Senior Research Manager, Therapeutics in London

The Wellcome Trust is a global charitable foundation. We improve health for everyone by funding science, leading policy and advocacy campaigns, and building partnerships. We are committed to spending £16bn in the ten years to 2032, funding new discoveries in life, health, and wellbeing, and taking on three global health challenges: mental health, infectious disease, and climate and health.

This is an exciting time to join Wellcome under the direction of our new CEO John Arne Rottingen who joined in 2024. The Infectious Disease Solutions Programme (IDSP) is a relatively new team and as such this is an opportune time to join and help us drive forward our strategy. The team focuses on two key drivers of infectious disease: environmental change and antimicrobial resistance. We take a holistic approach combining an interest in gaining a better understanding of these drivers to accelerate the development and use of interventions. Our current focus is on vector-borne disease, cholera, TB, fungal infections, and bacterial AMR with a focus on delivering solutions for communities most affected and low-resource settings.

You will be joining a multidisciplinary collaborative and enthusiastic team focused on helping science to bring innovative solutions to combat infectious disease in the most affected communities.

We are looking for a Senior Research Manager who will contribute to the leadership, development, and delivery of the Vector Control and Therapeutics team's strategic objectives, with a focus on therapeutic R&D, including drug discovery, development, and translational science for infectious diseases. The Senior Research Manager will support the team to select and advance the best research by funding, convening, and sharing learnings in line with the Infectious Disease strategy.

As a Senior Research Manager, Therapeutics you will:

• Provide oversight to therapeutic projects in neglected tropical diseases, fungal infections, bacterial antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and tuberculosis (TB) research portfolios, both in the development and management of projects. This includes contributing to the effective delivery of funding decisions, providing critical scientific assessment of applications, participating in decision-making reviews, making clear recommendations to senior management, and managing ongoing projects, escalating issues as appropriate.
• Ensure a breadth and depth of knowledge therapeutics and the wider research and funding landscape and apply this to work collaboratively across the Infectious Disease Solutions Programme (IDSP) team and the Wellcome Trust to address gaps in global health.
• Contribute importantly to the strategic direction of the Therapeutics portfolio.
• Support projects and strategies aimed at understanding and combating infectious diseases in Africa and Southeast Asia.

This role is well suited to someone with significant expertise in infectious disease therapeutics who enjoys taking a broad, interdisciplinary view of how research can deliver real-world impact. You’ll bring strong experience across therapeutic R&D, be confident influencing and working with a wide range of stakeholders, and feel comfortable managing complex projects and competing priorities. If you enjoy collaborating across sectors and fostering inclusive, cross-disciplinary ways of working to advance high-quality research, this role is likely to be a good fit.

To apply for this role please submit an updated CV and answer 2 application questions to demonstrate that you meet the minimum requirements for the role.

Minimum Criteria:

• Able to demonstrate a breadth of research expertise in therapeutics for infectious diseases through relevant work experience in an academic or industrial setting.
• Experience in managing multiple projects and managing relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Ability to employ diverse approaches to effectively communicate complex information to individuals and groups from a range of different backgrounds and different seniority levels.
• Experience of shaping and delivering research or science-related programmes of work.
• Experience/knowledge of the international research funding arena, including philanthropies and government agencies, to academia and industry.

Application Questions:

• What knowledge, personal attributes or skills do you possess that you can offer to the benefit of this role/team?
• Using short summaries, provide specific details of up to two different initiatives or projects you have been directly involved in that are relevant to this role. For each initiative or project, please describe your role (e.g. team leader, team member), the purpose of the activity (i.e. its aims), and the major contributions you personally made.

Our Hybrid Way of Working: We understand that our colleagues have commitments and personal interests outside of work and we strive to build a flexible working environment, in which people can perform at their best. At Wellcome we have a hybrid way of working which is 3 days in our Euston Road offices (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday) with the remaining 2 days working either remotely or in the office.

Diversity and Inclusion: Diversity and Inclusion is at the heart of everything we do. We are committed to cultivating a fair and inclusive environment, where everyone can be themselves and thrive. We are happy to discuss flexible working options for all roles. We work to ensure that our recruitment processes are as inclusive as possible to everyone. This includes making adjustments for people who have a disability or long-term condition. Please visit our website for more information on adjustments and accessibility, or contact us at jobs@wellcome.org.