Senior Research Operations Officer (Maternity Cover)

The Senior Research Operations Officer is a key position in the Department of Engineering, within the Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences (NMES), playing an important role in providing support for the research operations within the Department. Together with the Research Operations Manager, the role holder will act as the departmental research administration support, providing high-quality research support to academic staff, including pre- and post-award grant processes, impact, as well as working to support the implementation of new, and the improvement of existing, processes.

To support our ambition, King's has invested in new multi-million-pound teaching and research laboratories of more than 3000 sqm for the Department at the heart of its Strand campus, which opened in August 2022. Celebrating diversity and supporting staff is important to us and we offer a range of provision including flexible working, caring support (including a Parenting and Carers Fund and the Carer's Career Development Fund), training, and a variety of diversity and inclusion networks. Staff can apply for flexible working to help them balance the demands of their professional and personal commitments and we offer comprehensive leave policies for parental, adoption, surrogacy, dependant, and shared leave.

The post holder will provide research administration and support across the Department, with a particular focus on research funding applications, awards management and supporting the wider research environment. Working with academic staff, Research Development Managers and professional services colleagues, the role will help identify funding opportunities, support the preparation and submission of grant applications, and ensure applications meet funder and College requirements and deadlines. The post holder will support research awards throughout their lifecycle, from initial set-up through to monitoring, reporting and closure. This will include preparing and monitoring budgets, providing advice to Principal Investigators on funding requirements, supporting the recruitment and administration of research staff, and assisting with award extensions, supplements, audits and reporting.

The role will also be a key point of contact for research management systems, including WorkTribe, PURE and funder portals. Alongside funding and awards support, the role will contribute to the Department's wider research activities and culture. This will include supporting ResearchFish and REF requirements, Open Access compliance, research committees, research facilities and resources, and the organisation of research events, seminars and colloquia. The post holder will also help keep research information up to date across departmental webpages, SharePoint and PURE, and share research news and successes more widely.

The role will involve building effective working relationships with academic and professional services colleagues across the Department, Faculty and College. The post holder will also contribute to departmental research planning and strategy, provide data to support decision-making, and help develop and maintain departmental guidance and processes. There will be opportunities to contribute to wider College research networks and to develop expertise through relevant training and professional development.

The role is currently hybrid, and the role holder will spend part (40%) of their working week on campus and part of the week working remotely. This is a full-time post (35 hours per week), and you will be offered a fixed term contract until 9 July 2027 as maternity cover. Secondment applications from internal applicants are welcome.

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

• Essential criteria
• Proven Professional Services skills gained within the Higher Education sector (or similar) and a knowledge of the regulatory, policy and procedural context.
• Highly numerate with proven expertise in financial and data analysis, demonstrating strong numeracy skills and experience in budget management and cost control.
• Relevant experience in the use of Microsoft Office applications, including Excel, Word, and SharePoint.
• Proactive commitment to ensuring good practice and following process/procedure.
• Demonstrate ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a team, with a strong attention to detail.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate clearly and appropriately with a range of professional service and academic staff.
• Ability to balance competing, shifting priorities under pressure of deadlines and workload in a busy environment.
• Ability to use initiative and make informed decisions with minimal supervision.
• Desirable criteria
• Strong knowledge of Research Operations (e.g. Pre and Post Award) in UK Higher Education practice and policies.
• Experience in supporting or contributing to the delivery of high impact, high quality research activities.
• Experience of using data management systems (e.g. WorkTribe, Funder Portals, Unit 4 Business World, PeopleXD or other equivalent systems).

At King's, we believe that the diversity of our community and a culture that is welcoming, open, inclusive and collaborative, are great strengths of the university. The Equality Act of 2010 protects the rights of our students and staff and provides a framework to fulfil our duties to eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and in addition, to advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between those who share a protected characteristic and those who do not.

We reserve the right to close adverts early due to the volume of applications we receive. While the closing date may change, all adverts will close at 23:59 to allow sufficient time for applications to be submitted on that day. Interviews are due to be held during the week commencing 19 October 2026.