Research Set-up & Support Manager

The University of Birmingham has a strong ambition to grow its external research grant income, and the area of research grant set-up and support has been identified as a priority for investment.A new Research Set-up and Support team is being established within Research Support Services, in order to provide academic staff with dedicated support in relation to the set-up of their projects following a successful grant application.We are now seeking to recruit an experienced research manager to establish and lead the team.

The new Research Set-up and Support team will compromise five Research Set-up & Support Facilitators who will operate flexibly across the Colleges under the direction of the Research Set-up & Support Manager.They will provides expert support to academic staff in the setting up of their new grant-funded projects, as well astroubleshooting any major issues which emerge in the ongoing management of their research projects.

Alongside working with senior academic researchers on the establishment of specific major research projects, the Research Set-up & Support Manager will be the lead point of contact across the University for generic issues relating to the set-up phase of research projects, and the experience of academics during this phase.They will be seek to drive and facilitate process improvements through discussion with senior Professional Service colleagues; or escalate issues to the Director of Research if necessary.

Knowledge and Understanding

• Honours degree or equivalent.
• Knowledge and understanding of the UK research funding environment, key funders and their processes.
• Knowledge and understanding of a range of current research management areas, such as contracts, research costing / budgeting, research governance, ethical review, data sharing, open access, intellectual property, equality and diversity, etc.
• Experience of supporting research in an academic, public-sector or commercial research environment and of university collaboration with external academic and non-academic partners.

 

Team Management Skills

• Supervisory and coaching skills to manage, motivate and develop staff, dealing with performance issues as necessary.
• Ability to plan and organise the deployment of team resources in a flexibly to meet identified needs and priorities.
• Able to develop key performance and activity indicators in order to monitor team performance, and take action to change work priorities as required.
• Excellent team management skills, with the ability to provide help and advice to team members to resolve complex issues.
• Ability to manage a team effectively and supportively when under pressure, prioritising a diverse workload and always responding professionally and in a customer–focussed way.
• Able to remain calm under pressure, with a strong commitment to the delivery of exceptional customer service.
• Problem Solving and Initiative
• Ability to take responsibility for resolution of issues on behalf of senior research staff, proactively working with internal partners to negotiate satisfactory solutions.
• Creative attitude and excellent problem-solving skills with the ability to generate innovative responses when faced with a range of challenging scenarios.
• Ability to work autonomously and under own-initiative in resolving issues, and applying a significant amount of professional and independent judgement.

Working Collaboratively

• Ability to foster co-operation and collaborative internal partnership working with senior leads across a range of Professional Service areas.
• Understanding and experience of working flexibly across internal organisational boundaries, and bringing a whole-systems approach to plans and activities.
• Project Management and Organisational Skills
• Significant project management and organisational skills, including development of project plans, and experience of budget planning.
• Ability to integrate complex information from internal and external sources to inform project planning, and the deployment of team resources.
• Confident and capable user of IT inclusive of all main Office products (e.g. Access, Excel, Powerpoint and Word)

Communication Skills

• Excellent networking, interpersonal and relationship-building skills.
• Able to achieve change and resolve issues through persuasion and negotiation, often with senior colleagues from a range of Professional Service areas.
• Excellent written communication skills with an ability to vary tone as appropriate with a wide range of audiences.
• Excellent oral communication skills, confidently communicating one-on-one and in front of a group in a persuasive manner, gaining cooperation from people with disparate goals, presenting complex issues in a way which makes them accessible to others.