Licensing Manager - Research - Hybrid

Salary: c£41,000 per annum (negotiable based on experience) + comprehensive benefits package

Jisc grade: PRS3

Job Type: Permanent

Hours: 35 hours a week

Working style: Hybrid - A blend of working from home and your nominated hub office. We have hubs located in London, Bristol, Manchester and Oxford.

About Jisc:

For 30 years Jisc has pioneered digital solutions for UK education and research, transforming how knowledge is created, shared and used. We are uniquely positioned to protect, promote and lead the sector in digital and data transformation, making a difference to students, communities and society. Together, we are working to build a better digital future for education and research. Raise your potential through our culture of lifelong learning. At Jisc, we're all about growth, so embrace new challenges, sharpen your skills and shape a career that excites you.

The role:

Join us at the forefront of digital innovation, where you’ll play a key role in shaping the agreements that power sustainable, secure and flexible research across the UK. In this exciting role, you’ll identify, shape and negotiate sector‑leading agreements that enable universities and research institutions to thrive. You’ll translate complex member needs — spanning financial, legal, systems, workflows and research‑computing requirements — into effective, future‑focused solutions that deliver real impact. You’ll have a particular focus on technologies and platforms that support advanced research computing, including:

• High‑performance computing (HPC)
• Data‑intensive research workflows
• Cloud‑based and on‑premises research environments
• Research analytics and software tools

Your work will strengthen our portfolio and help drive digital transformation in large‑scale data processing, computational research, and secure research environments. If you’re passionate about enabling cutting‑edge research through smart, impactful agreements — we’d love to hear from you.

What you’ll be doing:

In this role, you’ll:

• Negotiate high‑value, complex agreements, including creating counter‑proposals and analysing detailed financial information.
• Lead projects and contract negotiations, guiding stakeholders through to mutually successful outcomes.
• Communicate with influence, delivering clear, tailored briefings and presentations to senior stakeholders and translating complex concepts into simple, actionable insights.
• Bring hands‑on experience in research, research computing or data‑intensive environments, enabling you to understand the challenges and opportunities faced by today’s research institutions.

It’s a bonus if you have:

• Experience in drafting agreements, reviewing legal terms and working with internal and external legal counsels.
• Ability to draft high level technical, legal or product specifications.
• Experience supporting or delivering research computing services, HPC, cloud compute, or secure research environments.
• Experience engaging with research communities or research IT teams.

What we are looking for:

We’re seeking a proactive, collaborative professional who brings both the mindset and the capability to drive meaningful impact across our organisation. You’ll thrive here if you:

• Bring a growth mindset, actively seeking new knowledge, perspectives, and opportunities to develop.
• Are highly collaborative, focused on delivering exceptional outcomes for our members, funders, and end users.
• Work openly and inclusively, treating everyone with fairness and respect, and supporting the wellbeing of colleagues by being present, engaged, and attentive.
• Have strong advocacy and negotiation skills, able to create compelling arguments, adapt messaging to different audiences, and find creative pathways to agreement.
• Have a thoughtful approach that takes time to understand problems and anticipates a range of potential outcomes.
• Possess exceptional communication skills, keeping messages clear, concise, timely, and tailored.
• Have knowledge of institutional information systems and research computing ecosystems, such as HPC, cloud computing for research, workflow automation, research data management, and research software tools.
• Have the ability to think tactically, identify and mitigate risks, and translate technical, systems, legal, or commercial requirements into compelling vendor submissions.
• Have advanced data and financial analysis skills.
• Have a track record of spotting complex issues or inefficiencies and leading cross‑organisational solutions.

Qualifications or training:

It’s a bonus if you have a degree level or higher.

We know that sometimes people can be put off applying for a job if they think they can’t tick every box, so we encourage you to apply even if you do not meet 100% of the requirements, but you feel this role is perfect for you. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles!

Specific patterns for working in the office are not mandated, and the frequency of time worked in the office is agreed with your manager. Meeting in person is something we value so you may need to travel on occasion to any of our hub offices.

Why work for us?

At Jisc, every role is meaningful, and every individual is valued. We foster a culture of continuous learning and personal growth, offering opportunities to develop new skills and make a real impact in education and research. With a strong focus on work-life balance, we embrace flexible working that prioritises outcomes over hours, empowering you to create a rhythm that energises both your professional and personal life. Jisc’s culture is powered by our four guiding principles: putting customers first, driving innovation, creating impact, and championing inclusive collaboration to deliver sustainable outcomes and shape a better future.

Discover the amazing benefits we provide! Here’s what you can look forward to:

• Flexible work pattern, which can adapt to suit your schedules and personal commitments.
• 31 days annual leave (plus bank holidays) that includes three closure days over Christmas.
• Buy up to an additional 5 days leave during the flexible benefits window.
• A range of wellbeing lifestyle benefits including company paid health care cash plan, mental health first aiders and support.
• A company culture of continuous learning with access to thousands of LinkedIn Learning courses, and lots of resources and opportunities to support your development.
• Financial well-being support including access to preferential loan and savings plans, mortgage advice, will writing tools and support and resources to help you make the most of your money.
• A wide range of discounts and cashback from retailers and big-name high-street stores.
• Family friendly policies including enhanced parental, maternity and paternity and co-parental leave as well as opportunity for career breaks.
• Support your volunteering with up to 3 days volunteer leave.

Equity, diversity and inclusion:

Jisc believe our people make all the difference in cultivating an inclusive culture that welcomes ideas, encourages innovation, and values belonging. We work hard to create an equitable experience for our candidates and workforce which embraces all aspects of their identity including race and ethnicity, religion and belief, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, trans identities, age, class, disability, neurodivergence, or veteran status.

Application process:

Please let us know how we can best accommodate you throughout the recruitment process. We’re committed to making our process accessible and comfortable for everyone - just tell us what works best for you. Just so you know, we review CVs as soon as we can and aim to provide an update on your application within 4 weeks of receiving it. However, you may hear from us a lot sooner, so please keep an eye out for our emails or calls! We’re really looking forward to getting to know the real you. While we encourage the use of AI tools to help you get started on your CV or cover letter, we encourage you to review your application before submitting. Make sure it truly reflects your own voice, experiences, and personality.

If you are currently a Jisc employee, please apply through your Dayforce Employee profile. We have a thorough background screening process that verifies the details you share with us in your CV and your application. Any inaccurate information supplied during the application stages can lead to a job offer being withdrawn.

Please note that this role is not eligible for Skilled Worker visa sponsorship. This decision is based on current Home Office eligibility criteria, which require specific conditions to be met in terms of job type, salary level, and other factors. As such, we are unable to offer sponsorship for this position.