Scoping When the World's on Fire: Mapping, Modeling, and Diagramming to Establish Sustainable Data Services

Scoping data services is hard! Even during “normal” times, it can be incredibly difficult to set expectations for data services at an academic institution: there is always more that could be done, always a researcher with a new need. In our effort to refuse narratives of “doing more with less,” we have been actively working at our respective institutions to (re)define what data services can do. In this workshop, we will walk attendees through a scoping process to encourage reflection at their home institutions. Whether participants come from established and well-resourced data services teams or are sole service providers balancing data services against other responsibilities, this workshop will provide a space for them to map out and articulate the data services they can (and can’t!) offer. By mapping, diagramming, modeling, or otherwise visually representing their services and capacity, participants will have the opportunity to experiment with new formats for articulating their work. Our framework for this workshop will be Slow Librarianship, which will encourage participants to consider how to do fewer things better rather than more things poorly. We will balance lecture, independent work, and group discussion to enable participants to leave with a better understanding of the existing data services models in use across institutions. Through peer-to-peer learning activities, attendees will brainstorm scoping of data services and visually map their thoughts using a variety of models we provide or ones they create themselves. Workshop participants will be able to articulate services that are in scope and out of scope for their institution given current capacity, considered through the lens of their current position as a solo data services librarian, team member, or manager. Attendees will be encouraged to consider which services will be delivered in which formats and, importantly, which services may be out of scope for their institution given current staffing and expertise.