Head of Research Impact Strategy & Delivery Research Strategy & Services Division 107385 Grade 9

Position Details

Research Strategy & Services Division

Location: University of Birmingham Edgbaston Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range 58225 to 67468 with potential progression once in post to 87974

Grade: 9

Full Time Permanent

Closing date: 19^th May 2026

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 andweare equally proud to be recognised as a leading global 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 todevelopthrough our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programmewhichprovides allprofessionalservices staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full almost 5000professionalservices jobs in a wide-range of functionsin Edgbaston andin our campus inDubai there are plenty of opportunities foryou to be able to develop yourcareer 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 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 areand how we work.

Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees andtothe success of the University and depending on the role we offer avarietyof flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible addition you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 dayspaid holidaya 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 campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool shopsplaces to eat and drinkour own art gallery museum and botanical gardens.

Find out more about thebenefits of working for the Universityof Birmingham

Background

The University of Birmingham is a global institution working within a diverse and vibrant City offering an inspiring education to our students and undertaking critically important research.We are a place of open critical thinking and the creation sharing and dissemination of knowledge. As part of our professional services team youll provide outstanding support to our researchers and help the University to grow its influence regionally nationally and globally. We ensure the Universitys resources are used wisely manage and improve the infrastructure which sits at the heart of the institution and support decisions to be made quickly and based on sound evidence. Our Birmingham Professional programme operates across the University supporting colleagues to network and collaborate offering opportunities to learn and develop contributing to the delivery

Research and Impact

The University is one of the UKs most successful institutions in terms of the latest Research Excellence Framework we placed 10th in terms of GPA with the highest rise in position of any Russell Group university and with significant improvements across the breadth of our disciplines a genuine University-wide achievement. Our areas of research excellence are unusually comprehensive for a UK university with a submission to 28 of a possible 34 Units of Assessment in the REF2021. The total value of research funding won by the University has grown rapidly in recent years and we now have a portfolio of over 2800 live projects with an award value to the University of over 900 million. Following several years of growth in research awards our annual research income is now over 220m.

Our research generates lasting regional national and international impact making a positive different to the economy our environment and to peoples lives. Research Impact is core to the Universitys Strategic Framework 2030 which sets out our ambition to be a global top 50 university by 2030. Our Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Dom Moran leads our institutional Research Impact Strategy- this aims to foster an environment that embeds impact from the outset of research. A team of Research Impact Development Partners (RIDPs) and Academic Impact Lead from across our university are helping to make this a reality.

We seek to be in the top 10 once again - or higher - for research impact in REF2029 are are seeking a strategic and delivery-focused leader to operationalise this ambition across the institution.

The Head of Research Impact will play a pivotal leadership role within the Research Strategy & Services Division (RSSD) taking responsibility for delivering and sustaining a high-quality institutional pipeline of impact case studies and ensuring readiness for the next REF2029 and future exercises.

Role Summary

The Head of Research Impact provides strategic and operational leadership for the development coordination and delivery of research impact across the University.

Working closely with the Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research Impact) the Director of Business Engagement and Research Impact (BERI) and College leadership teams the role holder will lead the development of a high-performing institutional approach to research impactensuring that impact is embedded from the earliest stages of research design supported throughout the research lifecycle and evidenced effectively for REF and other national and international assessment frameworks.

The role will oversee the Universitys REF impact portfolio and preparations for REF2029 and future exercises while also strengthening the Universitys wider impact culture partnerships funding success and regional national and international influence.

Main Duties

• Lead the development and implementation of the Universitys Research Impact Strategy working closely with the DPVC (Research Impact) BERI leadership and College teams to ensure alignment with our Birmingham 2030 ambitions and to ensure that the Universitys research impact activity enhances our reputation as a leading global research institution.
• Contribute to the strategic leadership of the Business Engagement and Research Impact (BERI) service as a member of the BERI Senior Management Team supporting cross-service coordination of research partnerships engagement and impact.
• Manage a team of 9 Research Impact professionals being responsible for creating a strong and inclusive one team culture that can work in agile way in and across research disciplines reflective of the demands of impact partners and funders.
• Provide expert operational leadership and co-ordination of the Universitys REF2029 and future research excellence submissions working alongside the DPVC (Research Impact) and College Impact & Engagement Leads and provide authoritative advice to academic staff and senior leadership on REF impact case study development.
• Develop and oversee institutional frameworks that embed impact considerations across the research life-cycle from early-stage research development through to partnership building policy engagement and evidence capture. Identify emerging opportunities and policy developments relating to research impact advising the University on their strategic implications and opportunities.
• Provide specialist advice and guidance to colleagues across the BERI team to support the wider development of REF impact knowledge and create increased capacity and capability to support REF impact case studies across the team. Work with BERI and colleagues from across the University to strengthen the Universitys profile and influence in policy industry and societal engagement.
• Work closely with colleagues from across the University to leverage support to increase the gravitas of individual impact case studies including colleagues working with industry across public sector partners regionally nationally and international.
• Lead initiatives to strengthen the Universitys research impact environment ensuring that impact is recognised supported and celebrated across disciplines and career stages including the development of training mentoring and development opportunities for research to enhance their understanding of research impact and the pathway to achieving it.
• Oversee the development and effective use of institutional systems and processes for capturing and evidencing research impact working with the RSSD Research Performance & Systems Team to ensure robust data evidence capture and reporting mechanisms to support the REF and wider impact monitoring.
• Work closely with Research Development and Pre-Award teams across RSSD and the College Hubs to ensure that ambitious and credible impact strategies are embedded within major research funding proposals including UKRI Horizon Europe and other strategic funding programmes.
• Undertake any other duties commensurate with the level of the role.

Required Knowledge Skills Qualifications Experience

Education and Experience

• Educated to degree level or with equivalent professional experience gained in a research-intensive or regulatory environment.
• Strong working knowledge and experience of the UK higher education and research sector and environment.
• Proven leadership and team management experience ideally in complex matrix environments.

Specialist Knowledge

• Extensive experience in research impact development and REF impact case study delivery ideally within a research-intensive university.
• Deep understanding of the REF impact framework criteria and expectationsincluding policy and sector developments in this area.

Advisory and Analytical Skills

• Outstanding project and programme management skills including timeline planning risk management and stakeholder coordination.
• Strong data and systems awareness ideally including familiarity with research information systems (e.g. PURE).

Communication and Engagement

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills including the ability to influence senior academic leaders and coach case study authors.
• Ability to analyse complex evidence write persuasively and support narrative development for a range of audiences.
• Confident in building relationships and communicating with credibility at all levels including with senior leaders researchers and external partners.

Collaboration and Influence

• Experience of working collaboratively across teams to deliver shared outcomes.
• Skilled in building professional networks and influencing change through constructive dialogue and engagement.
• A strategic thinker who delivers; proactive resilient and comfortable working under pressure and to REF-level deadlines.

Organisational and Strategic Awareness

• Good understanding of the research environment within a UK higher education context and the operational realities of delivering a Research Excellence submission for a large and complex institution.
• Proactive in keeping abreast of external developments and emerging change that will effect the development submission and success factors for the REF2029 submission.

Values and Professionalism

• Committed to academic values and the societal impact of research.
• Collaborative and inclusive able to build consensus across diverse disciplines and perspectives.
• Innovative and improvement-focused always seeking better ways to support research and researchers.

Informal enquiries to Helen Lau email:

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 everyoneon our website.