If we don’t recognise everyone involved in research, we limit our ability to conduct research.

Two members of the Software Sustainability Institute have been featured in a Nature article that explores the vital yet often overlooked roles of research support professionals.

The piece, "How hidden contributions power modern research," profiles specialists across scientific disciplines whose work underpins research without always receiving formal recognition. SSI's Simon Hettrick and Philippa Broadbent are both quoted on the challenges and rewards of working in these roles.

The team behind Hidden REF has launched a new podcast called What the REF?!. This podcast aims to discuss and investigate various issues surrounding research culture, recognition for success in research, and all aspects related to the REF. The goal is to encourage more people to engage with the REF as a driver for change in research culture.

Every fortnight the hosts will discuss new topics and talk with experts on the REF, research culture, hidden roles and non-traditional outputs. The hosts include familiar faces from the Hidden REF committee and the SSI:

• SSI Fellow James Baker
• Self-confessed REF junkie, Gemma Derrick
• SSI Director of Strategy Simon Hettrick

SSI Policy Researcher Ben Thomas is the producer of the podcast.

If you have a question about the REF or an idea for the podcast, get in touch at WTreF@hidden-ref.org, BlueSky or Linkedin.

You can listen to What the REF?! on YouTube or wherever you usually find your podcasts.

SSI Director of Strategy, Simon Hettrick, was featured in a new Nature article titled The Human Costs of the Research-Assessment Culture. The article explores the impact of the UK Research Excellence Framework (REF) on the lives of those involved in research. The REF significantly influences academic research, with work deemed "REF-able" being crucial for funding and career progression. While the REF aims to ensure high-quality research, critics argue that it creates a competitive, stressful environment that prioritises safer projects and overlooks non-traditional outputs like software.

The article highlights Simon Hettrick's work advocating for recognising the contributions of research software and other non-traditional outputs in research. The hidden REF, which is part of this effort, was launched in 2020 to raise awareness of the research outputs and roles that are vital to research but overlooked by traditional research evaluation.

If you want to find out more, visit the Hidden REF website or follow the Hidden REF on LinkedIn, BlueSky or X. And if you are interested in taking part in the Hidden RED competition, the deadline is Friday 13 September.

Does your work gain the recognition it deserves? If not, we want to hear from you by the 13th of September!

Research organisations use publications as practically the only measure of success, but research relies on a huge range of people and many types of work that are not typically recognised in publications. We can’t advance research if we don’t recognise everyone and everything that we rely on to conduct research.

You can help us shine a spotlight on this issue by taking part in the Hidden REF competition. We want to hear about unrecognised research roles, from technicians to data stewards and more, and your unrecognised outputs, from software to musical compositions to anything else that is important to research. The more submissions we receive, the more evidence we have to continue our successful campaign to increase recognition for everyone who works in research.

The Hidden REF competition 2024 closes for submissions on 13th September at 11.59. Submissions are a maximum of 900 words. If you work in a UK organisation and take part in or support research in any way, you can enter the Hidden REF competition. Your job family, the type of contract you are on, your institution’s approach to recognition: none of these matter to us. If you take part in or support research in any way, you are welcome to take part in the Hidden REF competition.

If you would like to get more involved with the competition, you can apply to become a member of one of our assessment panels. As a panellist, you will help review the submissions and contribute to our growing evidence bank on the assessment of non-traditional outputs and hidden roles.

The Hidden REF was launched in 2020 to raise awareness of the research outputs and roles that are vital to research but overlooked by traditional research evaluation. We want to build a more effective and more equitable system for recognising contributions to research success. For updates, visit the Hidden REF website or follow the Hidden REF on LinkedIn, BlueSky or X. Contact us at info@hidden-ref.org.

The competition is now waiting for your submission!

The key aims of the Festival of Hidden REF were to grow and strengthen the community that passionately shares our belief in the importance of celebrating non-traditional research outputs, roles, and practices. We were also keen to hear a wider range of views from the community on how to refine our approach for the Hidden REF 2024 competition. 

Together we examined The Hidden REF's co-working methods in the 2021 competition, discussed our common interests in recognising hidden roles and expanding recognition of a wider range of outputs, and gathered thoughts on how the categories and structure could be revised for the 2024 competition.

It was also our objective to create an openly shared working document, co-owned by all participants at the Festival and curated during the event, ensuring that the ideas, enthusiasm and energy shared during the day inform the next Hidden REF. This White Paper is the result of our community's contributions to the openly shared working document.

Overview of the event

A diverse and engaged community of 106 participants, representing 54 institutions, gathered on the 21 September 2023 at the M Shed in Bristol for the inaugural Festival of Hidden REF. This inclusive assembly included individuals from all four Home Nations and the Republic of Ireland, embracing over 30 distinct job roles and professional families.

Since many of the vital-but-unrecognised roles in research do not have access to travel funds, we tried to design the event to be as accessible as possible. We did not charge a registration fee and, with the help of our generous sponsors (Box 1), we were able to provide 7 travel bursaries for the attendees who needed it.

Structure of the day

The day consisted of morning and afternoon lightning talks from invited speakers and those who submitted talk proposals (Box 2); morning and afternoon guerrilla groups (Box 3) and a summative panel discussion on the issues raised during the Festival.

The Festival was oriented around the guerrilla groups, which, in a nod towards the influential Guerrilla Girls feminist art collective, sought to change the structure of research evaluation by drilling down into discrete topics and feeding into the future development of the Hidden REF. Throughout the day, a sticker board was available for thoughts and ideas on the direction the campaign should take. An online Miro board was also made available after the Festival for additional suggestions.

A list of lightning talks and speakers' slides can be found here.

SSI Deputy Director and Chair of the Hidden REF Simon Hettrick joined Alex Freeman, creator of Octopus, on Jisc's Research talk podcast hosted by Emily Wild. They discuss the need for change in research assessment and how this can be achieved. 

They also explore the limitations of traditional methods and focus on the Hidden REF initiative, which champions a shift towards broader recognition of diverse contributions to research beyond the confines of conventional academic outputs. 

Alex then talks about the Octopus platform and its role in reshaping research sharing and assessment. The conversation delves into the difficulties of assessing nontraditional outputs and the concerns raised by researchers about the peer review process for such outputs.