Research &Impact

Impact Tracker User Guide

Impact Tracker User Guide

What is the Impact Tracker? - Page 3

How to sign up - Page 4

How to log in - Page 5 - 8

How to create a project - Page 9 - 11

How to link projects - Page 12 - 13

How to add people to your projects - Page 14

How to add an organisation - Page 15 - 16

How to add a research output - Page 17 - 19

How to add evidence - Page 20 - 26

How to add a stakeholder - Page 27

How to add activities - Page 28 - 29

How to add indicators - Page 30

How to add storyboards - Page 31 - 32

How to use Chrome Clipper to add evidence - Page 33 - 35

How to use Outlook to add evidence - Page 36

How to export project reports - Page 37

Contact - Page 38

The Impact Tracker, developed by Veritgo Ventures, is a cutting edge, cloud-based platform supporting academics, researchers and impact officers at Ulser University, to plan for and report on impact.

This easy to use tool enables academics and researchers to record, plan and store evidence gathered from impact activities and to report the results.

The Impact Tracker has been introduced as part of Ulster University's commitment to supporting world-class research, impact and engagement.

What is the Impact Tracker?

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How to sign up

To access the Impact Tracker use the following web address...

https://ulster.vvimpacttracker.com/account/signup

Enter all mandatory details into the fields shown, selecting Ulster University from the dropdown menu in the Organisation field. Ensure all personal details, including Job Title and Department are accurate.

Select your preferred method of communication from the three options.

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How to log in

After you have agreed to the terms and conditions, select Sign Up. If you have already signed up, login to Ulster University's Impact Tracker directly with the web address below:

https://ulster.vvimpacttracker.com/account/login

To sign in enter your email address and password you created and select Login.

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Managing your Impact Tracker Profile

To manage your Impact Tracker profile select Profile from the navigation bar. This will bring you to your profile page which provides editing options.

Here on the Profile page, Personal Details can be reviewed and updated. Data inputted at the sign up stage will automatically be displayed on the Profile page.

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Accounts can be linked on the Profile page. Select Connect to link these to the Impact Tracker.

You will be directed to the account's website, where you must authorize or deny permission for the two accounts to be linked. Information is not shared between the platforms.

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Passwords must be • at least 8 characters in lengthAnd contain at least • 1 number• 1 special character• 1 uppercase letter• 1 lowercase letter

When the accounts have been successfully linked, you will be directed back to your Profile page in the Impact Tracker.

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How to create a project

To locate your projects page select My Projects tab found on the left sidebar, or the top right navigation bar.

All current research projects can be viewed on the My Projects page, content can be edited or removed. Metadata, such as the date and grant reference, can also be viewed on this page. Each project has a progress bar to display its current status.

Projects can be created by selecting New Project.

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Reference – this field is optional and used to input data for RCUK funded projects, or information can be added manually.

Advanced

• Upload Documents - this allows documents, including grant applications and impact statements, to be easily accessed from your project overview.

• Super Project – if the project created is linked to multiple other projects this can qualify as a super project.

• Lead and Collaborating Organisations – can be entered manually or selected from the organisation list. Multiple organisations can be selected from the list.

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• Related Grants - can be entered in this field.

• Keywords – allows you to tag a project with a specific search term, or group similar projects together.

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How to link projects

New projects can be linked to multiple other projects by selecting, Link Projects. Projects displayed in the multi select field of Link Projects comes from a list of projects the current user has inputted and can be also viewed in My Projects page.

1. To link projects, click on the name in the selected field.

2. To link multiple projects, click on the name of the projects and hold Ctrl (Control) key.

Another way of linking projects is to click View Full List, select the projects you wish to link, click [x] button to save changes.

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Linked Projects will also be displayed in the Project Overview. A maximum of three projects will be displayed here, the full list will be displayed by clicking View Full List.

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How to add people to your projects

To add people to your project, select a project from My Projects and click People from the sidebar.

Collaborators can be added by selecting Invite People.

Registered users of the Impact Tracker can be added using their e-mail address. To add non-registered people, contact the institutional administrator (impact@ulster.ac.uk) to request their registration.

When a person has been successfully added to a project they will appear as a Collaborator on the People page and will receive an email informing them of the invite.

To remove a Collaborator from a project select Remove.

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How to add an organisation

Lead and Collaborating Organisations can be added or removed from a project in the Advanced section when editing a project.

Select View Full List to search for an organisation, select the organisation and exit to save. Only one organisation can be selected to lead a project.

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Multiple organisations can be selected from the View Full List, select the organisations and exit to save.

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How to add a research output

You can import metadata from a research output in ORCiD, or Ulster's Institutional Respository (UIR), select Import.

In the Import page you have the ability to search through the UIR using specific keywords. Relevant research outputs can be imported from here.

You also have the option of importing research outputs using ORCiD. ORCiD is integrated with the Impact Tacker and is an efficient tool for finding research data.

If you are not yet a member of ORCiD or require further information visit https://orcid.org/.

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You can import research outputs by logging into your ORCiD account.

Enter a search term, for example an author's name, select the UIR and then search. Items related to the search term will appear and you will be given the option to Import.

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The search only retrieves publically available research outputs from ORCiD.

If you do not have an ORCiD account, click on the icon and joining information will be provided. Please ensure you verify the email once registered.

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How to add evidence

The Evidence Vault stores evidence relating to your projects.

Each project has its own Evidence Vault, accessed from Project Evidence, in the sidebar.

New evidence can be added to your Project Evidence Vault by selecting Add Evidence.

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Input evidence by selecting the Evidence Type drop down menu. Different types include:

1. Web Clipping2. File Upload3. Free text4. RCUK Data5. Twitter

Different fields will be displayed depending on the evidence type choosen.

1. Web Clippings

To capture Web Clippings copy and paste the URL and select Retrieve.

Include a short description of the URL.

Clippings will be saved to your Projects Evidence Vault by clicking save.

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2. Upload a file

To upload a file, create a meaningful title, and add a short description.

Common file types include:

• PDF• Microsoft Office• Video Files• Audio Files

• Select the projects you would like the evidence to be linked with.

• Manage who should have access to this evidence item, using security options.

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3. Free Text

Give your file a meaningful title so that it is easier for yourself and other users to retrieve at a later time.

Insert your text in the Description box.

Select the projects you would like the uploaded evidence to be linked with in Projects list.

Select who you would like to have access to this evidence item.

4. RCUK Data

To enter RCUK data, input a grant reference and select Search.

When using a grant reference, several outcomes will be displayed. Select which outcomes you would like to import.

If no outcomes are displayed, the research project associated with the reference has no available reports.

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5. Twitter

From Twitter, locate the tweet you wish to embed, select more options icon ‘\/’ and click Embed tweet.

A highlighted link will appear, copy this link.

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Paste the copied link into the Twitter URL or Embed section and enter a relevant description of the link.

Select the projects you would like the evidence to be associated with.

Select who should have access to this evidence and select save.

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Evidence that is not associated with a project

To add evidence not associated to a specific project click My Evidence Vault page.

My Evidence Vault includes articles not yet associated with a project and evidence linked with one or multiple projects. This is an ideal place to search for and store evidence that can be linked to projects in the future.

How to add a stakeholder

Stakeholders can be added under the Impact section. You can view, add or import a stakeholder.

When adding a stakeholder enter the type. A number of stakeholder types can be selected in View Full List.

Choose the stakeholder's organisation from the View Full List, or manually enter.

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Activities can be added under the Impact section. You can add or import Activities.

Once you have created an activity there is an option to import the activities from other projects associated or linked to the current project.

When entering an Activity put in a name you will recognise at a later date.

Choose from the View Full List option, what kind of activity it is e.g. Academic Collaboration, Exhibition, Promotional Activities.

There is also an advanced option where you can indicate any external collaborators.

How to add activities

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You can view existing evidence and add new evidence.

New evidence by clicking on the plus symbol can be added.

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How to add indicators

Indicators can be added under the Impact section. You can add or import Indicators.

You may want to import Indicators from other projects associated or linked to this project.

Click on an icon that best describes the kind of impact you are having.

Choose from the drop down menu to show what changes you are making e.g. change of behaviour.

Choose from the drop down menu to show how you would quantify your impact.

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How to add storyboards

Specify what this storyboard will be used for from the drop down menu. Options are: 1. Impact Report 2. REF Storyboard 3. Researchfish

Provide the storyboard with a name so you recognise what it’s about.

Storyboards can be added under the Impact section.

You can also give a summary of the Impact.

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You can provide additional details of your Impact in the Narrative section.

You can also add Stakeholders, Indicators and Activities to your StoryBoard.

How to use Chrome Clipper to add evidence

Select Add Extension to add the Chrome Clipper to your web browser.

You can install an Impact Tracker plugin using Chrome.

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Web pages can be saved to your Evidence Vault using the Chrome Clipper tool.

When using the Clipper tool a box will appear listing all projects from My Projects. One or multiple projects can be selected at the same time. If a project is not selected the web clipping will be saved to your personal Evidence Vault.

There are three security options which determine the level of access granted to other users viewing your Evidence Vault.

1. My Project Teams – anyone with access to the project.

2. Only Organisational Admins - group admins, project owners and you.

3. Organisational Admins and the user – for evidence you need to keep confidential.

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The web clipping will be saved in Project Evidence Vault. Here the evidence can be downloaded as a PDF, edited or deleted.

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How to use Outlook to add evidence

Please note attachments will not be imported - these should be manually added.

To link an email to a project select the “Send to VV-Impact Tracker” in the Outlook toolbar.

Select the projects you want to link to the email under Projects, select a preferred security option to control the viewers from your Projects Evidence Vault and save to Impact Tracker.

The Impact Tracker can be added to your Outlook account by clicking the icon.

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How to export project reports

If you would like to view a complete project, select Export from the sidebar. You will have the option to export your project as a word document, a PDF document, which is recommended for mobile devices, or Research Fish Analysis, as a word document.

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Contact

Submit faults, questions and feedback directly to Vertigo Ventures by clicking the orange ? at the bottom right hand corner of the page.

For all other queries contact Ulster University's Impact Team - E: impact@ulster.ac.uk

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PlannerRESEARCH GOALWhat do you want to achieve fromthis project?

CHALLENGEHow will your research achieve your goals? What are the challanges?

RESEARCH USERSWho will benefit from your research?

BENEFITHow will the research users benefitfrom your research?

ENGAGEMENTHow will you engage with yourbeneficiaries and disseminate your findings?

POTENTIAL IMPACTWhat potential impact will your research have? e.g quality of life, cultural, health etc.. What will change and when?

IMPACT EVIDENCEHow will you prove your research has had an impact?

STAKEHOLDERSWho are your stakeholders and why?

SUPPORTWhat support do you require to achieve, track and capture the impact?