Contracts Manager

Research Services

Paisley Campus, with hybrid working available and travel to other UWS campuses as required

Contracts Manager – REQ001943

Grade 6: £38,592 - £46,047 per annum

Full time, Permanent

THE POST – Contracts Manager

The University of the West of Scotland is a dynamic and ambitious organisation that aims to change lives, transform communities and encourage enterprise through outstanding, distinctive and progressive higher education.

We are looking to appoint an experienced Contracts manager. Reporting to the Head of Research, this role provides an exciting opportunity for an experienced practitioner to join an established and welcoming team! The ideal candidate will be solution focussed and thrive in a fast-paced environment and enjoy a varied workload. Working closely with the Finance Department as part of the Research Services Funding Team you will deliver high quality and professional advice and guidance, to our stakeholders.

Working at a strategic level, you will possess strong negotiation skills and look to promote new ways of working to improve our service delivery. 

The ideal candidate:

• The successful candidate will work proactively with academic staff, collaborating partners and research funders to draft and negotiate agreements which are fair and reasonable and protect the University’s interests. You will also be responsible for a substantial, varied and sometimes complex workload and will need to work pragmatically and creatively to agree contractual terms with a range of partners.  Agreements may include multi-partner collaboration agreements, framework agreements, services agreements, material transfer agreements and confidentiality agreements. You will have access to a suite of template agreements to expedite contract execution where appropriate. You will also provide advice on and interpretation of contract terms to colleagues where required. You should be committed to working in and contributing to an environment of continuous improvement and will contribute towards the ongoing development and implementation of effective procedures and systems supporting research contracts and interfaces with other teams. 

ABOUT US

UWS was named Higher Educational Institution of the Year in The Herald Higher Education Awards 2022 and is officially ranked by Times Higher Education in the top 600 universities worldwide (2022 World University Rankings) as well as in the top 150 universities worldwide under 50 years old (2022 Young University Rankings). University of the West of Scotland is one of Scotland’s largest and most dynamic modern universities. Our reach across the country, together with our London campus, means that UWS is a significant force in global knowledge creation, innovation, and a leading provider of undergraduate, postgraduate and research degree education. Our degrees provide students with a transformational experience; equipping them with highly sought-after graduate skills that set them up for global success in world-leading sectors, industries and businesses.

With cutting-edge courses, modern pedagogy and practical knowledge, we enable our students and staff to experience the joy of learning, teaching, research and innovation, and apply their knowledge for the benefit of others. 

Our professional services teams are the backbone of UWS, providing robust and innovative solutions to support the vast range of work across learning and teaching, and research and innovation. You will join a supportive and dedicated team, playing a key role in a range of work that will help drive forward our ambition to deliver world-leading research, and graduates who will design, shape and build a new future. Find out more about our Professional Services teams.

We offer our staff a caring and supportive environment, across five campuses, and a competitive benefits package which includes:

• 24 days of annual leave, plus a further 12 days for public/university holidays
• 19.3% employer’s pension contribution, including death in service benefits on joining the pension scheme
• A flexible approach to working pattern and work-life balance
• Employee discount scheme across 3,500 retailers
• Fitness facilities across our campuses
• Access to a range of health and wellbeing resources, including occupational health, physiotherapy and access to our Employee Assistance Programme Professional, career and research development opportunities.

Closing date: Thursday 9^th February 2022

Interview Date: w/c 20^th February 2023

The University reserves the right to shorten/extend the closing date of any position where a high/low volume of suitable applications are received. Therefore, if you are interested in this role, an early application would be encouraged.

UWS is committed to equality and diversity and welcomes applications from underrepresented groups.

UWS is a “Disability Confident” employer.

University of the West of Scotland is a registered Scottish charity, no. SC002520.