The Practical Guide to Software Management Plans Now Available!

26 Oct 2022 - 2 min

Those who work with software know how vital research software is to modern day research. Recognizing this, research software has become a core research output. That is why the Dutch Research Council (NWO) and the Netherlands eScience Center are proud to launch the Practical Guide to Software Management Plans. It guides research institutions, research groups and individual researchers in how to manage software as an output of research projects.

The guide is the result of more than one year’s effort by the SMP working group to develop a common national approach to research software management. It describes what should be considered during the development of research software. Examples of requirements for research software are version control, licensing, software citability and documentation. The practical guide is a tool that lists core requirements for different types of software management plans, and resources for researchers and research support staff in fulfilling these requirements. It also contains a framework for implementing core requirements into software management plans.

The guide presented today was produced through a collaborative process involving just over 80 people from the Netherlands and abroad that started in June 2021. A working group composed of experts in research software developed the guide. They received input from a sounding board representing national and international stakeholders in research software.

The use of Software Management Plans before and during software development ensures that research software will be accessible and reusable in the short and longer term. In the coming years, the eScience Center aims to promote the adoption of Software Management Plans with stakeholders in research .

Congratulations to all those involved in helping us bring these guidelines to life!

You can view the guidelines here and read more about the development of these guidelines in this blog.