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College Research Operations , College of Arts and Law

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £29,762 to £32,411 , with potential progression once in post to £36,333

Grade 6

Full Time, Permanent

Closing date: 24th August 2023

Our offer to you

People are at the heart of what we are and do.

The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.

We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential. With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide-range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.

Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working. In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.

Find out more about the benefits of working for the University of Birmingham

Background

Support for research and impact at the University of Birmingham is provided by a number of central professional services and college-based teams, including the CAL Research Operations (CRO) and Research Strategy & Services Division (RSSD). The Research Projects Portfolio Officer will play a pivotal role in delivering a first-class service to CAL researchers, working closely with colleagues in the Research Support and Post-award teams in RSSD. This post is managed by the College’s Research Operations Manager. In order to flexibly use resource you may be asked to work elsewhere in the department or across the wider University.

Role Summary

Roles at this level will require expertise and a detailed understanding of methods, systems and procedures in an administrative or professional area. You will either use specialist knowledge or have more of a planning/co-ordination/project role or a role which is supervisory in nature where you may manage a team doing similar kinds of work. You will have the opportunity to exercise a high degree of personal responsibility and initiative which you will use to resolve queries; you will use your judgement to deal with unforeseen problems and circumstances, all with limited guidance/supervision.

Main Duties

The Project Portfolio Officer will oversee a portfolio of our more complicated research projects, providing direct support to complex matters arising from the grant activity and delegation of more routine matters. You will be expected to work proactively, and use your initiative and planning skills to set your own priorities to ensure progress is maintained as expected, identify any issue and propose solutions.

• To oversee research project delivery across allocated portfolio.
• Support may include some or all of the following:
• Carrying out project planning activities;
• Identifying milestones which will need to be adhered to;
• Data collection and analysis;
• Milestone tracking/key performance indicator tracking;
• Developing and proposing solutions for any issues;
• Recommending improvements to project management;
• Preparing progress reports for project boards or other meetings;
• Assisting in budgetary monitoring and management, including reporting;
• Assisting with stakeholder management, developing and maintaining regular contact with internal and external stakeholders to understand requirements;
• Assessing and escalating issues and risks as appropriate.
• Ensuring the timely start-up of projects, in close liaison with RSSD, involving the recruitment of project staff on and other project arrangements that ensure delivery commences at the earliest point.
• Supporting researchers with project financial monitoring and the delivery of end of project financial processes
• Working closely with RSSD Post Award team to manage high-risk accounts.
• Supporting training provision for academics, College/Project administration and other staff who support research delivery.
• Manage a team of Research Project Portfolio Administrators appointed to provide dedicated support to specific externally funded projects
• Maintain an up-to-date knowledge of project management methodologies.
• Determine short term priorities for own work, ensuring you maximise quality, efficiency and continuity.
• Assist in the evaluation and review of projects.
• Supports the University’s sustainability agenda through resource efficient working.
• Promotes equality and values diversity acting as a role model and fostering an inclusive working culture.
• Any other duties commensurate with the grade.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience

• Educated to Degree level (or equivalent qualifications). Where no equivalent qualification is held, significant practical relevant experience and expertise in a similar role will be required.
• Significant practical experience in a similar role, experience of using project management tools.
• Evidence of literacy and numeracy, with the ability to write clearly, and to analyse information and data.
• Highly proficient IT skills, including the wider MS Office suite of programmes including excel and powerpoint.
• Ability to understand policy, processes and procedures, but also to recommend improvements and implement changes.
• Excellent analytical skills used to produce reports, identify issues and resolve them decisively.
• Excellent interpersonal skills. The postholder must inspire confidence and command authority with a range of colleagues and provide excellent customer service at all times.
• A high degree of professionalism, tact, and diplomacy, and the ability to exercise discretion regarding the handling and management of sensitive information/issues.
• A high degree of initiative, personal judgement, resourcefulness, flexibility, and a self-motivating approach.
• Ability to work effectively in a large, complex organisation, and to develop a good understanding of how the University and higher education institutions work.
• Knowledge of the protected characteristics of the Equality Act 2010, and how to actively ensure in day to day activity in own area that those with protected characteristics are treated equally and fairly.

Dimensions

Core competencies/transferable skills

Working at this level you will be able to develop and successfully use the core competencies/transferable skills outlined in each of the areas shown below. As appropriate for the level, our Birmingham Professionals will take ownership for getting things done. You will be expected to be flexible as required in supporting your department and wider University.

Planning and organising

• Prioritise and schedule work and resources to ensure on time and (where applicable) on budget delivery;
• Set priorities and quality standards for a wide range of tasks and duties;
• Manage a team of staff who are carrying out similar kinds of work;
• Contribute to written documents, for example guidelines internal to the area, taking account of audience;
• Operate with limited supervision as they will have considerable scope for initiative, within established work procedures.

Problem solving and decision making

• Anticipate and identify issues in own area based on experience;
• Make appropriate suggestions for improvements and implement these when agreed in own area;
• Facilitate change, and articulate the implications and benefits of change to others;
• Focus on determining short-term priorities of work area, and how to maximise quality, efficiency and continuity.

Organisational understanding

• Quickly develop an understanding of their working area and how it contributes to the success of the University;
• Display an interest in how the University operates beyond own working area; develop and share this knowledge with others.

Relationships and communication

• Develop and maintain excellent working relationships in own area, and more widely as required for collaborative working opportunities;
• Communicate clearly and openly with others both within and external to the University, and use a range of communication skills and strategies to gain commitment to a course of action;
• Demonstrate collaborative working at all times, including with others outside the immediate work area.

For any informal enquiries in relation to this post, please contact Caroline Harwood at [email protected]

View our staff values and behaviours here

Valuing excellence, sustaining investment

We value diversity and inclusion at the University of Birmingham and welcome applications from all sections of the community and are open to discussions around all forms of flexible working