Government Social Research
Last Updated: 16/9/2008
This section discusses forming a team to carry out an REA. Drawing together people with the right skills to carry out an REA is vital. As well as the actual researchers who will be doing the REA there are also a wider group of users that need to be involved in the project if it is to be a success. The project manager is responsible for bringing together the REA team.
If you have not undertaken an REA before, or are uncertain about applying the method to your policy question, it is important to get advice from someone with experience of doing REAs. This Toolkit will help you consider whether an REA is suitable and provide tools to complete the different stages but if you are new to the method the best way to learn how to do one is to undertake it with guidance from someone with experience of REAs.
Given that an REA needs to be completed to a tight timetable, and there is usually a great deal of work to accomplish, good project management is essential. The manager of an REA should ideally have significant experience of working on previous REAs and/or other types of review. An REA is not a good project on which to learn how to manage any type of review because of the emphasis on efficient completion.
Generic good practice in project management, such as creating project plans and milestones, applies equally to REAs as it does to other research projects. With an REA, however, there is an added emphasis on getting off to a good start. The project manager needs to ensure that those involved have a clear idea of the direction of the REA. Good engagement with users will ensure that the various stakeholders of the REA have a common understanding of its purposes and this should be part of the process of writing the protocol for the REA. If the REA is being contracted out it is likely that the project manager will still need to identify and begin to engage users (rather than leave it to the contractor) in order to save time later on in the project and because of their research and policy knowledge in the area. They will also need to ensure that there is a dedicated project manager in the contracted out team whom they can work closely and regularly with.
The protocol is important because it not only describes the scope of the REA, but will usually also contain its anticipated timeline and significant milestones. Having this as a shared statement of intent means that those working on the REA, and those with an interest in it, understand their roles, what they are required to contribute, and when. It also helps to determine the scope and size of the initial searches: for example, if the search strategy is retrieving 10,000 titles and abstracts, and the project timeline states that the REA team only has capacity to screen 3,000, then the scope or sensitivity of the searches will need to be adjusted.
Given the importance of completing the REA rapidly, the manager of an REA needs to be in regular contact with those doing the work (if they are not, for example, conducting the searches themselves) so that they can be aware of emerging risks that might cause delays.
Form an REA team: forming the team