The Design Museum
Salary: up to £35,000 per annum, dependent on experience
Location: London
Level: NA
Deadline: 30/10/2022 23:59
Hours: 37.50
Benefits: Attractive Benefits
Job Type: Fixed Term
Closing date: 30 October – midnight
Overview
Future Observatory is a national programme for design research supporting the UK’s response to the climate crisis. Launched in November 2021, the three-year programme is coordinated by the Design Museum in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), which is part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
The programme funds, commissions and curates cutting-edge design research for broad audiences, making design research for the green transition accessible and engaging and enabling it to have a greater impact. The Research Manager will manage a £21m Future Observatory: Design the Green Transition research portfolio and work collaboratively across the Future Observatory team to ensure this portfolio is championed throughout the three-year programme.
Job scope
The Design Museum is looking for an experienced and self-motivated Research Manager to manage and deliver an expanded three-year portfolio of research and an internal programme of supporting activities (such as mentoring, upskilling, crits and design sprints). The Research Manager will manage an extensive portfolio of AHRC-funded design research, comprising up to 150 awards ranging from £40,000 to £4m, and a network of over 100 higher education institutions and 75 industry, local government and third sector partners. They will line manage one research coordinator.
The role requires a great communicator who is efficient, analytical and creative. The ideal candidate would be someone excited to build, manage and sustain a new research portfolio, and will relish the opportunity to become a member of a fast-moving, expanding programme and team.
Job description
Management and leadership
• Act as manager for a £21m AHRC-funded research portfolio, ensuring robust assessment, monitoring and evaluation mechanisms are in place;
• Liaise extensively with AHRC representatives to circulate research calls, advise on applicant criteria and assessment, host application surgeries and workshops and induct researchers into the Future Observatory cohort;
• Be the main point of contact for and between the Research Steering Group, AHRC and principal investigators within the research portfolio;
• Ensure operational and managerial coordination and coherence across the research portfolio, working with the Future Observatory Programme Manager on timelines, budgets, internal activities, monitoring and evaluation;
• Line manage a part-time Research Coordinator and delegate research administration and event/activity organisation;
• Support the Future Observatory Director and Curatorial Director to realise the overall Future Observatory research strategy.
Engagement and evidence
• Support the Future Observatory Director and AHRC to develop and award four Green Transition Ecosystem grants – large-scale clusters of design-excellence that address distinct challenges posed by the climate crisis
• Coordinate engagement of up to 75x Future Observatory Design Exchange Partnerships – aimed at embedding cutting-edge design research in SMEs, micros, not-for-profits and public sector organisations;
• Coordinate a new scheme of up to 50x regional Design Accelerators;
• Work collaboratively with the Future Observatory Curatorial Director as they lead on a separate portfolio of curatorial research, directly commissioned by Future Observatory and the Design Museum, such as the Design Researchers in Residence, Low Carbon Housing and the Future Observatory journal;
• Champion individual projects and researchers within the research portfolio and ensure their inclusion in the overall Future Observatory public programme, displays and editorial content.
Governance and reporting
• Be accountable for reporting to Future Observatory Director and Future Observatory Programme Manager on the research portfolio’s progress against time, milestones and budget;
• Report research project status to Future Observatory Director and prepare updates and visual presentations for the Design Museum Executive, AHRC’s Executive Chair and Directors Group and the Future Observatory Research Steering Group.
The above list is not exhaustive, and applicants for the Research Manager role are encouraged to present their approach to the successful delivery and support of this new research portfolio and its continuation strategy.
Person specification
Essential
Engagement and evidence
• Experience of research portfolio management in an academic, higher education institution or equivalent environment (such as museums, or Independent Research Organisation institutions);
• Demonstrate the ability to speak about the value of design and design research, to both internal and to external audiences;
• Possess outstanding communication skills, suitable for engagement with a range of different audiences – specialist and non-specialist, within the academic and non-academic communities;
• Demonstrable experience of broadening engagement and participation, as well as acting as an advocate for equality, diversity, and inclusion.
Delivery, reporting and evaluation
• Demonstratable experience of excellent research portfolio management and communication skills, including the ability to liaise with multiple principal investigators, institutions and partner organisations at once;
• Experience advising and/or influencing stakeholders and policy makers;
• Demonstratable experience of managing and reporting on the expenditure of public funds in a research-based or academic context;
• Experience of working collaboratively to report and evaluate against established KPIs.
Leadership and communication
• Demonstrate sensitivity to the needs of Future Observatory’s diverse audiences and potential beneficiaries, including the specific needs of underrepresented communities;
• Be a strategic thinker who is focused on ensuring programme outputs/outcomes achieve maximum impact;
• Ability to act as a spokesperson or advocate for the research cohort;
• Demonstrate a proven ability to turn strategic vision into effective research strategy and delivery.
Desirable
• Familiarity with UK Research and Innovation, the Design Museum’s and AHRC’s mission and strategy and with the broader funding and policy landscape, or equivalent experience reporting as part of an Arts Council/DCMS funded programme;
• Knowledge of the theory, methodology and practical application of research activities such as roundtables forums, deign crits and sprints and delivery meetings;
