Storage is visible; professional judgement is harder to see. An organisation can purchase servers, select cloud storage and install specialist software without establishing who is responsible for describing records, checking integrity, managing permissions or planning future access. Digital curation depends on a combination of technical ability, information management and organisational responsibility.
This guide introduces a practical competency model and points to Sheila Corrall's 2013 position paper, A Competency Framework for Digital Curation and Data Science, which is preserved in a University of Pittsburgh research repository. The paper was associated with the January 2013 workshop on international digital preservation alignment.
What is a digital curation competency?
A competency is more than knowledge of a software interface. It combines understanding, skill and the ability to make a defensible decision in context. Someone managing research data may need to evaluate file formats, rights, metadata and lifecycle requirements. A systems specialist may need to understand reliable storage, automation and integrity checks. A preservation lead must connect these tasks to policy, budget, access and risk.
The exact balance varies by role. Treating everyone as an expert in every discipline is neither realistic nor necessary; what matters is a clear division of responsibility and effective communication between specialisms.
Six competency areas worth assessing
1. Appraisal and risk
Can the team identify which digital objects matter, which are at risk and what information would be lost if they became unavailable? This involves decisions about significance, retention, legal obligations and likely technological failure.
2. Provenance and metadata
Can staff record where an object came from, who handled it, which changes were made and how it connects to other records? Metadata requirements should follow the purpose of the collection rather than becoming an endless form-filling exercise.
3. Technical characterisation
Can the team identify file formats, understand dependencies, generate checksums, validate transfers and recognise warning signs? Our file formats and fixity guide covers the main practical concepts.
4. Rights, privacy and ethics
Does the organisation know what it can store, republish, disclose or provide to particular audiences? An archived personal website may contain private information; a scholarly PDF may be readable but not freely redistributable. Ownership of a domain or server does not settle copyright ownership.
5. Access and usability
Can a future person discover an object, understand its description and use an appropriate representation? Preservation is incomplete if the files survive but nobody can interpret the metadata or open the material.
6. Governance and sustainability
Is there an owner for policies, storage budgets, periodic verification and incident response? Can the organisation explain what will happen when a platform closes or a member of staff leaves?
The 2013 Corrall paper and its historical setting
The University of Pittsburgh repository lists Sheila Corrall's A Competency Framework for Digital Curation and Data Science as a 2013 workshop contribution. The associated event, Aligning Digital Preservation across Nations, was held in Amsterdam on 14 January 2013 alongside IDCC 2013. The repository supplies the source record and files with associated licence information.
For accurate attribution and access routes, use the Corrall bibliographic record or the university repository. Our six-part model above is TwoSquares' own practical synthesis, not a reproduction of Corrall's framework.
Translating competencies into daily work
Start by writing down real tasks rather than assigning impressive job titles. For example: who reviews monthly checksum failures? Who approves public access to a research collection? Who knows how to recover the website from backup? Who can judge whether an old redirect points to the correct replacement?
Create a small skills matrix with three levels: can explain, can perform with a documented procedure, and can independently assess or improve the procedure. Record the evidence for each rating and identify what needs training or external support. Review the matrix when systems, staff or collections change.
For organisations with a small team, it is often better to have dependable basic procedures than a complex strategy that cannot be delivered. A documented inventory, repeatable file checks and an accessible recovery plan reduce significant risk.
Why website operators should care
Website preservation is frequently neglected because it sits between web development, IT support and communications. Developers think content has been archived. Marketing teams think a hosting backup is sufficient. Domain administrators think the website owner has retained the data. These assumptions become apparent only when something fails.
Our website archiving service addresses technical capture and recordkeeping, while website restoration deals with lost or damaged sites. The two should be part of a single ownership and recovery plan.
FAQ
Does digital curation require a computer science degree?
Not always. Different roles require different levels of technical expertise; information management, rights, documentation and communication are equally important.
Can an external agency own the whole preservation process?
An agency can deliver technical work, but the organisation responsible for the material should retain control over rights decisions, priorities, access rules and long-term accountability.
Where can I find an academic competency framework?
Start with the University of Pittsburgh record for Sheila Corrall's paper and our bibliographic notes.
Sources and related reading
- Corrall, 2013: University of Pittsburgh repository
- DCC: Aligning Digital Preservation across Nations
- Closing the Digital Curation Gap historical project