Elements of a Data Management Plan
DMPs are created when researchers are asked to address questions related to data management. In the Portage DMP Assistant, some of the question include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Data Collection:
What types of data will you collect, create, link to, record, etc? What file formats? How will you structure, name and version-control files?
- Documentation and Metadata:
What documentation and metadata (description of the data) will be used? Are you using a metadata standard?
- Storage and Backup:
What are the anticipated storage requirements? How and where will data be stored and backed up?
- Selection and Preservation:
Where will you deposit your data for long-term preservation at the end of your research project? What about preservation-friendly file formats, supporting documentation, etc?
- Sharing and Reuse:
What data will you be sharing and in what form? What type of end-user license do you want to include with your data?
- Responsibilities and Resources:
Who will be responsible for managing this project's data during and after the project? What happens if substantive changes happen in the personnel overseeing the project's data?
- Ethics and Legal Compliance:
How will you manage legal, ethical and intellectual property issues? If your research project contains sensitive data, how will you ensure that it is securely managed and only accessible to approved members of the project?
As part of all this you should be cognizant of any costs associated with managing your data. If there are costs associated with different practices (e.g. storing data, responsibilities for managing data, etc), be prepared to outline them in a budget.
