeholders forums) in collab with VP IEE Office Also see Research Week example.

2022? TBC

Consultative development/improvement of academic evaluation models to recognise research excellence –impactful research

2022-2025 TBC

Implementation of full capabilities of Symplectic Elements (research management system) to record, review and evaluate research impact data

By 2023 TBC

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