Is there any user for this CRIS?

Abstract

In this paper, we will analyse the issue of how research information services build their relationship with their public and, in particular, if (and how) they try to target specific user groups, rather than publishing information for everybody. An analysis of some Swiss experiences brings us to define two basic models, which we call corporate-oriented and market-oriented CRIS. The first category includes services where publishing information on the Internet is mainly guided by the visibility needs and the corporate image of the organisation, e.g. to present their own research or funding opportunities. On the other side, the second category includes a small number of services which are clearly targeted towards specific user groups and where contents and information layout are specifically designed to match the needs of these users.

We also argue that it is very difficult and conflict-laden to try to reconcile these two models in a single information service, since the organisational and economic logic behind are clearly different. We then conclude that the issue of targeting users could be at best addressed by a two-layer structure of research information services, one layer composed by (mostly public) organisations which produce information according to their corporate orientations and for a “generic” public and a second layer which exploits, rewrites and regroups this information according to the needs of very specific user groups.