Institute Manager

About us
The Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose (IIPP) is a department within UCL and part of The Bartlett Faculty, known internationally for its radical thinking about space, design, and sustainability. IIPP’s work influences global policy decisions and creates new collaborations that deliver public value-driven innovation.

Founded and directed by Professor Mariana Mazzucato, who holds the Chair in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value, IIPP brings together an interdisciplinary group of cutting-edge academics and practitioners with global experience. The Deputy Directors include leading scholars in public policy and digital government.

The Institute’s mission is to change how public value is imagined, practised, and evaluated to tackle major societal challenges—and, by doing so, to deliver economic growth that is innovation-led, sustainable, and inclusive.

About the role
The UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose is seeking to appoint an Institute Manager. As part of The Bartlett Faculty, IIPP is internationally recognised for its research and thought leadership in reimagining the role of the public sector in shaping innovation and growth.

The Institute Manager plays a pivotal role in both the everyday functioning and strategic development of the department. Supporting IIPP’s ambitious and paradigm-shifting mission requires a strategic thinker and skilled manager with excellent organisational leadership experience in complex and fast-paced environments.

The Institute Manager’s responsibilities are:

• Strategic Development and Planning: Advising the Director and Deputy Directors on strategic objectives, supporting decision-making with data and insight, and contributing to the development and implementation of Institute and UCL strategies. This includes coordinating the annual budgeting cycle, supporting policy impact programmes, and representing the Institute externally.
• Operational Management and Services: Overseeing coordination between teaching, research, and policy engagement; ensuring the provision of high-quality professional services; and reviewing and improving operational structures. The postholder will also manage space and facilities, ensure compliance with UCL policies, and lead planned and ad hoc projects.
• Human Resources and Staff Management: Developing and maintaining the Institute’s staffing structure, managing and supporting the professional services team, ensuring staff are motivated and well managed, and identifying training and development needs.
• Finance and Resource Management: Setting and monitoring budgets, liaising with funding bodies, managing studentship funds, and ensuring effective stewardship of Institute resources, including finances, staffing, and facilities.
• Teaching and Research Support Services: Ensuring effective administrative support for teaching and research, maximising research funding, supporting external funding applications, and overseeing student-related processes such as complaints and appeals.

The Institute Manager also champions good working practices, promotes equality, diversity and inclusion, and ensures adherence to UCL’s policies, including those on health, safety, and well-being.

About you
You will be educated to degree level or have equivalent professional experience, with a strong record of administration and management within higher education, research, or public policy organisations. You will demonstrate proven success in leading and developing teams, managing change, overseeing budgets, and advising on employment, business planning, and staff development.

Key skills include excellent leadership and line management, financial management (including budgeting and reporting), and advanced IT competency. The role demands the ability to multitask, manage competing priorities, and work collaboratively across a diverse academic and professional environment. Strong interpersonal skills, diplomacy, discretion, and confidence in communicating with senior staff and external stakeholders are essential.

What we offer

For details of our full benefits, visit: www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/reward-and-benefits

Advert information