Accelerating Research Impact Workshop
Strategies to get the right information to the right people at the right time in a way they can use.
Workshop Overview
Accelerate the Impact of Your Research
In today’s fast-paced world, research impact isn’t just about producing high-quality findings—it’s about getting the right information to the right people at the right time, in a way that drives meaningful change. Our Research Impact Acceleration Workshop equips you with the tools and strategies to make this a reality. Whether you’re new to research impact or looking to refine your approach, this workshop will help you translate, disseminate, and communicate your research for maximum influence.
The Research Impact Acceleration Workshop is designed to help researchers strategically enhance the visibility, accessibility, and uptake of their research. By focusing on practical, actionable methods, this workshop empowers you to make your research more impactful across diverse audiences, from policymakers to practitioners and the public.
Workshop Elements
Strategy Development
Tailored Impact Roadmaps
In this segment, you will learn how to design a clear, step-by-step plan to accelerate your research impact. We’ll explore practical frameworks that help you:
- Define Objectives: Pin down your overarching research goals, intended outcomes, and impact ambitions.
- Identify Stakeholders: Understand who needs to receive your research findings—be it policymakers, industry partners, fellow academics, or the wider public.
- Map Communication Channels: Explore different tools and platforms, from academic journals to social media, to ensure you’re delivering your message where it will have the greatest effect.
- Set Milestones and Metrics: Establish clear timelines and measurable indicators of success, so you can track your progress and make adjustments along the way.
By the end of this session, you will walk away with a Research Impact Acceleration Roadmap—a practical blueprint for guiding your next steps.
Case Study Examples
Real-World Success Stories
Bringing theory to life, this workshop includes a deep dive into real examples of successful impact strategies. Each case study will:
- Highlight Diverse Approaches: From low-budget social media campaigns to large-scale policy partnerships, you’ll see how others have adapted their approach based on resources and objectives.
- Demonstrate Tangible Outcomes: Learn how these strategies led to measurable increases in citations, policy changes, public awareness, or industry adoption.
- Reveal Key Lessons Learned: Understand the do’s and don’ts directly from researchers who have navigated these paths.
- Spark Inspiration: Find fresh ideas, new platforms, and possible collaborators by seeing how other researchers achieved accelerated impact.
This real-world perspective ensures you’re not just hearing about best practices, but also seeing them in action, making it easier to adapt and replicate their success in your own work.
Publishing, Dissemination and Outreach Tactics
Discover Innovative Methods
We will delve into effective methods for amplifying your research and ensuring it reaches the right people at the right time. Topics include:
- Open Access Publishing and Preprint Servers
- Learn the benefits of making your work freely available and the role of preprints in gaining early feedback, recognition, and citations.
- Policy Briefs, Webinars, and Public Lectures
- Develop skills to translate complex findings into concise, accessible formats that speak directly to policymakers, practitioners, and the public.
- Media Outreach Strategies
- Understand how to craft compelling press releases and interview briefs. Learn how to develop relationships with journalists to amplify your message.
- Social Media Campaigns
- Explore techniques for using Twitter, LinkedIn, and research networking sites to share updates, form connections, and spark conversations around your work.
Through a combination of practical examples and hands-on exercises, you’ll gain confidence in choosing the most suitable platforms and formats for your research dissemination.
Actionable Planning Across Budget Tiers
Cost Considerations
Accelerating research impact need not be costly. We’ll examine how to tailor your outreach based on available resources, providing strategies for every level of investment. Examples include:
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Low-Cost
- Blogging: Establish thought leadership and reach a broader audience with minimal expense.
- Preprint Servers: Rapidly disseminate findings to start building momentum and engagement.
- Social Media: Leverage free platforms to form networks, share insights, and spark dialogue.
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Medium-Cost
- Policy Briefs: Invest resources in producing polished, targeted summaries that capture decision-makers’ attention.
- Workshops: Host interactive sessions to train, collaborate, and build awareness with peers and stakeholders.
- Webinars: Reach a global audience with live, online presentations, offering Q&A sessions to engage participants in real time.
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High-Cost
- Professional Media Outreach: Commission PR specialists or work with communication teams to gain coverage in influential press outlets.
- Interdisciplinary Collaborations: Form large-scale, cross-sector partnerships that require funding but can lead to greater, more sustained impact.
This focus on scalable solutions ensures you have a tailor-made plan for accelerating your research impact—no matter what resources or funding you have at your disposal.
Learning outcomes
By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:
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- Identify their key audiences and tailor communication strategies accordingly.
- Implement cost-effective approaches to maximise research dissemination.
- Develop skills in public engagement, media outreach, and digital branding.
- Create actionable plans for enhancing research visibility and translation.
What makes this workshop unique?
- Practical and Customisable Strategies: No matter your budget or field, we provide a spectrum of impact strategies that work for you.
- Hands-On Learning: Engage in interactive activities that translate theory into practice.
- Expert Guidance: Learn from facilitators with proven experience in accelerating research impact.
- Focus on Outcomes: Leave with a clear, actionable plan to increase your research’s visibility, reach, and real-world influence.
Who should attend?
Your workshop facilitators
Dr Tamika Heiden
Tamika has dedicated over a decade of her career to impact pathways through knowledge translation and the identification and assessment of research impact. Tamika is passionate about making a difference and delivering projects that create significant and lasting change for her clients.
Tamika’s more than a decade of career experience as a researcher and research manager in the fields of health, sport and medical research, along with her formal qualifications in knowledge translation and impact make her one of the few specialists that doesn’t just talk the talk. Tamika enjoys helping her clients to form partnerships, develop impact plans, and be rewarded for their efforts.
More recently, Tamika founded and hosted the annual online Research Impact Summit. Tamika’s passion for impact, along with the summit success, has led to her becoming known as the “Australian powerhouse of Research Impact”, and resulted in her winning the 2018 Knowledge Mobilization Forum award for Innovation. With a 4000 strong audience representing 47 countries, Tamika has interviewed more than fifty experts in the fields of stakeholder engagement, translation and implementation, and research impact.
Cathie Withyman
Cathie Withyman is a research impact communication specialist. She has worked with leading universities and government departments both domestically and internationally to develop and craft engaging and insightful impact narratives.
Cathie possesses over 15 years experience partnering with researchers, program managers and communication professionals to facilitate training and skills development in the effective communication of research and program impacts. She is a master at drawing out the true nature of impacts and weaving this into a compelling narrative.
A key achievement of Cathie’s to date has been the compilation of a leading Australian University’s submission to the Australian Research Council’s 2018 Impact and Engagement Assessment. Cathie managed the development and authoring of 12 Impact Case Studies and 10 Research Engagement Narratives over an intense six-month period.
She is skilled at coaching and mentoring research academics to plan, record and report on research impact. She has developed training programs and resource materials to support academics in this increasingly important area of their work.
Feedback from our attendees!
The workshop helped me priorities
The workshop helped me priorities aspects my of research which I was not giving enough attention to.
It was a wonderful workshop
It was a wonderful workshop, and I feel more motivated and confident to implement the strategies. Both facilitators were engaging, experienced, knowledgeable, and personable. I also enjoyed the tips they had and the many example stories they told.
The workshop was great
The workshop was great and hit the levels for those in the group. Considered not just active but those researchers just starting out or transitioning to a more active research role.