iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 24/09/2026

Read the article: upen.ac.uk/resources/sc... For feedback on drafts, Fast Track Impact’s impact case study review service offers written reviews and one-to-one support to assess impact claims, identify evidence gaps and strengthen the case: fasttrackimpact.com/ref

upen.ac.uk

Scottish Parliament engagement and REF 2029: Strengthening Impact Case Studies – UPEN

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 24/09/2026

This highlights the importance of making connections explicit, combining evidence that supports different parts of the narrative and keeping claims proportionate to the contribution made. Evidencing implementation can strengthen the account of why the contribution really mattered

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 24/09/2026

Together, these sources traced the research’s contribution to new guidance on witness selection and a subsequent increase in the proportion of women giving evidence, from 38% in 2016–17 to 43% in 2019–20.

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 24/09/2026

One REF2021 case study featured from University of Lincoln brought together a research briefing, Conveners Group papers and minutes, testimony from senior parliamentary staff and data on the gender of committee witnesses.

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 24/09/2026

Writing a strong REF impact case study means explaining what changed, how research contributed and why it mattered, supported by evidence of reach and significance. This new UPEN blog offers advice on building REF2029 case studies, using examples from parliamentary engagement...

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 23/09/2026

Read my new blog about what to do when politics are preventing your evidence having impact. I use three strategies: waiting for a change in government, reframing your evidence, and working with an intermediary. Read the blog post here: buff.ly/vfKC8Fl

buff.ly

What to do when your research conflicts with government policy

What to do when your evidence doesn't fit current policy: wait actively, reframe your research and work with intermediaries.

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 18/09/2026

Some of the most important impacts of policy fellowships are the wider effects they have on the policy ecosystem, creating connections within and between departments and offering opportunities for "structured serendipity" bristoluniversitypressdigital.com/view/journal...

011

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 09/09/2026

Many of the researchers she interviewed felt their expertise was undervalued within their universities, with engagement often spilling beyond normal working hours. Ilana argues for dedicated workload allocations and recognition in appraisal and promotion decisions.

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 09/09/2026

This blog highlights how being a critical researcher and a trusted adviser can be compatible roles. However, these sorts of relationships take significant time and energy.

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 09/09/2026

Although critical, this approach brought repeat opportunities for engagement. In my own work with governments and corporates, I have sought to build relationships around shared purposes while retaining the independence to question how those purposes are pursued.

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 09/09/2026

Being a trusted adviser can include being openly critical of the organisation seeking advice. In Ilana Bolingford’s research with Australian law academics one participant described a relationship with a regulator combining criticism of its work with broad support for its mission.

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 03/09/2026

Less structured and analytical than a logic model or theory of change, but I can imagine that this method forces you to really think about what your impact might look like in the real world, and the sorts of opposing commentary you would expect a balanced news outlet to source

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 03/09/2026

Just stumbled across the idea of writing a news story from the future about the impacts you hope to see from your research (being used by colleagues in the Land Use for Net Zero Nature and People (LUNZ) Hub)...

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 01/09/2026

Four good reasons to develop a Theory of Change for your research project: 1. To clarify thinking and build consensus around an initiative 2. To learn and improve 3. To frame and organise impact data collection 4. To report on your impact captureimpact.co.uk/blog/f/what-...

captureimpact.co.uk

What do you use your theory of change for?

In the post on 5th August shared a flowchart to help you work out whether you actually need a theory of change. This post assumes that you do and explores what you might use it for.

010

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 31/08/2026

New research shows that women are under-represented as underpinning impact case studies in The Research Excellence Framework (REF), especially in impacts using commercialisation pathways such as patenting and manufacturing, which remain dominated by men arxiv.org/pdf/2608.26409

arxiv.org

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 25/08/2026

The table shows how far you can push a claim, and where you need to stop. I have regularly seen people making these leaps, which are tempting but ultimately misleading. Read the full paper by Yan Kapranov here: scholar.google.co.uk/scholar_url?...

scholar.google.co.uk

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 25/08/2026

This is one of the most useful guides to the sorts of impact claims you make from different types of impact - what's particularly insightful is the final two columns, differentiating between "permissible claims" and "prohibited leaps"...

110

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 17/08/2026

Read the paper here (includes links to the free resources): doi.org/10.1016/j.me...

doi.org

Redirecting

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 17/08/2026

They have developed a free Community Research Resource Pack, with six worksheets covering everything from identifying priorities to research, analysis and action, alongside a Collaborative Poetics Resource Pack for participatory arts-based research.

doi.org

Redirecting

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 17/08/2026

This new paper by Helen Johnson and Nicole Vann Monney asks why community-engaged research can remain tokenistic, even when intentions are good. Their “everyday creativity” model has 4 principles: community-led action, working with existing practice, meaningful engagement and impact, and flexibility

doi.org

Redirecting

101

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 17/08/2026

“It feels like a genuine partnership of equals.” If it doesn't, then your coproduction probably isn't actually coproduced.

doi.org

Redirecting

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 17/08/2026

New review of over 2000 studies by Kathryn Okiver et al. shows growing recognition of the resourcing, work, time, and workforce required to embed evidence use within and between organisations, if evidence is too be used in policy ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid...

ora.ox.ac.uk

What factors influence evidence use in policy? An updated systematic map - ORA - Oxford University Research Archive

Background: In 2014, a large systematic map found that relational factors were amongst the most frequently reported facilitators of evidence use in policy. Since then, there has been a growth in evide...

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 05/08/2026

Individually bookable training with me (and other key impact experts). No need to wait till I come to your institution - book now to get these 1 hour downloads of all most important tips I've learned over the years to fast track your impact! www.fasttrackimpact.com/masterclasses

fasttrackimpact.com

Expert masterclasses | Fast Track Impact

Join live online masterclasses on advanced research impact topics, led by experts who work directly in the field and focused on practical application.

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 05/08/2026

Read the paper by Katy Jordan here lnkd.in/eqtZ-fkJ and Andy Tattersall's blog here blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsoci...

lnkd.in

This link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 05/08/2026

Switching to new alternatives is a trade-off between your values and the reach you want your research to have. However if you want your reach to be inclusive, you have to weigh up the continued online abuse reported on X against your desire to reach those who still mainly use X.

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 05/08/2026

Instagram is now the only platform with 100% adoption by HEIs, and their largest audiences are on LinkedIn (176K followers) and Facebook (169K), followed by Instagram (79K) and X/Twitter (68K). Only 10% are using Bluesky and 6% Threads (none use Mastodon).

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 05/08/2026

100% of UK HEIs had X/Twitter feeds in 2017, dropping to 80% now according to a new paper by Katy Jordan, and earlier this year, Andy Tattersall showed that of those still on the platform, only 46% were still actively posting.

110

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 05/08/2026

If you're still grappling with whether or not to keep engaging with X/Twitter, it is interesting to see what UK Higher Education Institutes are doing...

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 04/08/2026

The paper’s central lesson is that impact rarely happens by accident. It depends on sustained relationships, usable outputs, continuing feedback, credible evidence and the transfer of knowledge and ownership beyond the research team.

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 04/08/2026

Some of the most useful questions include: - Have the people affected by the problem helped shape the research? - What will intended users be able to do differently? - What evidence would indicate failure or unintended harm? - Who will maintain the outputs after the project ends?

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 04/08/2026

Developed through a workshop with 55 researchers, it tests six recurring issues: whether the problem matters, who has helped shape the research, whether intended users can act on the outputs, whether the work can adapt, what risks it creates and whether its benefits will last.

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 04/08/2026

Responsible impact planning should ask what could go wrong, who might be harmed and what will happen after the funding ends. This new paper by Jan vom Brocke and colleagues provides a practical 40-question checklist for planning, delivering, measuring and communicating impact.

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 04/08/2026

Read the full paper by @katyjordan.bsky.social here eprints.lancs.ac.uk/id/eprint/23...

eprints.lancs.ac.uk

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 04/08/2026

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 30/07/2026

Engaged research framework with really useful reflective questions and checklist from Campus Engage lnkd.in/d7Fhbrt9

021

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 01/07/2026

Includes a flag to show if it is an indicator of actual impact or just the pathway (mixing up impact and pathway is of course one of the weaknesses of the frameworks it draws upon). Thanks for putting in the work to make this possible @wmijnhardt.bsky.social! impactcodex.netlify.app

impactcodex.netlify.app

021

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 01/07/2026

Wilfred Mijnhardt has combined 20 different impact evaluation frameworks used by Universities and Business Schools internationally to create this codex - a really useful source of ideas for measurable impacts you can plan for or evaluate across a range of categories...

121

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 30/06/2026

On the theme of transformation, I'm looking forward very much to this new book, now available for pre-order, on the Three Horizons approach, which I've used in a number of my own research projects to identify transformational impact pathways...

link.springer.com

The Three Horizons Approach

This open access book introduces a new framework to navigate polycrises and showcases how the Three Horizons thinking can tackle contemporary challenges.

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 30/06/2026

I'm also excited that Sam has agreed to speak about this work in a new free webinar series I've been putting together with colleagues at Fast Track Impact!

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 30/06/2026

This new practical guide to regenerative practice by Sam Buckton and colleagues can help you move beyond short-term impacts to the kinds of long-term transformation the world needs so badly right now www.ecocentricfutures.org/guides/tools...

ecocentricfutures.org

Tools for regenerative practice: 30 frameworks, exercises and methods in service of human and planetary flourishing | Ecocentric Futures

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 30/06/2026

This depressing figure is from the appendix but the article itself is about a nudge that the authors have shown leads to remarkably persistent behaviour change - read the full article here academic.oup.com/restud/advan...

academic.oup.com

Do The Effects of Nudges Persist? Theory and Evidence from 38 Natural Field Experiments

Abstract. We formalize a research design to uncover the mechanisms underlying long-term reductions in energy consumption caused by a widely implemented nud

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 30/06/2026

Part of me isn't surprised by this, but it should make us all think carefully about how we evaluate impact over the long-term, and encourage us to be more conservative about claims based on evidence of immediate behaviour change.

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 26/06/2026

Free course from the REINFORCING Project on the ethics of engagement reinforcing.eu/news/reinfor...

reinforcing.eu

Reinforcing

The European Platform for Open and Responsible R&I Practices

100

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 24/06/2026

Good impact practice looks after people, not just your impact case study. Watch the film here: blogs.bath.ac.uk/publicengage...

blogs.bath.ac.uk

Launching our film: Relational Practice – looking after ourselves and others | Public Engagement Unit

000

Professor Mark Reed @profmarkreed.com · 24/06/2026

Take home messages that could transform engagement if more of us worked this way: - Build relationships into project design, budgets and workloads - Recognise the emotional labour involved in engagement and impact work - Judge success by the quality of relationships and learning, as well as outputs

100