An OSPO works largely by connecting efforts that already exist on your campus rather than building everything itself. A handful of partners are worth finding early—they often share your goals and can offer space, reach, expertise, or legitimacy.
Who to look for¶
The library: frequently the most natural home or co-sponsor for an OSPO. Scholarly communication, data services, and open access overlap heavily with open source goals, and libraries tend to offer welcoming, neutral space. Across the Network, campus meetups are very often library-hosted, and some OSPOs are based in the library outright.
Research computing and data-science groups: the people who support researchers who write code—campus research computing, data-science institutes, and centers focused on research software. They see open source needs every day and make strong allies (in the Network, groups like DataLab at Davis, BIDS at Berkeley, and CROSS at Santa Cruz play this role).
Technology transfer and licensing: your tech-transfer or licensing office handles the IP, licensing, and compliance questions that surface the moment researchers release software. Bringing them in early helps your researchers and keeps your guidance accurate.
Faculty champions and academic governance: faculty already doing or advocating for open source give you reach and credibility, and connections into academic governance help with longer-term institutional support.
How to approach them¶
Start where the energy already is—an office or person already leaning toward open source. You’re connecting existing work, not asking for a budget on day one, so a warm, specific introduction tends to land better than a broad campaign. One good partnership often opens the next.
Reach out to Laura (community manager) for help here too: the Network can tell you who plays these roles at other campuses, share what kinds of partnerships have worked, and sometimes make an introduction directly.