Senior Engineer

Advert

Senior Engineer

We want to make Cardiff University an institution that is respected the world over. Our vision is to be a world-leading, research-excellent, educationally outstanding university, driven by creativity and curiosity, which fulfils its social, cultural and economic obligations to Cardiff, Wales, the UK and the world. We expect to improve our standing as one of the top 100 universities in the world and the top 20 in the UK.  Ensuring the security of our research, teaching and administrative systems and their data from theft, compromise and corruption is of crucial importance to enable us to achieve our vision.

University IT provides critical support to c7,000 staff, 35,000 students, and 38 academic and professional service schools and departments. The needs of learning and teaching, research and core services present an ever-changing set of challenges in an organisation that is constantly evolving. We support the University to deliver The Way Forward 2018-23 strategy and its relevant sub-strategies, providing fully integrated, professional programme and project management, business change management, and IT workstreams.

Person specification

You will work as part of a professional service delivery team dedicated to the provision of an efficient, effective and quality driven Information Technology service to staff and students within the Corporate, Administrative, Academic Research and Learning and Teaching functions of the University. You will provide a highly professional, friendly and customer focused face to the services offered by Information Services.

Working with colleagues to monitor, optimise and report on the operational performance and stability of technology systems using commercial and open source tools; and identify where further development may be needed

Where the role requires staff management and leadership the following responsibilities will also apply:

• Be ultimately responsible for development and pastoral care and welfare of the staff under your line-management including objective setting, appraisal, performance review and training. Be a point of escalation for welfare issues including dealing with matters where there are no set guidelines or procedures.
• Ensure that staff for whom you are responsible operate within appropriate risk assessments and operating procedures and are compliant with all University procedures and policies.

The role is part time (2 days per week = 14 hrs) and open ended.

Salary between £49,794 - £54,395 per annum (Pro rata for hours worked) Grade 7.

Date Advertised: 28 March 2024

Closing date: 11 April 2024

Please be aware that Cardiff University reserves the right to close this vacancy early should sufficient applications be received.

Cardiff University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds who have the ambition to create a University which seeks to fulfil our social, cultural and economic obligation to Cardiff, Wales, and the world.  In supporting our employees to achieve a balance between their work and their personal lives, we will also consider proposals for flexible working or job share arrangements.

Applications may be submitted in Welsh, and an application submitted in Welsh will not be treated less favourably than an application submitted in English.

Job Description

You will work as part of a professional service delivery team dedicated to the provision of an efficient, effective and quality driven Information Technology service to staff and students within the Corporate, Administrative, Academic Research and Learning and Teaching functions of the University.
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You will provide a highly professional, friendly and customer focused face to the services offered by Information Services.

You will take lead responsibility for:

• The development of technology and infrastructure designs and specifications, including the  capture and analysis of technical requirements and the documentation of architectures, topologies and configuration items.
• You will be responsible for maintaining, enforcing, and developing the integrity and security of the University’s Information Technology systems, protecting the University’s data holding, and improving the security of both networks and data. This post requires the post-holder to deal with high-level stakeholders in the University and externally and to be recognised as an authority in Information Technology security matters within the institution and externally.
• The specification and development of user/system interfaces, including validation and error correction procedures, processing rules, access, security and audit controls. You will assess associated risks, and specify recovery routines and contingency procedures. You will also assist with the translation of logical designs into physical designs.
• The provision of infrastructure maintenance and support services, both to users of the systems and to service delivery functions. You will pro-actively monitor system performance, investigating and resolving faults and problems in a timely fashion. You will provide information, advice or training to users on functionality, correct operation and system constraints.
• The role may also involve the line-management and leadership of staff supporting technical and functional solutions and/or services in the role-holder’s technical domain.

You will be required to:

• Manage a centre of expertise within the organisation, taking responsibility for the development and maintenance of complex technical systems, covering all aspects of the systems lifecycle including investigation, analysis, specification, design, building, testing, operation, maintenance, upgrade, migration and obsolescence.
• Take responsibility for major aspects of the specification and design of technology utilised within the organisation, including recommendations for improving technology operations and cost-effectiveness.
• Produce and maintain technology design policies, philosophies and criteria covering connectivity, capacity, interfacing, security, resilience, recovery, access and remote access using industry standards, methods and tools.
• Propose design enhancements, capacity changes, contingency and system recovery arrangements as required, ensuring that all design targets are met and that the technology provided meets service level targets within the organisation’s planned budget
• Review technology costs against planned budgets, taking into account public tariffs and new technology developments; liaise with technology suppliers of equipment, software and services, evaluating proposals and approving changes to technology design where appropriate.
• Produce technical requirements, tender and proposal documents and conduct reviews and evaluations of responses for the selection of appropriate suppliers, services and contracts.

Person Specification

Additional Information

Job Description:

• Take responsibility for resolving problems and issues independently, using judgement and creativity to suggest the most appropriate course of action, and ensuring complex and conceptual issues and solutions are understood by all parties.
• Plan, organise and track people and financial resource including the development of action plans to deliver solutions and services critical to both the day-to-day operation of the University and achievement of its strategic goals and objectives; operational resource plans and timelines for delivery of staff workloads in accordance with programme and business as usual demand; budget submissions, input to business cases for new developments, tracking and monitoring of actual expenditure against plans.
• Set the overall standards to allow staff within the role’s technical domain to carry out all tasks and procedures efficiently and effectively to meet agreed levels of service or specific requirements of Service or Operational Level Agreements. Gather and record service level information and produce statistics for use in measuring key performance indicators (KPIs), and ensure that required targets are met.
• Work within matrix-teams of staff across Information Services to deliver enhanced technology solutions to the University, providing advice and guidance to analysts, designers, and less experienced colleagues where necessary.
• You will be a point of reference for your technical domain and will be recognised as a knowledgeable contact for your area of responsibility within and potentially outside the University
• Consult with and advise Project Managers to help them plan, prioritise and set project milestones to ensure that resources are appropriately deployed in order to meet deadlines.
• Lead or participate in any projects as appropriate, managing the operation of project teams, planning, organising and delegating work, monitoring progress and intervening as required.
• Establish relationships with key contacts to ensure role objectives are met, developing appropriate communication links with internal and external stakeholders as required.
• You will have or be prepared to develop an appropriate knowledge/skill level in the current technologies in use and to develop an appropriate knowledge/skill level in any new technologies that are introduced.
• Carry out some duties associated with a more senior role for developmental purposes or for a more junior role for operational reasons.
• To ensure compliance with legal and regulatory requirements in respect of equality and diversity, data protection, copyright and licensing, security, financial and other University policies, procedures and codes as appropriate.
• To take reasonable care for the health and safety of yourself and of other persons who may be affected by your acts or omissions at work in accordance with the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, EC directives and the University’s Safety, Health and Environment Policies and procedures and to cooperate with the University on any legal duties placed on it as the employer.
• Where the role requires staff management and leadership the following responsibilities will also apply:
• Be ultimately responsible for development and pastoral care and welfare of the staff under your line-management including objective setting, appraisal, performance review and training. Be a point of escalation for welfare issues including dealing with matters where there are no set guidelines or procedures.
• Ensure that staff for whom you are responsible operate within appropriate risk assessments and operating procedures and are compliant with all University procedures and policies.
• You may also be asked to perform other duties occasionally which are not included above, but which will be consistent with the role.
• To investigate potential and actual security breaches involving the University’s Information Technology systems and networks.

Job Category

Information Technology