Abstract

A major challenge for scientific collaborations is coordinating work so that scientists can effectively use one another’s ideas and expertise without numerous face-to-face interactions. Coordination is the integration or linking together of different pieces of a project to accomplish a collective task. This paper outlines a methodology called CoBud currently in operation at the University of Ulster which seeks to embed a framework which encourages inter-disciplinary sharing of ideas. CoBud seeks to exploit the Colleague-Buddy relationship which seems to naturally arise over time within and across research faculties. The Buddy (Bud) aspect is anyone’s closest working partner in a department and a Colleague (Co) is a contact that one has developed a relationship with inside another department within the institution. The ideal size of the group is 8 individuals made up of 4 CoBud’s. The idea behind the colleague-buddy aspect is that all members of the group should feel relaxed as the focus of the group is on the sharing of research practice with the aim of future inter-disciplinary collaboration. An important aspect is that each individual sharing must pitch their research as if explaining to their mum. This eliminates the risk of isolating group members and also reduces the pressure to ‘perform’ on each member. We have simply attempted to outline a structure based on bestpractice which will enable academics to more easily come together and increase their research output. The rest of this paper outlines the CoBud model and discusses recommended best practice.