Project Officer – Moondance

Advert

Project Officer
UK Dementia Research Institute at Cardiff
Division of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences
Cardiff University School of Medicine
College of Biomedical and Life Sciences

An exciting position has arisen for a Project Officer to join the UK Dementia Research Institute (UK DRI) at Cardiff University.

Based in Cardiff University’s flagship Hadyn Ellis Building, this Project Officer role will provide support to the UK Dementia Research Institute with primary responsibility for one of our funded programmes, the Moondance Dementia Research Laboratory. This funding supports an ambitious set of programmes that exploit our unique insights to understand the causes of dementia and speed the development of novel therapies. 

The UK Dementia Research Institute is funded by the Medical Research Council (MRC) and is the biggest UK initiative supporting dementia research. The UK DRI at Cardiff is one of seven UK centres collectively bringing together world-prominent scientists to deliver a step-change in the scientific knowledge of dementia, generating new targets for drug development, reinvigorating the therapeutic pipeline and helping to transform care. Our strategy is to build upon research strengths in dementia genetics, immunology, computational analytics, cellular and whole system modelling and neuroimaging to identify disease mechanisms and therapies for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease and other dementias.

This role sits within the Institute’s administrative hub where you will be required to work closely with the Centre Manager, leading on and completing a range of tasks to meet operational and customer service requirements.  Whilst you will be responsible for the financial monitoring and management reporting on the Moondance programme outcomes, you will also have the opportunity to engage with all aspects of centre administration. This includes planning and organising engagement activities and seminars, dealing with communications and providing a range of administrative support to academic staff.

Ideally, the successful candidate will be driven and motivated, with experience of working within a multidisciplinary team.  You should be adaptable, organised, possess excellent written, financial and oral communication skills, and be an effective team player, as well demonstrating a proven track record of working on your own initiative.

This post is full time (35 hours per week) available immediately and is fixed term until 31 March 2028. In supporting our employees to achieve a balance between their work and their personal lives, we will also consider proposals for flexible working.

For informal enquiries, please contact Tina Cottrell, Centre Manager on 029 2068 8328.

Salary:  £32,332 – £34,980 per annum (Grade 5). Appointments to roles at Cardiff University are usually made at bottom of scale unless in exceptional circumstances.

The majority of roles at Cardiff University are currently operating under “blended working” arrangements, with staff having the flexibility to work partly from home and partly from the University campus depending on specific business requirements. Discussions around these arrangements can take place after the successful candidate has been appointed.

Cardiff University offers many excellent benefits, including 45 days annual leave (incl bank holidays), local pension scheme, a cycle to work scheme and other travel initiatives, annual increments within the pay scale, and more. It is an exciting and vibrant place to work, with many different challenges and is a proud Living Wage supporter.

Date advert posted: Monday, 11 March 2024

Closing date: Monday, 8 April 2024

Please be aware that Cardiff University reserves the right to close this vacancy early should sufficient applications be received.

Cardiff University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds. We therefore welcome applicants from all sections of the community regardless of sex, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, trans identity, relationship status, religion or belief, caring responsibilities, or age.  In supporting our employees to achieve a balance between their work and their personal lives, we will also consider proposals for flexible working or job share arrangements.

Applications may be submitted in Welsh, and an application submitted in Welsh will not be treated less favourably than an application submitted in English.

Job Description

Job Purpose
Support the University within the UK Dementia Research Institute at Cardiff as the Project Officer for the Moondance Research Programme with administrative, financial and reporting responsibilities. You will also be required to carry out supporting work, providing advice, guidance and support, and leading projects within the Centre.

Duties and Responsibilities

Key Duties

• Provide professional advice and guidance on administrative and financial processes and procedures to internal and external customers, using judgement and creativity to suggest the most appropriate course of action where appropriate, and ensuring understanding of complex and conceptual issues.
• Investigate and analyse specific issues within the UK Dementia Research Institute at Cardiff (UKDRI) with specific focus on the Moondance research programme, creating recommendation reports, supported by advances within this field of research.
• Ensure that the provision of the administrative and project support is delivered to the institution, proactively changing the delivery according to customer requirements.
• Collaborate with others in order to make recommendations for developments of established processes and procedures.
• Establish working relationships with key contacts, developing appropriate communication links with the University’s Schools/Directorates and outside bodies as required.
• Create specific working groups from colleagues across the University to achieve the Moondance research programme and UK DRI objectives.
• Supervise specific projects on an occasional basis to accomplish key objectives.
• Develop and deliver training within project support and administration/financial processes.
• Undertake a variety of administrative duties to support the department including the management of processes for establishing new contracts and agreements, co-ordination and support for seminars, meetings and events and supporting the Centre Manager in ensuring the smooth running of the Institute.
• Instruct and guide other employees across the University within relevant tasks and requirements relating to the work of the Dementia Research Institute as required.

General Duties

• Ensure that an understanding of the importance of confidentiality is applied when undertaking all duties.
• Abide by University policies on Health and Safety and Equality and Diversity.
• Perform other duties occasionally which are not included above, but which will be consistent with the role.

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

Qualifications and Education

Degree/NVQ 4 or equivalent Professional membership/experience.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

Substantial experience of working within an administration team and providing project support.

Ability to demonstrate professional knowledge within specialist discipline to give advice and guidance to internal and external customers.

Ability to set up standard office systems and procedures and make improvements as appropriate.

Customer Service, Communication and Team Working

Ability to communicate conceptually detailed and complex information effectively and professionally with a wide range of people.

Evidence of ability to explore customers’ needs and adapt the service accordingly to ensure delivery of a quality service.

Planning, Analysis and Problem solving

Evidence of ability to solve expansive problems using initiative and creativity; identifying and proposing practical solutions and resolving problems with range of potential outcomes.

Evidence of demonstrable knowledge of key advances within specialist discipline.

Evidence of ability to work unsupervised to deadlines, planning and setting priorities for own work and that of others and monitoring progress.

Other

A willingness to undertake further training and development.

Desirable Criteria 

Postgraduate/Professional qualification.

Experience of working in a Higher Education environment.

Experience of Communications and Engagement activities.

Fluency in Welsh, written and oral.

Additional Information

IMPORTANT: Evidencing Criteria
Candidates should evidence that they meet ALL of the essential criteria as well as, where relevant, the desirable criteria.
As part of the application process, you will be asked to provide this evidence as a supporting statement. Please ensure when submitting this document/attaching it to your applications profile you name it with the vacancy reference number, in this instance, 18265BR

Job Category

Admin / Clerical