OPUS Stakeholders Consultation on Research Assessment Framework

On 10 June 2025, the OPUS project brought together researchers, research managers, funders, and policy makers to collaboratively shape the revision of the OPUS Researcher Assessment Framework (RAF). The workshop aimed to engage in discussion and collect feedback from the participants on the first version of the RAF. The workshop was hosted by the Marie Curie Alumni Association and led by Gareth O’Neill from Technopolis Group. The workshop resulted in a lively and engaging interaction with the participants who acknowledged the value of the RAF and provided critical suggestions to revise the RAF. 

OPUS Researcher Assessment Framework (RAF)

The RAF consists of a comprehensive framework of indicators which are designed to provide research-performing and research-funding organisations with options to expand their researcher assessment systems beyond the traditional focus on publications and citations to include a much wider diversity of activities conducted by researchers. The RAF is further divided into a generic set of indicators covering all possible activities by researchers and a more specific set of indicators to incentivise and reward Open Science. The RAF is structured around four key domains of activities relevant for researchers:

• The research domain covers writing proposals, developing methods, managing data, developing software,writing publications, creating research materials, and peer reviewing research outputs.
• The education domain includes developing educational courses, creating educational resources, teachingstudents, supervising students, and developing personal and professional skills.
• The leadership domain focuses on leading personnel and projects, taking management roles within theorganisation, and being recognised as an expert and for significant contributions.
• The valorisation domain lastly includes science communication to peer and general audiences, academicand intersectoral collaboration and engagement, and exploitation and entrepreneurship.

The RAF offers organisations an array of indicators from which to select and include in their researcher assessment systems. The indicators can be deployed qualitatively or quantitatively whereby the OPUS project encourages a combination of a qualitative and responsible quantitative approach to assessment. The RAF divides the indicators into processes, outputs, and outcomes as a researcher may find themself in the middle of a research activity, or have realised an output, or have realised an outcome depending on the moment of their assessment. The selection, refinement, and prioritisation of indicators is left to the organisations which will tailor and implement the indicators according to their own strategic interests and needs and existing assessment processes.