Digital Research Services Portfolio Manager

This new, full-time post is available from 01/10/2025 – 30/09/2027 on a fixed-term contract and offers the opportunity of hybrid working – some time at home and some time on campus. This role is initially offered on a two-year fixed-term basis, with the possibility of extension, subject to funding and further approvals.

Summary of the role

Shape and oversee the University of Exeter’s portfolio of digital research services.

This is the senior stewardship role ensuring the University’s live digital research services remain world-class, sustainable, and aligned with evolving research priorities. It is central to delivering long-term value from Exeter’s multi-year investment in its Digital Research Infrastructure (DRI) programme.

You will define strategic priorities, manage service lifecycles from business case to retirement, and implement cost-recovery and performance frameworks that underpin financial and operational sustainability. Your remit includes investment planning and ensuring services remain funder-compliant, scalable, and user-focused. You will work closely with the Digital Research Programme Manager to bring newly delivered services into live operation and with the Digital Research Compute Lead and Digital Research Data Lead to ensure their service areas remain optimised, scalable, and responsive to researcher needs.

Working closely with academics, professional services, and external partners, you will ensure all services are co-designed with their users, informed by feedback, usage insights, and sector best practice. You will also coordinate portfolio-wide planning, identifying synergies, dependencies, and opportunities for enhancement across research computing, data platforms, and enabling services.

What you’ll be doing

• Manage planning, cost recovery, and performance frameworks across the service portfolio.
• Manage service lifecycles from design to retirement, ensuring continuous optimisation.
• Develop investment roadmaps and align priorities across computing, data, and enabling services.
• Work with academics and professional services to co-design and improve services.
• Act as a senior member of the Research IT leadership team, contributing to strategy and cross-functional delivery.

About you
We are looking for a strategic, analytical, and service-focused leader with experience in managing portfolios of complex, technical services. You will bring:

• Proven experience in service portfolio or programme leadership in a research or technical environment.
• Strong stakeholder engagement skills, with a track record in co-creating services.
• Financial and cost-recovery expertise.
• A history of delivering sustainable, user-focused services.

Help Shape the Future of Research at Exeter

By joining us, you will be part of the University’s Digital Research Infrastructure (DRI) programme — a major strategic investment in advanced computing, data platforms, and digital skills. This is your opportunity to help shape and deliver services that enable exceptional, world-class research across disciplines.

Please ensure you read the Job Description and Person Specification (available on the university's website, accessed by the 'Apply' button) for full details of this role.

We will be reviewing applications as they come in, so please don’t hesitate in applying, as we reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications.

Further information
For an informal conversation about the role before applying, please contact the DRI Recruitment Team.

To find out more about our vision for shaping the future of Digital Research Infrastructure and for details of other vacancies available in this space, please see here.

This role may be subject to additional background screening.

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