Consulting #

Open Science Labs (OSL) welcomes consulting enquiries from research institutions, nonprofits, companies, open-source projects, community organisations, and other groups working in open science and technology.

A consulting engagement is formal, scoped work. Before work begins, the parties must agree on the intended outcomes, responsibilities, timeline, budget, delivery structure, and an approved contracting and payment route.

Open Science Labs is a fiscally hosted project of Open Source Collective (OSC). OSL coordinates technical discussions, preliminary scoping, contributors, and delivery. Formal agreements involving OSL are subject to OSC review and approval.

Areas of interest #

The following examples describe areas in which OSL is interested in contributing. They are not commitments that a particular service, specialist, or delivery schedule will be available.

Open-source project strategy: repository assessment, project planning, contribution workflows, maintainership practices, and sustainability.
Scientific and technical software: architecture, implementation, testing, packaging, releases, and maintenance planning.
Research workflows: reproducibility, data and computational workflows, research software practices, and technical documentation.
Documentation and contributor experience: onboarding, contribution guides, tutorials, developer documentation, and release processes.
Education and mentorship: workshops, learning materials, mentoring workflows, and open-source contributor programmes.
Community and programme development: project incubation, affiliation, community participation, and responsible collaboration practices.

The final scope depends on the project's needs, available expertise, risk, capacity, and the appropriate legal and delivery arrangements.

Ways to work with us #

Defined consulting engagement #

A defined engagement has an agreed scope, deliverables, schedule, budget, and review process. It may be appropriate for an assessment, implementation, maintenance project, documentation project, workshop, or another time-limited body of work.

When an external organisation is purchasing defined services, deliverables, deadlines, continuing support, confidentiality, or other contractual commitments, OSL discusses the request and may prepare a preliminary scope.

Before OSL accepts the engagement or makes a binding commitment, the proposed arrangement must be sent to OSC for review. OSL will contact OSC as part of this process; prospective clients can continue to use OSL as their point of contact.

For an approved formal engagement involving OSL, OSC is the legal organisation entering into and signing the agreement on behalf of the hosted Open Science Labs project.

Learn how Open Source Collective handles legal agreements

Continuing support #

Some projects may need maintenance, technical advice, documentation, training, or community support over a longer period. Any continuing arrangement must define priorities, response expectations, available capacity, and how either party may change or end the work. A continuing arrangement involving paid deliverables, response commitments, reserved capacity, confidentiality, or other enforceable obligations follows the formal OSC contract-review process.

Paid open-source contributions #

When sufficient funds are available in OSL's Open Collective budget, OSL may compensate individuals for approved work that directly supports its open-source projects and programmes.

Examples may include:

mentoring;
project maintenance;
bug investigation and bug fixes;
documentation;
packaging and distribution;
testing and continuous integration;
implementation of new features;
research software improvements;
public bug-bounty programmes.

A separate formal consulting contract is not necessarily required for each OSL-funded contribution task. After the approved work has been completed, the contributor may submit an expense of type Invoice through OSL's Open Collective page.

The invoice should clearly describe:

what work was completed;
when it was completed;
how it supported the relevant open-source project or programme;
the approved payment amount;
links to issues, pull requests, commits, releases, documentation, reports, or other evidence where practical.

An authorised OSL administrator reviews the expense. OSC then performs its own compliance review and processes an eligible payment.

Paid tasks may only be offered when:

sufficient funds are available in OSL's hosted budget;
the work supports OSL's open-source mission;
the expected work and payment are documented;
the completed work can be reviewed;
the resulting expense complies with OSC policies.

Read Open Source Collective's payment and expense guidance

Review Open Source Collective's expense policies and limitations

Invoice or Reimbursement? #

An Invoice is used to request payment for completed work or services. A Reimbursement is used when someone has already paid an eligible project cost personally and is requesting repayment. Professional services must not be submitted as reimbursements.

Invoices must be for completed work, and expenses cannot normally be paid in advance. Invoice descriptions should be specific and itemised rather than vague or undetailed lump sums, and relevant evidence should be included where practical.

Review the difference between invoices and reimbursements

Paid contribution programmes and bug bounties are mechanisms through which OSL can fund approved open-source work. They are not an alternative contracting route for an external organisation purchasing a defined result. When payment is exchanged for client-specific deliverables or other contractual commitments, the formal OSC review and contracting process applies.

Partner-supported engagement #

When the work would benefit from complementary expertise or delivery capacity, OSL may explore an engagement involving an appropriate partner, affiliated project, or independent specialist. Participation is conditional on fit, availability, and the necessary review and approvals; it is not guaranteed.

The appropriate contracting and payment arrangement will be discussed before any commitment is made. Depending on the engagement, OSL may coordinate work through an Open Source Collective (OSC)-approved agreement, participate in an approved collaboration, or introduce the client to an independent provider contracting separately. OSC does not automatically become the contracting party for independently delivered work.

A referral is an introduction, not a guaranteed placement, endorsement, warranty, or promise about an independent provider's quality or availability. OSL may not be involved in the resulting contract, delivery, payment, or supervision.

Any formal agreement in which OSL participates remains subject to OSC review. When an independent provider contracts directly with the client, OSL and OSC may not be parties to that agreement.

Other consulting and collaboration needs #

The services described on this page represent the areas in which OSL is most interested in contributing, but they are not an exhaustive list.

You are welcome to contact us if your project requires a different type of open-source, scientific, technical, educational, or community-focused support.

Depending on the request, available expertise, and the appropriate contracting structure, OSL may be able to:

develop a customised scope;
collaborate with an affiliated project or community;
bring together contributors with complementary expertise;
explore delivery alongside a research institution, nonprofit, company, or other partner;
connect you with an independent specialist or organisation that may be better suited to the work.

Partner-supported and customised engagements are considered individually. Availability is not guaranteed, and any formal involvement by OSL or Open Source Collective remains subject to the applicable review and approval process.

Contact: team@opensciencelabs.org

Discuss another consulting need

Consulting, support, and paid contribution programmes #

Formal consulting arrangements #

Formal consulting is used when an external organisation expects defined deliverables, a delivery schedule, dedicated capacity, confidentiality, maintenance obligations, or other enforceable commitments. It requires OSC review and, when approved, an agreement signed by OSC.

General community or financial support #

Questions and discussions in OSL's public community channels are informal and provided on a best-effort basis; they do not include agreed deliverables, response times, confidentiality, or an obligation to continue support.

General financial support does not purchase defined services or create a guaranteed client-specific deliverable. OSL allocates it according to its mission, available budget, priorities, and OSC policies. Organisations interested in general support can learn more about sponsoring OSL.

Paid contribution programmes #

When funds are available, OSL may pay contributors for completed, approved, mission-aligned open-source work through Invoice expenses. A paid contribution opportunity is not automatically created when someone contacts OSL: it depends on available funding and an approved, documented task, and it remains subject to OSL and OSC review.

Paid internships, fellowships, and other contributor opportunities are separate programmes with their own eligibility, selection, funding, and supervision requirements. Contacting OSL about consulting does not create a paid contribution opportunity, and participation in a community or contributor programme does not create a consulting relationship.

Volunteer work, internships, fellowships, paid open-source contributions, and formal consulting are separate programmes and workflows.

When a request needs accountable delivery, a defined schedule, confidential handling, or dedicated capacity, the work should be discussed as a formal consulting engagement before it begins.

How the workflows differ #

Formal consulting #

Client inquiry → preliminary OSL discussion and scope → OSC review and signature → delivery → approved contributor or provider invoices

OSL-funded open-source work #

Available OSL budget → documented task or bounty → completed contribution → OSL review → Invoice expense → OSC compliance review and eligible payment

Independent partner referral #

Client inquiry → possible introduction → independent provider and client determine their own agreement

These workflows are not interchangeable. In particular, the OSL-funded contribution workflow must not be used to avoid a formal agreement when an external client is purchasing defined services.

How an engagement is considered #

OSL considers each enquiry individually. An initial discussion usually covers:

the problem, intended outcome, and people affected by the work;
the repository, documentation, data, infrastructure, and relevant constraints;
the proposed scope, responsibilities, deliverables, and review process;
technical, scientific, ethical, privacy, security, or regulatory requirements;
the timeline, budget, available expertise, and delivery capacity;
whether OSL should deliver directly, explore a partner-supported engagement, make a referral, or recommend another route;
the contracting and payment structure that would need approval.

An initial conversation is exploratory. No work, partnership, referral, or contract is promised until the appropriate parties have reviewed and approved the arrangement.

Fiscal hosting and contracting #

Open Science Labs is a fiscally hosted project of Open Source Collective.

OSL coordinates project discussions, preliminary scoping, technical planning, contributor participation, and delivery.

When a formal agreement involving OSL is required, OSC reviews the proposed arrangement and, if approved, is the legal organisation entering into and signing the agreement on behalf of the hosted project.

OSL may also use available project funds to compensate contributors for completed, approved open-source work through Invoice expenses administered by OSC.

The precise contract, payment, intellectual-property, confidentiality, acceptance, and delivery terms are determined for each engagement.

Start a conversation #

Tell us about the project, repository, research workflow, or technical problem you would like to discuss.

You are also welcome to contact us when your needs do not fit neatly into one of the services described on this page. We can discuss whether OSL can support the work directly, develop a customised engagement, collaborate with an appropriate partner, or suggest another route.

Prospective clients may contact OSL about standard consulting services, unusual or custom technical needs, research software, educational or community work, and possible partner-supported arrangements. You do not need to determine the contracting route before contacting us; OSL and OSC will identify the appropriate route after the initial discussion.

Helpful information includes:

a link to the repository, project, or relevant documentation;
a short description of the problem;
the outcome you would like to achieve;
important technical, scientific, ethical, or regulatory requirements;
your preferred timeline;
your approximate budget or funding constraints;
whether the work must be public;
whether confidential information or restricted data is involved;
whether you need a defined project, continuing maintenance, or another form of support;
whether you are open to an engagement involving an appropriate partner, affiliated project, or independent specialist.

A complete specification is not required before contacting OSL. An initial discussion can help determine the appropriate workflow, delivery structure, and whether the request is a suitable fit.

Primary contact: team@opensciencelabs.org

Discuss your project