Senior Research Contracts Manager

The Role and Department

The Senior Research Contracts Manager will provide expert leadership in the negotiation, drafting and management of research agreements, ensuring that the University’s interests are protected while enabling high‑quality research activity to proceed efficiently. Acting as a senior point of escalation for complex or high‑risk contractual matters, the post holder will offer authoritative advice on contractual terms, governance requirements and compliance obligations across a diverse range of funders and partners.

The role will involve drafting and negotiating a wide variety of research agreements, including collaboration agreements, contract research agreements, framework agreements, subcontracts, sub‑awards and studentships, working with a broad range of UK and international sponsors and collaborators. The post holder will also contribute to the smooth running of the research contract’s function, including co‑ordinating the development of standard agreements and supporting the design and implementation of robust internal contracting processes and workflows, ensuring continuous enhancement of research contracting across the institution.

You will work alongside two other Senior Research Contracts Managers who provide leadership and oversight for the University’s research contracting function, ensuring consistent practice, effective workload management and a coordinated, high‑quality service.

The post holder will build strong working relationships with academic colleagues, Professional Services teams and external partners, providing clear guidance and negotiation leadership that balances institutional risk with enabling research activity. This role is central to ensuring contractual readiness, robust risk management and the effective transition of projects into delivery.

A thorough understanding of the UK HEI research funding landscape is essential.

Reporting to the Head of Research Operations, you will be a key member of the Senior Management Team.

The post holder must be highly organised, detail‑focused and proactive in solving problems, with the ability to prioritise and manage a busy and varied workload. You will be comfortable working across multiple concurrent projects at different stages of development. As a confident communicator, you will form close working relationships with colleagues across the Operations Team, the Research Development Team, Faculty Offices, Heads of Department, Directors of Research, Department Managers and other Professional Support Staff.

Subject to business need, the working pattern can be arranged to suit the successful applicant. Dependent on experience, the successful applicant may need to work on campus for the majority of the time for the first three months

Further information about the role and the responsibilities is at the bottom of this job description.

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