What tasks should a national research software institution primarily undertake in your opinion?

Question details

Question code: org4de

Detected type: Multiple select

Answer order: metadata item order

Number of answers: 206

This question was requested by FutuRSI for the 2026 survey.

Other free-text answers

Show 11 raw free-text answers (11 distinct)
  • Aligning the promotion studies with industry relevant trends which provides transferable skills so that researcher don't end up with no/unpleasant jobs after academia.
  • All of the listed tasks are good, but achieving all of them seems unrealistic. I would prefer an (initial) focus on the selected tasks.
  • Beratung und Unterstützung dabei Forschungssoftware auf unabhängige Beine zu stellen (z.B. Ausgründung) und diese dann aber wieder in Anträge und Projekte als Ressourcen aufzunehmen
  • Career development programs for RSEs (incl. helping international people navigate how to have a career as an RSE in the German system)
  • Promotion of Open Science, Open Data, and software tools that support both
  • Support/material/networking for multiplicators (e. g., university teachers) for education/skill development as a "soft skill" along broader education
  • Trainings with Certification (similar to LPIC, CompTIA, etc.)
  • Vermittlung bereits existierender aber unbekannter Forschungssoftware an potentielle Anwender, kuration aktiver Forschungssoftware
  • Vermittlung von Kompetenzträgern, z.B. bei nischigen Kombinationen von Fächern, Methoden und digitalen Tools.
  • Whatever de-RSE doesn't do, unless the two orgs merge at some point.
  • advocate for more open source research software

Interpretation

Respondents most strongly supported an institution that enables the wider research software ecosystem. Community engagement and training, advocacy, consulting, and standards or best-practice development were each selected by roughly 70% of respondents. Direct in-house software development and research on RSE topics attracted substantially less support. The free-text responses add strategic advisory on open-source research software, expertise matching, sustainable careers, certified training, and a focused mandate that complements rather than duplicates existing organisations.