Research Commercialisation Project Officer

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Research Commercialisation Project Officer (Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences)

The purpose of the post of Research Commercialisation Project Officer (AHSS) is to support and coordinate innovation and impact activities in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences including carrying out supporting work, providing advice and guidance on impact and knowledge exchange, intellectual property, translational funding and commercialisation of research

This post sits within the Research Commercialisation Team within Cardiff’s Research and Innovation Services Division. The team provides specialist training, support and advice on translational opportunities, intellectual property, creation of spinout companies and other impact related activities. The role involves developing effective working relationships across the University in order to contribute effectively to the delivery of the Innovation Strategy, which sits across a number of areas including civic mission and public engagement, student enterprise and research development.

The post is full time, and available immediately on an open ended contract basis. 

Salary: £32,332 – £34,980 per annum (Grade 5)

Interested applicants are welcome to contact Dr Rhodri Turner ([email protected]) to discuss the role further.

Date advert posted: Wednesday, 13 March 2024

Closing date: Wednesday, 3 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

Key Duties

Your primary responsibility will be to support the University’s academic schools within the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences to demonstrate the utility and impact of intellectual property generated from their research.  This will be achieved, primarily, through the identification, evaluation and protection of intellectual property and the development of robust commercial strategies to maximise impact arising from the research. The role holder will work closely with colleagues in the Impact and Engagement Team within Research & Innovation Services to provide high quality support for translational opportunities arising from the IE Team’s activities, notably the UKRI Impact Acceleration Accounts.

This will require you to:

• Provide professional advice and guidance on translational research opportunities, processes and procedures to internal and external customers that will have institute wide impacts, using judgement and creativity to suggest the most appropriate course of action, and ensuring complex and conceptual issues are understood and independently resolve issues around these where they fall within set role objectives.
• Work closely with academic staff within the College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences to identify opportunities for knowledge exchange with a wide range of external organisations identifying their specific needs and matching these to opportunities which match those needs.
• Develop and deliver training on the translation of research outputs to academic staff engaging in translational research activities and funding applications to enable the generation of impact, intellectual property protection and commercialisation.
• Establish working relationships with key contacts, developing appropriate communication links with the University’s Schools, professional services divisions and outside bodies as required (e.g. SETsquared, UKRI, Aspect).
• Plan and deliver specific small-scale projects, co-ordinating and supervising project teams created as needed.
• Work with other members of the Research Commercialisation Team, to ensure the delivery of the translational research objectives including the KPIs relating to commercialisation activities within the University’s Innovation Strategy.
• Undertake a variety of administrative duties to support the department
• Instruct and guide other employees across the University on the practices and processes required for the translation of research 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

It is the University’s policy to use the person specification as a key tool for short-listing. Candidates should evidence that they meet ALL of the essential criteria as well as, where relevant, the desirable.
As part of the application process you will be asked to provide this evidence via a supporting statement.
Please ensure that the evidence you are providing corresponds with the numbered criteria outlined below.
Your application will be considered based on the information you provide under each element.
When attaching the supporting statement to your application profile, please ensure that you name it with the vacancy reference number, e.g. Supporting Statement for XXXXBR.

Essential Criteria 

Degree /NVQ 4 in an arts, humanities or social science discipline or equivalent Professional membership/experience

Experience of working within an academic or business or third sector environment or evidence of experience in a research administration role.

Awareness of i) arts, humanities and social science research and ii) relevant sources of research funding which support innovation and impact in the UK.

Ability to demonstrate awareness of Intellectual Property Rights/knowledge exchange and their role in academic research environment.

Ability to liaise with a wide range of individuals and businesses across the private, public and third sectors and a high level of flexibility and willingness to work in a team.

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 a quality service is delivered

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

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

A willingness to undertake further training and development

Desirable Criteria

Postgraduate/Professional qualification

Experience of working in a discipline related to Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

Fluency in Welsh, written and oral

Additional Information

Research and Innovation Services

Cardiff is an ambitious and innovative university located in a beautiful and thriving capital city. Our world-leading research was ranked 5th for quality amongst UK universities in the 2014 Research Excellence Framework and we provide an educationally outstanding experience for our 30,000 students. With an annual budget in excess of £500 million and around 6,000 staff, Cardiff is a member of the Russell Group of the 24 leading UK research-intensive universities. The University has 24 academic schools grouped into three colleges: Biomedical & Life Sciences, Physical Sciences & Engineering and Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences.

The University’s ambition is to rank consistently among the top 100 universities in the world. Cardiff is also developing its Innovation System through a focused programme of investment in people and infrastructure.  Research funding secured from competitive, external sources exceeds £100 million annually and the University aims to grow this further through winning grants from a wide range of national and global sources.

Research and Innovation Services, RIS supports the University’s research community in initiating and delivering research and innovation activities. Led by the Acting Director, Dr Amanda Roberts-Jones, RIS provides services via over 100 expert staff organised in five specialist teams: Research Grants Office; Research Integrity, Governance and Ethics; Research Development; Research Commercialisation and Impact; and Business Engagement and Partnerships. The Department works closely with academic and professional services staff from all areas of the institution.

Job Category

Admin / Clerical