The Collaborative Cultures team approached CultureBase for an independent and community-focussed evaluation of their programme, which was funded through Wellcome’s Institutional Funding for Research Culture (IFRC) scheme. We designed a participatory evaluation to capture empirical outcomes and the lived experience of the community who had participated in, and delivered, this expansive programme of work. Combing a deep evidence synthesis of 60 data sources alongside 30 semi-structured interviews, we identified the programme’s successes – and challenges – in pursuing radically inclusive collaboration through experimental methods and person-centred funding approaches.

Our findings and recommendations were collated into an accessible report exploring the programme’s impacts and offering actionable insights to help the University and the wider sector embed and sustain research culture reform.

We are grateful for the care, insight and rigour Ben and Karen brought to the evaluation process. We especially appreciated the time they spent not only understanding the project, but also how it was experienced by our staff. Sincere thanks for helping us reflect and learn throughout the process.”

– Professor Churnjeet Mahn, Deputy Associate Principal for Research and Knowledge Exchange, University of Strathclyde

CWTS approached CultureBase for an external perspective in strategically redeveloping their research culture services portfolio. CultureBase mapped the provider landscape to support strategic decisions on capacity expansion versus collaboration, conducted Europe-wide field research to understand user needs, and combined these insights into a reflective in-person strategy workshop with the CWTS team.

We were really impressed by the quality and level of detail of CultureBase’s work. Karen and Ben helped us think about our work and services from a different perspective, offering a very useful way of conceptualising our position and helping shape the further development of our ideas.”

– Wolfgang Kaltenbrunner, Senior Researcher & Director of Research and Education, CWTS

UKRI appointed CultureBase, RAND Europe and Vitae as a consortium to co-develop a model for a UK Good Practice Exchange on research culture. The inclusive co-development process used focus groups, interviews and a sector-wide consultation to collect stakeholder views, and fed this into a Theory of Change model and evaluation plan. Our structured approach worked sequentially from stakeholders’ desired impact of an Exchange, to the corresponding activities and necessary financial and governance inputs.   

CultureBase designed and delivered the extensive multi-component engagement programme, and thematically analysed the resulting outputs. Our team helped draw in perspectives from the breadth of the R&D sector to inform the development of the Theory of Change, and final model recommendations. 

Aston approached CultureBase for an independent perspective to help shape their preparations for reporting to the 2029 Research Excellence Framework. Working across the institution’s different Schools, CultureBase provided expert, detailed insights on the emerging research impact pipeline and supported internal REF leads in strengthening narratives to more effectively articulate the real-world impact of Aston’s diverse research portfolio.  

Karen and Ben have been consistently helpful, insightful and highly accommodating throughout the process. The opportunity to receive an impartial, external review of our emerging impact work across all Schools has been particularly valuable, providing clarity and confidence as we prepare for REF2029.”

– Fiona Morgan, University Research Impact Manager, Aston University

SNSF appointed CultureBase as the lead partner of a consortium with SIRIS Academic and Different Angles, to deliver a user-focused evaluation of their Unified Evaluation Procedure and standardised CV format introduced in 2022. The project involved surveys, interviews and workshops with senior SNSF stakeholders to socialise findings and develop buy-in for the resulting recommendations.  CultureBase led the consortium, managed the project, and designed and delivered the user engagement programme.  

The project resulted in a published report on the evaluation findings and recommendations, which informed decisions within SNSF. 

Working with CultureBase was a pleasure. Their clear planning, consistent communication, and nuanced approach to complex issues were reflected in the high quality of their workshops, presentations, and reports. They also managed collaboration with multiple consortium partners effectively, ensuring all perspectives were integrated seamlessly.”

– Katrin Milzow, Co-Director, SNSF 

The InterAcademy Partnership, Global Young Academy and International Science Council appointed CultureBase to review researcher evaluation practices across their combined ~500 member organisations. CultureBase mapped opportunities to support members with researcher evaluation reform, developed a typology to guide further engagement, and identified key innovators. Our approach involved an extensive survey of members from different disciplinary areas, a series of semi-structured interviews, and workshops with the clients to reflect on emerging findings and define next steps.   

The project resulted in a published report offering a snapshot of evaluation reform across the global membership group. 

Ben’s ability to quickly understand our needs and think critically beyond the initial instructions was invaluable. He integrated seamlessly with our team, often anticipating questions and proposing thoughtful solutions that strengthened the final product. His professionalism, clarity, and reliability made the entire collaboration exceptionally smooth.”

– Rania Kosti, Executive Director, InterAcademy Partnership 

The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre appointed CultureBase to evaluate their ‘Science meets Regions’ programme and deliver evidence-led recommendations for potentially developing the programme into an EU instrument to support science policy interactions at national and regional levels. Our approach included a survey with participants in the different instruments of the programme, complemented by a focus group to elaborate on the survey findings. 

The project resulted in a published report exploring the early outcomes and impacts of the programme on policy-making at a local and regional level. 

Karen and Ben were instrumental in delivering a nuanced and thorough final report of our project, with very useful recommendations for the way forward. They were highly reliable in delivering the material. A very pleasant collaboration – warmly recommended”

– Stijn Verleyen, Policy Analyst, JRC 

The University of Exeter commissioned us to develop a research culture hub, that captures the various policies, activities, resources and networks in relation to research culture, and toolkit module for demonstrating research culture activities in grants. Our approach included an audit of research culture activities via desk research of internal documentation and webpages, hub and toolkit development, user-testing, and workshops with senior stakeholders. 

The project resulted in an internal-facing Researcher Culture hub, and a new module in the institutions Grants toolkit. 

Karen and Ben’s ability to quickly grasp our requirements and formulate a project plan was much appreciated and impressive. They soon became core partners to our research culture work, delivering on time and keeping us informed throughout the process”

Becky Euesden, Engaged Research and Communications Officer, University of Exeter