Research Development Officer - Research Strategy Services - 106811 - Grade 7

University of Birmingham; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 36,000 - 47,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading UK university in Birmingham seeks a Research Development Officer to support academic staff with pre-award research applications. Key responsibilities include providing expert guidance, negotiating agreements, and ensuring compliance with funding requirements. The ideal candidate will have a degree or equivalent experience and a strong understanding of the UK research funding landscape. This role offers a full-time position with a salary range of £36,636 to £46,049, depending on experience, and includes generous benefits like 40 days of paid holiday.

Benefits

40 days paid holiday

Paid volunteering day

Occupational sick pay

Pension scheme

Access to subsidised day nurseries

Qualifications

• Experience providing research support in a Higher Education setting.
• Ability to write clearly for various audiences.
• Experience developing budgets and negotiating agreement terms.

Responsibilities

• Support researchers with pre-award research applications.
• Act as primary contact for funding submissions.
• Negotiate research agreements and manage proposal submissions.

Skills

Knowledge of UK research funding ecosystem

Excellent analytical skills

Strong communication skills

Experience in risk assessment

Proficient IT skills

Education

Degree level education or equivalent experience

Tools

MS Office Suite

WorkTribe

Job description

Position Details

Research Strategy Services

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £36,636 to £46,049 with potential progression once in post to £48,822

Grade: 7

Full Time, Permanent

Closing date: 19th January 2025

3 positions available

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

The University has an exciting vision to build on the success of REF2021 by continuing to transform its research performance across outputs, income, impact, and policy influence. Central to this ambition is the Research Strategy & Services Division (RSSD), a Professional Services department that works in partnership with academics across research strategy, operations, and partnerships. The RSSD integrates professional staff from the following teams into one cohesive ecosystem: Research Strategy & Development; Research Support (Grants & Contracts); Research Partnerships, Research Impact & Innovation; Research Policy & Environment; Research Systems & Data; Research Governance; Research Communications; Legal & Regulatory Compliance; and Research Finance Accounting.

As part of its support for academic excellence and international collaboration, the RSSD also plays a pivotal role in helping researchers access major funding opportunities, including those from Horizon Europe following the UK’s reassociation. This enhances the University’s ability to secure high‑impact research funding and drive forward global partnerships. An overview of the RSSD structure is provided in the organogram below.

Role Summary

The Research Development Officer (RDO) is part of the Research Support Team and provides support to researchers within specific Schools across all aspects of pre‑award research support. This includes proactive research development, research agreements, and partnership building to facilitate high‑quality research, while also supporting the broader research environment and impact agenda.

Reporting to a Research Support Manager and working collaboratively within a team, the RDO helps researchers develop and secure external research grants by providing specialist support throughout the pre‑award and contracting process. Acting as a key point of contact for researchers in a designated School, the RDO offers expert guidance on funder terms and conditions, costing and pricing, due diligence of external partners, and submission processes. They also play a vital role in negotiating research agreements, setting up projects, and ensuring a smooth transition from pre‑award to post‑award support by working closely with colleagues across the Research Strategy and Services Division (RSSD).

Main Duties

• Act as the primary point of contact for researchers within a defined School or portfolio, providing expert guidance on the development and submission of research applications. Work collaboratively within the wider Research Support Team to ensure researchers receive professional support at every stage of the process;
• Work closely with researchers, their partners, and collaborators on all aspects of research development, proposal preparation, and funding submissions to UK, EU, and international funding bodies. Liaise with external partners and collaborators, as well as internal colleagues across the Division, to ensure a seamless application process;
• Review, provide recommendations, and draft clauses to support the negotiation of contractual and grant funding agreements related to research awards (including funding agreements, collaboration agreements, Data Sharing Agreements, Material Transfer Agreements, etc.). Work closely with the Research Support Manager, Head of Research Support, and Business Engagement Partners as appropriate;
• Provide expert advice on proposal content to ensure alignment with funding criteria, including scheme objectives, project management, resource justification, and key policies (e.g. EDI, research integrity). Ensure compliance with funder requirements and the University’s financial and governance regulations;
• Work with the Research Support Manager and Research Strategy and Development Partner to manage the preparation of larger or collaborative research bids, collaborating closely with senior academics and Professional Services staff;
• Cost research proposals, ensuring appropriate cost recovery and compliance with the University’s financial regulations, strategic pricing policies, and funder terms and conditions. Ensure the timely submission of proposals, adhering to the exact format, deadlines, and requirements set by funders. Ensure all applications are appropriately authorised in line with the University’s institutional approval processes;
• Advise on risk management related to research grants and agreements, ensuring compliance with funder terms and conditions as well as University policies and guidelines. Conduct due diligence on proposed external research partners, funders, and collaborators, and, in collaboration with the Head of Research Support and other colleagues, provide guidance on appropriate risk mitigation strategies;
• Lead the development and delivery of funder and grant writing workshops, internal academic peer reviews of applications, practice interviews, pitch‑to‑peer sessions, and the dissemination of research funding opportunities. Support the implementation of research delivery plans within the portfolio area and across the School and College, in collaboration with the Research Strategy and Development Partners and Research Support Managers;
• Collaborate with colleagues to support process and systems improvements across research activities, ensuring the effective adoption of changes;
• In the context of the wider research support function at the University, assist in the implementation of institution‑wide systems and processes, and contribute to the development, capture, and sharing of best practices in research support;
• Establish strong working relationships with teams across the RSSD, the College, and Professional Services to ensure the delivery of a highly effective and integrated service to academics, their funders, and partners, while supporting efficient and timely problem‑solving;
• Any other duties commensurate with the grade.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience

• Educated to Degree level (or equivalent qualifications) plus significant relevant practical experience – where no equivalent qualification is held substantial practical relevant experience and expertise in a series of progressively more demanding roles will be required.
• Evidence of literacy and numeracy, with the ability to write clearly for a variety of audiences, and to produce and analyse source material, information and data.
• Knowledge of the UK research funding ecosystem, key research funders and an understanding of their processes.
• Detailed knowledge and experience of providing research support across research grants and/or agreements, ideally in a Higher Education setting.
• Experience of successfully leading/coordinating the development of research grants and/or research agreements, including a proven knowledge and skills to successfully enhance the quality of applications through critical review.
• Skills or experience of effectively identifying and assessing risk and proposing suitable mitigating steps.
• Experience of developing/negotiating budgets and/or agreement terms.
• Experience and professional judgement to help to identify and implement improvements in service quality and efficiencies, delivering high‑quality customer service across own service area and beyond.
• Experience of successfully engaging, and collaborating, with internal and external stakeholders to build teams, deliver key outcomes or resolve challenges across a wide range of activities.
• Excellent analytical skills with an ability to analyse complex qualitative and quantitative information and present conclusions clearly and concisely to senior audiences, internal and external.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to influence and negotiate effectively with a range of internal and external stakeholders in order to convey policies or decisions, and to influence decisions.
• Proficient IT skills, including the MS Office suite and corporate systems such as WorkTribe. Confident and able to quickly learn new IT skills and software packages as required.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with proven experience of working successfully as part of a team including engaging with peers and staff, within an academic, public sector or commercial research environment.
• High level of self‑motivation and personal accountability with ability to plan and deliver goals to deadlines under pressure and set priorities for a wide range of tasks and duties for the role holder and others.
• Experience of championing Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and ability to monitor and evaluate the extent to which equality and diversity legislation, policies, procedures are applied.
• Ability to identify issues with the potential to impact on protected groups and take appropriate action.

Informal enquiries to Nathalie Maillard, email: [e-mail]

View our staff values and behaviours here

Use of AI in applications:

We want to understand your genuine interest in the role and for the written elements of your application to accurately reflect your own communication style. Applications that rely too heavily on AI tools can appear generic and lack the detail we need to assess your skills and experience. Such applications will unlikely be progressed to interview.

We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website.