Why is research data management important?

Responsible research data management (RDM) includes the indexing, processing, storage and archiving of data. The aim is to make research data findable, accessible, comprehensible in terms of content and usable in the long term. Dealing with data management at an early stage, preferably before the project begins, offers researchers many advantages:

• Research funding: Many research funders require RDM to validate results and avoid double funding, for example.
• Usability: Ensuring long-term usability (at least ten years) through documentation and archiving of the data
• Transparency and verifiability of the data through conscientious documentation of the research process
• Reproducibility of the data
• Citability: Publication of the data as a stand-alone publication or as a data supplement
• Increased visibility of the research