The impact realities for early-career researchers

In this episode, Wade Kelly, Senior Lecturer at Deakin University’s Researcher Development Academy and a leading voice in research development and community engagement, unpacks what it really means to be an “impactful academic” today. Drawing on his background in education, public engagement, and researcher development, Wade reflects on why impact is not simply about metrics or outputs, but about how knowledge lives — or dies — beyond the page. From speaking to academics in bars through Nerd Night, to shaping national conversations on community engagement, one question roots his journey into impact work: What responsibility do researchers carry toward the communities they serve?

As pressures on academics continue to intensify through short-term contracts, heavy workloads and performance-driven systems, the conversation becomes even more complex for early-career researchers. Wade reflects on the ethical tensions behind today’s impact agendas, the growing gap between what institutions ask researchers to do and how they reward them, and why sustainable, responsible practices matter more than ever. He also examines how universities can better support researchers in building meaningful, long-term relationships with communities — without burning out in the process.

You can read a summary below, and listen to the full interview in our podcast:

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Summary

From public curiosity to the impact agenda

Wade’s entry into impact work did not begin with policy frameworks or funding requirements, but with a simple act of public engagement: inviting researchers to share their work in a bar. That experience sparked a deeper reflection on why academics feel compelled to share knowledge beyond traditional academic spaces — and what that reveals about their ethical relationship to society.

We have a moral obligation to ensure our research is mobilised and useful for the people who can benefit from it.

Those early reflections later became more structured through his work on research development and, ultimately, through his book, The Impactful Academic. In the book, Wade and his co-authors map the full impact lifecycle, encouraging researchers to reconnect with their sense of purpose, passion, and long-term intentions — especially at the start of their careers.

For Wade, impact begins with that personal question. Without reconnecting to it, he argues, researchers risk becoming consumed by KPIs, workload pressures and institutional demands, losing sight of the fact that their work can genuinely change lives, systems and communities.

Why being “impactful” resists neat definitions

Rather than offering a single definition of what it means to be an impactful academic, Wade actively cautions against becoming trapped by terminology. Just as researchers instinctively understand what “research” means in practice, he argues that local context, funding environments and personal purpose should shape impact.

At the same time, he invites researchers to define impact for themselves. For him, being invited into conversations, communities and collaborations is already a form of impact and proof that knowledge is travelling, influencing and opening new spaces for dialogue. In an age of information overload, the real challenge for universities is no longer accessing knowledge but cultivating deeper understanding.

The early-career tension: Impact expectations vs career incentives

One of the most pressing themes in the conversation is the misalignment between the growing demand for impact and the promotion systems that still reward traditional academic outputs. For early-career researchers in particular, this creates a difficult dilemma.

People are being asked to prioritise impact, but promotion is still driven by old metrics.

Funders increasingly expect impact pathways, public engagement and partnership-building. Yet publications, grants and teaching load still largely drive hiring, promotion and job security. For researchers on short-term contracts, this can make investment in long-term impact work feel risky. Wade argues that institutions must take responsibility for this tension — through internal funding schemes, engagement grants, mentoring and structured development programmes that allow early-career researchers to build networks and impact track records without jeopardising their careers.

Building capability beyond disciplinary skills

At Deakin’s Research Development Academy, Wade and his colleagues focus on equipping researchers with the skills that are rarely taught within disciplines: Communicating with the public, building an academic profile, shaping a funding narrative, and developing what he calls an “academic signature”.

By contrast, the Academy’s role is to scaffold researcher development from the graduate level upward, ensuring that early- and mid-career academics are set up for long-term success, whether inside or beyond academia. This becomes even more crucial given the reality that universities now produce far more PhD graduates than there are academic jobs available.

We have to prepare people for careers beyond the academy.

Community engagement, relationships and the conditions for impact

For Wade, meaningful impact begins with authentic community engagement. Through his Community Engagement for Impact (CEFI) framework, he encourages universities and disciplines to reflect on whether their policies, incentives and cultures actually support ethical, long-term engagement with communities.

One of his most striking examples is a researcher whose access to a hospital community was sustained not by institutional authority, but by trust built through personal relationships.

Impact, in other words, grows slowly through respect, continuity and reciprocity. It also requires universities to actively celebrate engagement work, make space for impact conversations in formal committees, and signal through leadership that this work is both valuable and valued.

Safeguarding the meaning of impact

As the conversation closes, Wade offers a note of cautious optimism. Impact literacy is rising, particularly among graduate researchers, and universities are beginning to embed impact into training in more thoughtful ways. At the same time, he warns against allowing impact to become “just another metric”.

We must safeguard the intent behind impact.

For early-career researchers navigating uncertainty, competing demands and fragile career paths, the challenge is not only to do impactful work — but to be supported in doing so sustainably. If universities can align their incentives, cultures and development systems with their impact ambitions, they stand a far better chance of creating the conditions in which both researchers and society can truly benefit.

Ready for more?

For practical guidance on building meaningful collaborations beyond academia, the article Partnering for impact: A practical guide to collaborating with external stakeholders in education lays out how universities can engage external partners to maximize societal and educational value.

If you want to deepen your understanding of how university work becomes visible and influential, the article Telling the story of university impact: The power of storytelling and effective communication explains why narrative matters when communicating research, outcomes and social value.

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