About Flinders

Our bold vision, captured in our Strategic Plan: making a Difference: The 2025 Agenda, is to be internationally recognised as a world leader in research, an innovator in contemporary education, and the source of Australia’s most enterprising graduates.

To realise this ambition, we recently made a significant organisation change to a six College structure with a professional staff and services alignment.

We recognise the key to our success is exceptional people and we’re seeking an outstanding individual to join the team of our transformed university.

Employment Type:
Fixed Term (Fixed Term)

Position Summary

Appointment Availability:
Fixed-Term until November 2022 | Full-Time 1.0FTE

Compensation Grade:
Level C (Academic)

Salary Range:
$119,641 - 137,625 p.a.

Reports To:
Deputy Director, Caring Futures Institute (or Delegate)

College of Nursing & Health Sciences

The Senior Research Fellow will play a lead role in a team delivering high quality, innovative and interprofessional research to advance child and family nutrition. The program’s mission is to inform evidence-based, engaging and scalable solutions for care givers, to improve the foods provided to children in a range of settings.

The position will take a lead role in managing and implementing current research projects and expanding current research activities through attraction of external competitive grants, delivering on strategic objectives, building and maintaining collaborations and research partnerships, identifying relevant outputs for translation/implementation into practice and building the national and international reputation through high quality publications and strong research collaborations. The incumbent will provide leadership, supervision and support to a team of staff under the general direction of the Program Head.

Reporting to the Deputy Director, Caring Futures Institute, the Senior Research Fellow will receive broad supervisor direction and, in the main, will determine their own priorities and work plans consistent with the milestones and deliverables of respective projects and activities. In addition, the position will work closely with the Research Manager for operational and project management input. The position is expected to consult with their supervisor on strategic and higher-level operational matters and on matters likely to impact on the project deliverables and research quality.

Key Position Responsibilities

The position Key Responsibilities and key Capabilities identified for this position should be read in conjunction with the Flinders University Academic Profiles for the relevant academic classification, available at: http://www.flinders.edu.au/hr-files/documents/Academic_Profiles_Levels_A_to_E.pdf

The Senior Research Fellow is responsible for:

• Making a significant contribution to ethical, high quality and innovative research as a key member of the research program through activities such as sustained high-quality publication, external grant acquisition, mentoring and developing early career researchers and knowledge translation and dissemination quality.
• Active involvement in strategic planning and professional activities relevant to promoting research and identifying opportunities to expand and grow research opportunities.
• Taking a lead role in identifying, coordinating, and obtaining external funding opportunities.
• Supervision and management of a small team of researchers and research assistants. In a leadership capacity developing and maintaining strategic relationships, collaboration, and networks with a range of stakeholders including industry and external organisations, with an increasing national and/or international focus.
• In collaboration with the Program Head and Research Manager, develop and implement strategic and operational plans for the research program to meet agreed organisational objectives.
• Represent the research program at meetings and forums.
• Actively supervising and mentoring students undertaking Research Higher Degree studies.
• Some work after hours, weekends or interstate travel may be needed.
• Significant contribution at a leadership level to the integration and management of aspects of the research and administrative life of the College.
• Any other responsibilities in line with the level of the position as assigned by the Supervisor and/or the University.

In addition, it is a requirement of this position that the incumbent maintain a current Working With Children Check which is satisfactory to the University in accordance with the Child Safety (Prohibited Persons) Act 2016 (SA).

Key Position Capabilities

• Completion of a PhD or equivalent in health psychology, knowledge translation, implementation science, health or education services research or a health-related discipline.
• Demonstrated experience and successful track record in supervision of higher degree students.
• Demonstrated evidence of a strong research track record (for career stage) in an area aligned to the research strengths in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences Caring Futures Institute, particularly healthy start to life (https://www.flinders.edu.au/caring-futures-institute), including evidence of sustained high-quality publications with first authorship and attraction of competitive grants.
• Experience in a senior academic or research leadership position with relevant research project management experience.
• Demonstrated ability to use independent judgement and initiative, under minimal supervision, to manage, organise and coordinate activities required for the functioning of a research-intensive unit.
• Demonstrated experience in developing and maintaining links with industry or research end-users and effective research collaborations.
• Demonstrated excellent oral and written communication skills and interpersonal skills, including the demonstrated ability to establish effective relationships with staff, students, and industry nationally and /or internationally.
• Knowledge of the intellectual property, knowledge translation and/or the commercialisation process in relation to a research environment.

Information for Applicants:

You are required to provide a suitability statement of no more than three pages, addressing the key capabilities of the position as outlined above. In addition, you are required to upload your CV.

A valid National Police Certificate which is satisfactory to the University will also be required before the successful applicant can commence in this position.

We are seeking to increase the diversity to improve equal opportunity outcomes for employees, and therefore we encourage female applicants, people with a disability and/or from Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders descent to apply.

Please note, late applications and applications sent via agencies will not be accepted.

Applications Close 11:59 pm:

31 May 2021