Senior Research and Innovation Administrator - Manchester - ref. c84196215

Job overview

This post is offered as a 12 month fixed term contract to cover staff absence at 37.5h/week.

This post is an integral part of the R&I Division’s core function which exists to provide an efficient support service for the research delivery teams and both internal and external researchers enabling the Trust to deliver its research ambitions.

The role involves supporting the core R&I team by line managing the R&I Administrator, reviewing and processing amendments and contracts, collating data for performance metrics, managing Research Passports and assisting management to implement new SOPs.

Applicants should be qualified to at least diploma level, or have an equivalent level of experience. They will need to be IT literate with previous experience of administrative work, including understanding of electronic management systems. We are looking for a candidate with good organisation and communication skills; who can work well both in a team and using their own initiative.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will support the R&I Core team including (but not limited to):

• Act as a key point of contact with the core R&I team, study sponsors, clinical research organisations and research teams.
• Provide support to the core R&I Office with the management of research projects, particularly the processing of project amendments and contracts.
• Pull data together for performance metrics.
• Management of Research Passports.
• Accurate documentation and tracking, as well as a good working knowledge of GCP, research governance requirements and
• Trust Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• Encourage the sharing of best practice and dissemination of information through regular meetings.
• Responsible for supporting and supervising workload allocation for R&I Administrators.
• Work closely with the Senior Research Management Team to implement new SOPs and working procedures within designated teams.

The Ideal candidate should be self-motivated, an enthusiastic team player, conscientious and hardworking, have good time management, being able to work to tight and/or unexpected deadlines.

Working for our organisation

The Christie is one of Europe’s leading cancer centres, treating over 60,000 patients a year. We are based in Manchester and serve a population of 3.2 million across Greater Manchester & Cheshire, but as a national specialist around 15% patients are referred to us from other parts of the country.

We are also an international leader in research, with world first breakthroughs for over 100 years.

We run one of the largest early clinical trial units in Europe with over 300 trials every year. Cancer research in Manchester, most of which is undertaken on the Christie site, has been officially ranked the best in the UK.

1. Daily Project Management
2. 1 Facilitate the review and processing of all research-related agreements including but not limited to clinical trial agreements, confidential disclosure agreements and service-level agreements.
3. 2 Liaise closely with reviewers/legal experts to aid timely approval and processing of such agreements. Work in collaboration with the delivery teams to prioritise study contracts where appropriate.
4. 3 Assist with the processing of amendments for Sponsor Authorisation for Christie-sponsored projects and issuing notification of no objections for hosted projects where applicable in accordance with regulatory and research governance requirements.
5. 4 Coordinate and track the review and sign-off of Honorary Research Contracts and Letters of Access for researchers.
6. 5 Ensure that the Trust has documentary evidence that projects comply with relevant regulatory and research governance requirements.
7. 6 Management of the external R&I mailbox, ensuring distribution of communication where relevant and management of internal shared mailboxes as appropriate.
8. 7 Work in collaboration with the R&I Coordinators to review the project information available on the Local Portfolio Management System (LPMS) and other trust systems as applicable to ensure accuracy and completeness, performing update information exercises as required.
9. 8 Support the R&I Coordinators in processing new research projects as required.
10. 9 The post holder is expected to use initiative and be able to work independently without close supervision. They are also expected to plan and organise their own time and workload activity with prioritisation, referring to senior managers as necessary. Use own judgement where applicable when using facts from situations which may require further analysis.
11. 10 Plan workload effectively ensuring agreed objectives are met.
12. 11 Work within trust and divisional policies and procedures, working unsupervised and independently. The post holder is guided by relevant protocols and SOPs, and expected to exercise judgement outside these areas.
13. 12 Primary point of contact for the R&I Office for disease teams, service departments and the wider R&I office to provide and receive complex information regarding R&I activity across the Trust and externally.
14. R&I processes
15. 1 Ensure internal and external timelines for processing contracts, amendments and research passports/letters of access are adhered to.
16. 2 Data collection for divisional metrics and reporting of key performance indicators.
17. 3 Data quality review.
18. 4 Assist with implementation of new systems.
19. 5 Encourage the sharing of best practice and dissemination of information through regular structured meetings with all administration staff.
20. 6 Review of relevant SOPs, work instructions and training material to ensure these are up to date and fit for purpose. This work is done in collaboration with the wider R&I office.
21. 7 Contribution to service improvement initiatives relating to areas of work including the identification of deficiencies within the service and implementation of new ways of working in collaboration with the R&I team and across the division as required.
22. 8 Contribute towards the development and implementation of Trust-wide research strategies, policies and procedures.
23. Meetings
24. 1 Where appropriate, attend R&I meetings / meetings of R&I facility management committees as required.
25. 2 Where appropriate, organise and schedule research meetings/conferences/in-house training events, ensuring appropriate accommodation, attendance and distribution of papers, and that an agenda is agreed and where appropriate coordinate with outside sources.
26. 3 Provision of minute-taking for internal and external meetings as appropriate.
27. 4 Participate in and deliver Trust-wide education programmes and study days, regional and national meetings and research seminars as appropriate.
28. People management
29. 1 Responsible for supporting and supervising workload allocation/monitoring across administrative team members, escalating issues as appropriate to senior managers.
30. 2 Provide support to senior managers with general Human Resource activities, including but not limited to recruitment and selection, and line management of administrative team members as required. This will be in accordance with Trust policies.
31. 3 Provide induction support and training to new and existing clinical trials staff through one-to-one and group learning activities.
32. Personal requirements
33. 1 Responsible for own professional/personal development, working with their line manager to develop and fulfil a personal development plan that satisfies the NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework.
34. 2 Long periods of time spent using keyboard to input information and use of VDU for electronic communication.
35. 3 Prolonged concentration is regularly required (e.g. when checking through trial documentation and entering data into IT systems).

This job description is not meant to be finite and may be subject to change following discussion and agreement with the post holder. Similarly the post holder may be requested to undertake such other duties not mentioned in the job description which are commensurate with the grade.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Diploma or equivalent experience
• NVQ level 4.

• Post graduate certificate in clinical research or other relevant post graduate qualification.

Experience

• Previous experience working in an administration office.
• Understanding of electronic data management systems.
• Understanding of Information Governance.
• Experience of mentoring junior staff.

• Previous experience of working in the NHS or other healthcare system.
• Experience of working within a research environment.
• Line management experience.

Skills

• Competent user of Microsoft Office programs.
• Skilled in both written and verbal communication with people at all levels in the organisation.
• Ability to prioritise and deliver to agreed deadlines.
• Able to think quickly and respond appropriately when under pressure
• Ability to extract, interprets, manipulate and present information in a meaningful way.

• Advanced use of spreadsheets.
• Leadership skills.

Knowledge

• Good understanding of research and research management processes.

• Knowledge of clinical research management including amendments and study approval processes.
• Knowledge of the clinical trials regulations, research governance and GCP.
• Knowledge of Caldicott Guidelines.
• Basic knowledge of medical terminology.

Values

• Self-motivated and confident.
• Ability to work to tight and/or unexpected deadlines.
• Enthusiastic team player.
• Assertive.
• Conscientious and hardworking.
• Good time management.
• Ability to demonstrate the organisational values and behaviours.
• Able to provide credible customer service and instil confidence in the information produced.

• Evidence of achievement under pressure.
• Ability to troubleshoot effectively

Other

• Ability to work with minimal supervision.

• Flexibility of working hours.

The closing date for this post may be extended if there are insufficient applicants or brought forward if there is a high volume of applicants.

In support of these commitments, we particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and other ethnic minority people and people with disabilities for this post. Appointment will be only on merit.

We are committed to creating a balanced and diverse workforce. As such we welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. Together we will foster inclusion and tackle inequity and health inequalities in cancer care.

As users of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy

All positions within the Christie are subject to the receipt of satisfactory written references, medical clearance and evidence of your Right to Work in the UK. Some roles will require a Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check. Please note if you are successfully appointed to a post with this Trust, you will be required to pay for your own DBS Disclosure.

Please note, all communication regarding your application will be made via email, please ensure you check your junk/spam folders as emails are sometimes filtered there.

If you have not heard from us within four weeks of the closing date, I regret that on this occasion your application will have been unsuccessful.

The Inter-Authority Transfer (IAT) process is a critical and beneficial component of ESR and will form part of the recruitment process. In the event that you are successful following interview your previous NHS employment data, if applicable will be transferred from your current / most recent employer.

Overseas candidates wishing to apply for this position and who would require immigration sponsorship, may wish to self-assess the likelihood of obtaining a Certificate of Sponsorship for the post on the UKVI website.

You should be aware the Trust operates a No Smoking Policy and therefore employees are not permitted to smoke at work.