Abstract

This text is a follow-up to the previous ThinkEPI note on this subject published back in 2019 (De-Castro, 2019). The piece reflects on the two main functions that Current Research Information Systems (CRIS) are aimed to fulfill. These to some extent conflicting functions are in the first place to showcase the research activity conducted within an organization as a practical implementation of Open Science, and then to collect and store institutional research information for internal use in evidence-based decision-making processes. The text argues that both functions are in fact complementary. Moreover, simultaneously pursuing both of them requires an efficient collaboration across systems (technical interoperability) and across the various institutional units involved in the management and administration of CRIS systems (human interoperability). The text explores the present CRIS landscape in Spain under this double-function perspective and highlights some best-practice case studies in terms of this collaboration.