Data Steward Stories: Dr James Steele

This record holds the report and video from from CaSDaR's event series, Data Steward Stories, to highlight the diversity and skills required in Data Stewardship.

The speaker for this session was Dr. James Steele.

Speaker Bio: James Steele has extensive experience of handling data in the academic, public and private sectors; he not only runs his own company providing consultancy services to support research best practice but also works full time as the Head of Research at MacroFactor.

James earned his PhD in Clinical Exercise Science before joining Solent University as a lecturer in Applied Sports Science. Alongside teaching, he held the role of Research and Innovation Fellow and was later promoted to Associate Professor in 2016. Throughout his academic career, James promoted research integrity, eventually becoming Solent’s Local Network Lead for the UK Reproducibility Network. James has actively supported researchers in practices such as open data, pre-registration, and pre-print archiving, with a focus on supporting ECRs to develop these skills.

In 2024, James transitioned from academia to become Head of Research at Kieser Australia, a company focused on evidence-based strength training programs. This role introduced him to new types of datasets beyond those commonly used in academia, while he continued to advocate for reproducible research and transparency in scientific practice.

In this session, James will share insights into how his commitment to evidence-based decisions and research integrity has shaped his career trajectory. 

A recording of this video is available on CaSDaR's YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/q3eri-igwwg

These files are an output from the Careers and Skills for Data-driven Research (CaSDaR) initiative, a 4-year UKRI funded dRTP initiative, grant number UKRI739.