SPRE Project Manager

King's College London; City Of London; Hybrid; GBP 55,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

King’s College London is seeking a highly organised SPRE Project Manager to oversee the SPRE elements of the 2029 REF submission, coordinating ILS and 26 ULS across units. You will liaise with faculties and professional services to ensure aligned, high-quality statements and data input for quantitative assessment.

The role requires strong project management, strategic thinking and excellent communication, with a hybrid on-campus presence and a fixed-term contract until 31 July 2029.

Qualifications

• A degree, or substantial vocational and relevant management experience demonstrating project management ability.
• Detailed knowledge of REF assessment process and SPRE requirements.
• Proven track-record of excellent organisation and project management across processes.
• Experience in developing and implementing innovative strategies and plans.
• Excellent written, verbal and interpersonal communication including negotiation and motivation.
• Experience building collaborative relationships across the organisation with diverse stakeholders.
• Proven analytical and research skills to analyse complex data.

Responsibilities

• Oversee development of the SPRE element of King's REF submission (ILS and ULS).
• Liaise with academic and Professional Services staff to coordinate and draft ULS and ILS.
• Coordinate data gathering to feed quantitative elements of the submission.
• Act as central contact for SPRE guidance and support throughout the process.

Skills

Project management

REF knowledge

Organisation

Strategic planning

Communication

Stakeholder management

Analytical skills

Education

Degree

Tools

Power BI

Job description

About us

We require a highly organised individual with strong project management, communication and negotiation skills to join the REF, KEF and Research Impact team within the Research Management & Innovation Directorate as 'SPRE Project Manager'.

About the role

The post holder will be responsible for overseeing the development of all aspects of the Strategy, People and Research Environment (SPRE) element of King's submission to the 2029 Research Excellence Framework (REF): the Institution Level Statement (ILS) at university level and the Unit Level Statements (ULS) for each of the 26 REF Units of Assessment (UoAs) to which King's submits. They will liaise with academic and Professional Services staff across King's faculties - including UoA Leads, Research Culture teams and research support staff - to manage the coordination and drafting of the Unit Level Statements, ensuring synergy between these and the ILS. They will support the identification and gathering of data to feed into the quantitative elements of the submission, and will be the central contact point for advice and guidance on the SPRE element of REF.

This is a full-time post (35 hours per week), offered on a fixed term contract until 31 July 2029.

This is a hybrid role, with an expectation of attendance on campus a minimum of five days a month, and additional days according to business need.

About you

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

• 1. A degree, or substantial vocational and relevant management experience demonstrating project management ability.
• 2. Detailed knowledge and understanding of the Research Excellence Framework (REF) assessment process, and of REF guidance and policy, including the requirements of the Strategy, People and Research Environment (SPRE) component.
• 3. A proven track-record of excellent organisation and project management, with experience of managing processes and delivering through and with others.
• 4. Experience in developing and implementing innovative strategies and plans. Ability to problem solve, making complex decisions with significant organisational impact.
• 5. Excellent written, verbal and interpersonal communication skills including the ability to negotiate, influence and motivate academic and Professional Services staff, at all levels of seniority.
• 6. Experience of building effective collaborative relationships across the organisation and working successfully with diverse groups of stakeholders.
• 7. Proven analytical and research skills, ability to analyse and interpret complex data.

Desirable criteria

• 1. Experience using and developing Power BI dashboards.

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the page. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

Further Information

At King's, we believe that the diversity of our community and a culture that is welcoming, open, inclusive and collaborative, are great strengths of the university.

The Equality Act of 2010 protects the rights of our students and staff and provides a framework to fulfil our duties to eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and in addition, to advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between those who share a protected characteristic and those who do not. At times, this will include balancing rights and beliefs that can feel in tension.

We are committed to free speech and to academic freedom, believing that our foundational purpose as a university, is to create spaces where a wide range of ideas, including ideas that are controversial, can be discussed and debated, and where members of our community can express lawful views without fear of intimidation, harassment or discrimination.

When engaging in the robust exchange of ideas, we ask that our community is mindful of our Dignity at King's guidance.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is evolving rapidly, and we recognise its growing role in professional work. Applicants may use AI tools to support preparation of their application, for example to research the role or structure written responses. However, applications must reflect the applicant's own work and experience. AI tools should not be used during interviews or assessment activities unless this has been agreed in advance as a reasonable adjustment. Further guidance on the use of AI in recruitment can be found here.

We reserve the right to close adverts early due to the volume of applications we receive. While the closing date may change, all adverts will close at 23:59 to allow sufficient time for applications to be submitted on that day.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ' How we Recruit ' pages.

The interview date is to be confirmed.