Professor Dr Muhammad Aziz Rahman
Leading research beyond borders is rewarding in terms of global reach and impact, but requires careful team management for successful completion.
The purpose of a research project is to generate new evidence that hopefully informs policy and practice.
A research team consists of experts in discipline-specific areas, research methods, data analyses, and representatives of partner organisations.
When a global project is planned, there needs to be a global research leader, a country-specific leader and team members, and site-specific research leaders for a multi-site study. It’s crucial to have excellent coordination among the global research leader, country-specific leader, and site-specific leaders.
I led two global studies, which were conducted involving 17 countries with over 8,500 study participants during the pandemic period (2020-22) and involving 16 countries with over 2,300 university staff during the post-pandemic period (2023-24).
The first project focused on the psychological wellbeing of community members during the pandemic, and the second on the wellbeing of university staff in the post-pandemic environment.
The former project was completed with 12 international publications and several conference presentations; the latter project saw the global paper published at the end of last year, with other manuscripts being prepared at present.
With substantial support from each participating collaborator, both projects were completed without any funding or administrative support.
Global study 1: Publications (Global paper 1, Global paper 2, Australia paper 1, Australia paper 2, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, Kuwait, Malaysia, Nepal, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, UAE)
Global study 2: Publications (Global paper)
Through these experiences, I identified several strategies as key to success in managing an international team of researchers.
Effective communication
It is the crucial step to coordinate a team of international colleagues. Quite often, we think that sending an email to the group will suffice, and everyone will understand the research protocol, but that’s not necessarily true.
I found communicating with each country’s team individually most effective.
I also found that collaborators from many countries respond better to informal communications, like WhatsApp, rather than formal emails.
I strongly recommend finding out the preferred ways of communication from each partner and adapting your communication strategy.
Clarifying expectations
The lead researcher needs to clarify expectations from both sides so that each partner and the lead researcher are on the same page.
I strongly encourage documenting expectations at the beginning of a project, which should outline roles and responsibilities, funding distribution (if any), ethics requirements, research integrity, data storage and handling, privacy and confidentiality, timeline and authorship.
Agreement on a timeline
It’s vital to set up a timeline of activities for the research project, which needs to be communicated and agreed upon by the international teams.
Once agreed, the lead researcher needs to be proactive in following up on activities according to the set timeline. Maintaining a strict and realistic timeline was key to the success of my global projects.
Mobilising strengths of team members
Each team member brings different strengths to a project, and the combined efforts help the team to succeed. It’s important to know the strengths and weaknesses of each partner.
For example, many of my partner organisations did not have the resources to conduct data analyses or draft a manuscript. Knowing this, I shared resources and mobilised other team members to support that team.
Accepting responsibilities
The lead researcher needs to take responsibility for managing admin tasks without available support. It takes hours to communicate with each partner organisation.
Quite often, the meetings are also scheduled very late at night or very early in the morning to match the varied time zones of the collaborators. Flexible working hours are important.
Continued monitoring and follow-up
The lead researcher needs to have regular follow-up meetings or discussions with the international research teams to check the progress of activities according to the timeline.
There could be unexpected or exceptional circumstances in any location at any stage of the project which could impact progress, so stay agile when negotiating timelines and monitor progress regularly.
Regular check-ins with your partners can be effective in ensuring the work gets done.
Patience
It can be frustrating sometimes when timelines change, tasks are delayed, or you don’t hear from your international partners.
It’s important to have patience, focus on your responsibilities, and check in with your team.
Working with an international team is always rewarding.
Adopting the above strategies will assist in completing global projects and hopefully inspire researchers to continue to pursue international research.
Professor Dr Muhammad Aziz Rahman is Head of Public Health and Research Adviser at Federation University Australia, and Vice President (Development) of the Public Health Association of Australia.
Image: Canva
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