Welcome to our refresh of the Research Outcomes Capability Framework!

We are updating the UTS Research Outcomes Capability Framework (ROCF) to make sure it meets the changing and ongoing needs of our research academics and professional staff. We have made some big changes and can't wait to share them with you when our new framework goes live.

Key aspects of the new framework include:

  • Research capabilities are about partnership. We have incredibly skilled staff at UTS, but it can be difficult to find help and support, so staff can feel isolated and under pressure to try and achieve it all. We want to emphasise the skills that academics and professional have and how staff can work together towards research excellence by taking advantage of the unique and complimentary capabilities available.
  • We used a Human Centred Design approach. We started by asking academics and professional staff what their desired outcomes were, in the form of "I want" questions and built the framework and supporting capabilities around that.
  • We responded to feedback. We listened to feedback from a lot of staff and showcased a first draft to approx. 180 research support staff at Team Research Support Day. We also received feedback from the Research Professional Development Advisory Committee, from the Research Office, Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion, UTS Library, the Graduate Research School, eResearch, Indigenous Leadership and Engagement, the Human Centred Design team, the People Unit and support from individual academics and professional staff who helped us out along the way. We are still interested in hearing ongoing feedback and suggestions. Please email serena.ekman@uts.edu.au if you would like to engage.
  • We want this framework to be interactive. We're doing our best to implement this framework in a truly useful way. We want to make it interactive and engaging, so we're having discussions about getting an AI bot to help navigate it. We are also looking at how to best present it on RES Hub, how we can seamlessly integrate it with HR systems, how we can link it to other frameworks such as the all-staff capability framework and teaching and learning frameworks, because we know that research and research support doesn't happen in a void.
  • We want it to be useful irrespective of career stage or role. If you are learning a new skillset, it shouldn't matter what career stage you are in or what role you are doing. We want staff to feel that no matter the journey they are on, they can jump into the framework to help support and develop their growth, whether it is learning about a new area or increasing their expertise in their current area.

We are very proud of the work that we have put in to updating the ROCF, and we hope that we have produced a framework that is genuinely useful and will be used by staff to enhance individuals as well as uplift research collectively at UTS. 

Watch this space for updates from the team, and if you would like to learn more or engage with us please reach out to serena.ekman@uts.edu.au or wade.tozer@uts.edu.au.

Acknowledgement of Country

RES Hub acknowledges and pays respect to the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the Boorooberongal people of the Dharug Nation, the Bidiagal people and the Gamaygal people, upon whose ancestral lands where UTS now stands.

We pay respect to their Elders; past, present, emerging and future as the traditional custodians of Country and knowledge for this land. We recognise their continued connection to the land and waters and the continuation of their cultural, spiritual, and educational practices. We extend this respect to all Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples who visit RES Hub.

As a place for the UTS community to connect and collaborate, RES Hub acknowledges the long-standing traditional practices of these communities in gathering to share experience, knowledge, and history. RES Hub acknowledges that sovereignty was never ceded. This is and always will be Aboriginal Land.