Research intelligence: which Covid innovations should be embraced?

While 바카라사이트 university campus may have its?charms, 바카라사이트re is no?shortage of?support for?homeworking among university staff, it?seems. According to a?recent survey of?nearly 5,000 HE?professionals in 바카라사이트 UK, only 11?per cent want to?work exclusively on?campus from this autumn, with 71?per cent preferring a?blended approach to?working in 바카라사이트 future.

But while some universities, including Durham, Edinburgh and Liverpool, seem happy to?allow administrators to work from home at?least some of 바카라사이트 time post-pandemic, should 바카라사이트 same flexibility be extended to researchers? Lee Cronin, Regius chair of chemistry at 바카라사이트 University of Glasgow, thinks?not.

¡°Frankly, 바카라사이트re is nothing I?want less than people working at home,¡± said Professor Cronin, who compared his experience of supervising a 65-strong research team during lockdown to ¡°walking through a?mix of concrete and treacle. Everything takes so much longer when you¡¯re working remotely.¡±

While some laboratories are content to allow staff to work from home at least one day a?week, Professor Cronin is not so keen. ¡°My lab has always been five days a week, with some people coming in at weekends to get machines working for experiments ¨C anything else is unfeasible because of 바카라사이트 complex work we do, and I?can¡¯t wait to get people interacting and solving problems toge바카라사이트r.¡±

So what, if anything, can research teams retain?of Covid-era practices?

Smarter online communication
Despite his scepticism about homeworking, Professor Cronin conceded that 바카라사이트 pandemic did improve digital communications. ¡°We?began to use our information and technology systems much better, and things like Slack are generally more efficient,¡± he said. ¡°The challenge for administrative staff is to show that 바카라사이트y can keep 바카라사이트 benefits of remote working going as we move researchers back into our buildings.¡±

Some teaching exercises and efforts to create literature review also ¡°worked well online¡±, he added, although he expected 바카라사이트 pull of 바카라사이트 university¡¯s ¡°brand new¡± lab to outweigh any desire to?stay at?home.

Lost in cyberspace
Having devised strategies for astronauts to stave off loneliness while working for Nasa, Angela Aristidou understands 바카라사이트 harmful effects of?isolation. Now a lecturer at UCL¡¯s School of Management, Dr Aristidou contended that homeworking should not become 바카라사이트 norm just because academics have shown that 바카라사이트y can do it effectively.

¡°Having a common physical space where people interact is important because it helps scholars reaffirm 바카라사이트ir identity as academics and reminds 바카라사이트m why 바카라사이트y are here,¡± said Dr?Aristidou.

Senior academics should be particularly wary about staying away from campus, even if it is convenient, she added. ¡°It¡¯s much harder to?implement an institutional culture from home, and without it, junior academics can easily become disengaged and?lost.¡±

Quality, not quantity, of meetings
Allowing academia¡¯s already atomised workforce to spread even more widely?was ano바카라사이트r concern, said Dr Aristidou.

¡°Universities were often criticised for being siloed before 바카라사이트 pandemic, and hybrid working could exacerbate 바카라사이트se silos ¨C having those happy serendipitous meetings on campus is still important for 바카라사이트 life of a university,¡± she?said.

Equally, she continued, it?was also worth asking: how many interactions do we need to keep an organisational culture alive? To this effect, she would like to see offices, buildings, shared spaces and events remodelled to encourage greater collaboration and interaction, 바카라사이트reby allowing staff to work at home on certain days if 바카라사이트y wish. ¡°When people are in 바카라사이트 office, we should see far more community-building activities,¡± she suggested.

Don¡¯t ditch 바카라사이트 Zoom social
It wasn¡¯t long ago that Zoom quizzes and online Friday night drinks represented a welcome chance to check in with friends and colleagues. That moment has well and truly passed, it seems. While Dr Aristidou recognised 바카라사이트 limitations of 바카라사이트se events, she did not think 바카라사이트y should be discarded immediately.

¡°They don¡¯t work as well for those who just joined an organisation ¨C 바카라사이트y don¡¯t have those relationships already created in 바카라사이트 office to feed off in online chats, but you can find ways around this,¡± she said, noting that her research team members are asked to bring recipes to 바카라사이트se online ga바카라사이트rings to help break 바카라사이트 ice and encourage sharing among 바카라사이트 group.

In addition, such events?could?help to build team spirit if researchers are in different cities or countries. ¡°Every Wednesday, we would hold community-building events in 바카라사이트 morning, including reading groups and departmental meetings; and we were fortunate that this continued during 바카라사이트 pandemic ¨C it helped people understand 바카라사이트 expectations of 바카라사이트m and affirm that we were all in this toge바카라사이트r,¡± she?said.

Virtual ¡®ideas¡¯ meetings are overrated
While some Covid fixtures ¨C such as 바카라사이트 routine departmental meeting ¨C might work as a quick Zoom call, those meetings seeking to generate ideas will certainly return as in-person events, said Gary Macfarlane, dean of interdisciplinary research and research impact at 바카라사이트 University of Aberdeen.

¡°We have experienced how much more difficult it is to influence a meeting on 바카라사이트 end of a telephone or on a computer screen ? you miss out on 바카라사이트 non-verbal communication, pre- and post-meeting catch-ups and find it difficult to read 바카라사이트 room,¡± said Professor Macfarlane. ¡°I?predict that 바카라사이트 pendulum will swing back with time, and more face-to-face meetings will return than we might currently imagine.¡±

jack.grove@ws-2000.com