The Alan Turing Institute is the UK’s national institute for data science and artificial intelligence. The Institute is named in honour of the scientist Alan Turing and its mission is to make great leaps in data science and artificial intelligence research in order to change the world for the better.

Programme Management

The Alan Turing Institute has ten Programmes of scientific research in key areas of AI and data science, each led by a Programme Director. There are also a small number of significant programmes of activity which sit across several research Programmes.

This role sits within the Institute’s Programme Management directorate, which is responsible for the management and delivery of these programmes in support of the senior academic Programme Directors and Principal Investigators. The team oversees millions of pounds of data science and AI research, training and knowledge exchange programme initiatives in these programmes, ensuring they are managed to business requirements, specification, time and budget.

There are a number of Programme and Research Project Managers within the team, usually focussed on one research Programme or programme of activity, but who may provide programme and project management capabilities and support to other projects or activities from time to time as required. Programme managers and Research Project Managers are not permanently attached to programmes and may be moved to other research programmes in-line with business needs, and may have the opportunity to support other programmes, both ad-hoc or more formally.

Research Programmes

The Tools, Practices and Systems (TPS) programme at the Turing represents a cross-cutting set of initiatives which seek to build open source infrastructure that is accessible to all, and to empower a global, decentralised network of people who connect data with domain experts.

The TPS community are particularly invested in the processes of how collaborative teams work together to build something “greater than the sum of its parts”. Effective, inclusive project management is necessary for researchers to work in interdisciplinary spaces. The post holder’s influence will be felt across all phases of the research lifecycle: stakeholder engagement, project design, data management, responsible research and innovation, and open communication of reusable outputs.

At the end of 2018, the Alan Turing Institute was awarded a five-year £38.8 million research programme through UKRI’s Strategic Priorities Fund. AI for Science and Government (ASG) is delivered in partnership with the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and in collaboration with a number of other research councils. The research activities support UK priority areas which are nested within existing Institute programmes and aims to deploy AI and data science through six themes, as well through cross-theme activity. A number of TPS projects are supported through the ASG programme.

ROLE PURPOSE

A Research Project Manager at the Turing coordinates the implementation and delivery of advanced data science, AI and modelling research projects, and research engineering innovations in data, software and collaborative practices. The Alan Turing Institute is looking to appoint a Research Project Manager to coordinate and support work across the Tools, Practices and Systems programme. The Research Project Manager (TPS) will play a central role in assisting with the overall facilitation of delivery of projects across the TPS programme. We anticipate that the postholder will need to embody the values of reliability, collaboration and initiative in addition to their commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion as described in the Turing’s EDI Principles and Values.

The post holder will work with the programme’s scientific leadership, programme staff, project leads, and academic researchers, to reliably coordinate each research project from concept to implementation. This will involve understanding the resource requirements for each project, drawing up detailed financial plans, coordinating funding applications, negotiating funding or collaboration contracts, agreeing on clear milestones for each project, ensuring that the deliverables are completed on schedule, as well as providing regular updates to the Institute’s leadership on the progress of each project.

The Research Project Manager will need to liaise closely with Institute research and operations staff, in London, at university and research centre partners, to perform their duties. There will be scope for them to take initiative in the management of small projects in other areas that may also be required, subject to business needs.

The post holder will work within the TPS programme team comprising the TPS Programme Director, Dr Kirstie Whitaker, TPS Senior Researchers and the TPS Programme Manager, to ensure the delivery of the programme outputs and the achievement of the outcomes.

The role reports to the TPS Programme Manager.

DUTIES AND AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY

Research project management and delivery

• Coordinate and oversee the delivery of research projects.
• Coordinate some of the programme’s events, training, and knowledge exchange initiatives.
• Maintain up-to-date records that enable effective monitoring, control and evaluation of the programme’s research initiatives.
• Coordinate the creation of the monthly TPS newsletter
• Produce and collate regular reports on activity to internal and external partners and funders..

Programme operations and resources management

• With the Programme Manager, coordinate the delivery of strong programme governance. This will involve developing, writing, and editing reports and presentations for the Institute’s senior leaders, Board of Trustees, and funders, which outline the programme’s progress and initiatives. As well, the role holder will be responsible for maintaining programme documentation on risks and issues and contributing to programme planning.
• Working with the HR team as appropriate, organise the recruitment of additional researchers or business team staff. This may involve writing job advertisements, organising interview panels, and overseeing the onboarding process for new hires.
• Join The Turing Way. The Turing Way is an open source community-driven guide to reproducible, ethical, inclusive and collaborative data science. You are encouraged to share your expertise in project design and collaborative skills so that others can benefit. Contributions may include writing new content, reviewing existing chapters, or promoting the project to new audiences.

Please see the job description for a full breakdown of the duties, responsibilities and person specification

• Degree or equivalent level of professional qualifications and/or experience.
• Strong project management and organisational skills: Ability to plan, execute and keep on schedule with numerous projects in an organised fashion.
• Excellent organisational skills.
• Experience of working closely with Finance Team, and of budget management and financial processes including budget planning, reporting, and reconcilliations.
• Clear and effective communication skills (oral and written) with the ability to adapt style to suit a wide range of people and audiences at all levels.
• The ability to form and maintain relationships with a wide range of people at all levels.
• Independently make decisions which impact themselves or immediate team members. Escalate decisions where appropriate.
• Consider possible solutions to identify those which offer wider benefits, and obtain evidence to support thinking.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

This full time post is offered on a permanent basis. The annual salary is £36,236-£42,000 plus excellent benefits, including flexible working and family friendly policies, https://www.turing.ac.uk/work-turing/why-work-turing/employee-benefits

This role is located at The Alan Turing Institute, 96 Euston Road, London, NW1 2DB.

From 01 March 2022 we will trial a Hybrid Working Model for an initial six-month trial period. During this period, staff will be expected to work at our British Library office for a number of days per month, dependent on the requirements of the role. As a guide, we anticipate this will be between 2-4 days per month, but the hiring manager will be able to confirm this during the interview.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

If you are interested in this opportunity, please click the apply button below. You will need to register on the applicant portal and complete the application form including your CV and covering letter. If you have questions about the role or would like to apply using a different format, please contact us 020 3862 3546 or email [email protected].

If you are applying for more than one role at the Turing, please note that only one Cover Letter can be visible on your profile at one time. If you wish to apply for multiple roles and do not want to overwrite your existing Cover Letter, please apply for the role using the button below and forward your additional cover letter directly to [email protected] quoting the job title.

CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATIONS: 13 June 2022 at 23:59

EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

The Alan Turing Institute is committed to creating an environment where diversity is valued and everyone is treated fairly. In accordance with the Equality Act, we welcome applications from anyone who meets the specific criteria of the post regardless of age, disability, ethnicity, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy and maternity, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

We are committed to building a diverse community and would like our leadership teal to reflect this. We therefore welcome applications from the broadest spectrum of backgrounds.

Reasonable adjustments to the interview process will be made for any candidates with a disability.

Please note all offers of employment are subject to obtaining and retaining the right to work in the UK and satisfactory pre-employment security screening which includes a DBS Check.

Full details on the pre-employment screening process can be requested from [email protected].