Research Information Specialist (Finance and Operations)

Job ID: 011505

Salary: This is a Grade 7 position, basic salary range £46,292 - £54,534 including London Allowance  

Posted: 12-Jan-2021

Closing date: 31-Jan-2021

Business unit: Research Management & Innovation

Department: Research Strategy & Development

Contact details: Thomas Foulkes,   

Professional and support services    

Job description 
King's is a comprehensive, research-intensive university, with the ambition to further consolidate and strengthen its position as a leading research institution. This has been formalised in the recently published Research Strategy, where five main pillars of activity have been identified to support this goal. Underpinning the strategy are a range of activities aiming at fostering a culture of academic high performance across the university, including a growing drive to develop appropriate metrics to track our progress and inform further action.

The post of Research Information Specialist (Finance and Operations) plays a pivotal role in ensuring that the maximum benefit can be obtained from the increasing information available. The postholder would therefore be expected to use these and other systems to support performance monitoring of King's research operations and to report on key research performance indicators. The post holder will be expected to liaise with Senior Management within RMID (and King's more broadly) to agree on reporting requirements and deliver regular, insightful reports to support informed decision-making.

This post will be offered on an indefinite contract

This is a full-time post - 100% full time equivalent

Key responsibilities

• Work closely with the Operations Director (RMID), the Director of Research Strategy Delivery, the Director of Research Grants & Contracts and the RMID Executive Team to design, collate, deliver, and report upon appropriate metrics to monitor performance across the Directorate, analysing RMID efficiency, capacity, utilisation, subsidy, and output KPIs.
• Work closely with the Director of Management Accounting Services, Director of Research Strategy Delivery and other members of the Strategic Competitive Research Analysis team to develop and deliver timely and accurate reports on research performance, with a focus on financial data (income, awards, applications, research overheads)
• Develop and run standard reports to provide accurate, relevant and timely management information to a wide number of audiences across the College, including senior committees
• To assist with annual statutory reporting to HESA, HEBCIS and HEIF 
• Communicate results through high-impact presentations, reports, tools and data visualisations for senior management (both academic and professional services)
• Develop ad hoc and custom reports for more specialised needs
• Provide reports on annual research activity as required by external auditors and to assist in answering audit questions
• Work closely with colleagues in Research Information Systems Team, Post-Award, and the Assistant Management Accountant (Research Operations) to ensure good-quality data is available to support the monthly research income recognition process.

Skills, knowledge, and experience
Essential criteria 

• Degree level education or equivalent professional qualification 
• Ability to present quantitative information effectively, verbally, in writing and -where appropriate- using visualization software 
• Highly developed analytical skills  
• Excellent understanding of statistical concepts and their application
• Excellent administration and organizational skills, with proven ability to set priorities and manage time effectively
• Highly developed skills in MS Excel and other packages for data manipulation, cleaning and analysis
• Experience in developing and reporting upon performance metrics
• Ability to communicate with, and influence, senior members of staff
• Confidence to work on own initiative and apply independent professional judgement 
• Ability to work under pressure and to multiple stakeholders 
• Respect for confidentiality and high ethical standards 

Desirable criteria

• Evidence of understanding of research finance in a UK Higher Education context 
• Good understanding of Higher Education and developments in research policy 
• Familiarity with PowerBI and/or Business World (Agresso) 
• Experience in managing complex projects or workloads