Collaboration

/kəlabəˈreɪʃn/ noun

the act of working with another person or group of people to create or produce something.

No matter where you live around the globe at this moment, it’s a time of great uncertainty.

For Cochrane, it’s a time that demands a decisive response to our rapidly changing world.

There are many different options we could pursue. Here, we present one potential model for our community to consider.

Your feedback on this proposed model will determine whether we adopt or adapt this model or alternatively, look at entirely different approaches.

Either way, we want and need your input to shape our future.

There are five immediate challenges that we must address: 

1. Our funding is less secure, and we are also committed to open access which will reduce our income substantially.

2. There is more competition and we are no longer unique, so need to demonstrate our value.

3. Cochrane has grown significantly and organically which means the way we work is no longer as efficient or simple to understand – and this challenges our relevance. 

4. We need to anticipate trends and be agile and adapt quickly to new ways of accessing, using, and sharing information.

5. We will need to develop a new production model and a range of evidence synthesis products that are affordable and can sustain Cochrane into the future.

The values that first brought the Cochrane community together - Collaboration,  Relevance,  Integrity, Quality - are the same values that continue to guide and support us now.

While we’ve witnessed rapid and profound change since the first days of Cochrane in the 1990s, we have also enjoyed certain constants - key among them the strength, skill and diversity of our community, the consistent high quality of our work and the centrality of our shared values.

These values also underpin a proposed new model for producing evidence syntheses outlined below. First presented by Editor in Chief Karla Soares-Weiser in early September, this model represents a new and proactive approach to addressing many of Cochrane’s longstanding structural issues - in order to create a more agile, responsive and sustainable organisation to flourish. 

It’s important to understand that the model outlined below is one potential option. We are seeking constructive suggestions about this option, along with ideas for other options that would achieve the same goals.

Cochrane needs fundamental change to remain relevant in the evidence synthesis marketplace; we will only achieve that change by harnessing the power of community’s collective intellect and experience.

Each aspect of the proposed process is detailed below, along with a survey to gather your feedback on this model.

Next Steps

Step 1
September - October 2021
Model option & community survey

The community is invited and encouraged to review this proposed model and provide feedback and ideas.

You can review the proposed model and complete the survey below.

Step 2
September - November 2021
Community workshops & feedback

A series of workshops will be held over October and November to provide more information and gather community feedback.

You can register for the Community Engagement Workshop Series here.

Step 3
December 2021
Community-informed business case & Governing Board decision

The feedback and ideas provided in both the survey and workshops will be made publicly available in November. It will inform the development of a business case with preferred and alternative options to be shared with the Governeing Board

The Board will decide the way forward at its December meeting. This will represent the beginning of an expected transition period over 2022-2023.