FBK believes in the importance of reporting, evaluating and enhancing the knowledge production activities that underpin its mission; this is especially true for one of the most important outputs of its research: publications.
In this regard, FBK has a small, dedicated unit that collects and maintains data pertaining to scientific production, with a focus on the quality and reliability of the data and metadata it deals with; the unit also oversees a set of processes that have to do with evaluation.
Also drawing on information from other FBK services, the unit prepares and provides representations regarding scientific production with bibliometric insights. These representations feed into various internal processes in the life of the Foundation, such as institutional reporting and individual awards, and also allow FBK to present itself best in external contexts, such as national research evaluation exercises (such as the Research Quality Assessment - VQR).
FBK's scientific production is collected in the IRIS database (cris.fbk.eu), developed by CINECA based on the open source platform Dspace and integrated with the ministerial database LoginMIUR. In order to facilitate the dissemination of research results, IRIS has a public portal that displays the metadata of research products and gives the possibility to display the full text of open access publications, consistent with publishers' policies and intellectual property rights.
Authors are responsible for entering research product records into IRIS; the Research Assessment unit is responsible for validating the metadata and attachments entered, thus ensuring the quality and accuracy of the information displayed in the portal. We urge all authors to enter their publications into the IRIS database in a timely manner so that FBK will always have up-to-date representations while ensuring maximum circulation of research results.
The Research Assessment unit also provides support to researchers who wish to apply for the National Scientific Qualification for First and Second Professorship in Italian Universities.