Climate Hub Project Manager

Salary: £33,966 - £36,024  per annum with progression to £44,263

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits . We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Closing Date: 27 May 2024

The role

We are looking for an experienced project manager with a passion for positive climate change to act as the Project Manager of the north-east regional hub for the national Climate Ambassadors programme. These regional hub project managers across the country are critical to the success of the project through their work in expanding and accelerating the programme’s reach.  A key priority is around increasing uptake and impact by recruiting and supporting volunteer Climate Ambassadors through engagement with local nurseries, schools and other education settings in line with Climate Action Plans.

You will be responsible for:

•    Producing off-the-shelf resources for Ambassadors to use in education settings using up-to-date sustainability and climate information.
•    Understanding the region’s needs and using these insights to shape the national Climate Ambassador programme.
•    Adapting national Climate Ambassador strategies and practices to the region, delivering these to ensure strong engagement of education settings and volunteer Ambassadors. 

You will suppoerted by colleagues within the Strategic Implementation and Change team in Newcastle University’s Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering.

This role is fixed-term until January 2026.

To apply, please complete an online application and upload a CV and a cover letter. Your cover letter is a supporting statement, and you should outline how you meet the essential criteria of the role and evidence this with examples.
Please contact Anna Gardner, Strategic Project Manage at [email protected]  to have a chat about this opportunity.

Interviews will be held on 3 June 2024.

Key Accountabilities

•    Develop and sustain a strong project management for the regional hub. This includes a range of activities facilitated internally and with external stakeholders. Stakeholders include academics, education settings and fellow Climate Ambassadors. The postholder will assume responsibility for ensuring the project is sustained in line with the project vision and that they deliver against their objectives.
•    Develop and deliver climate materials for use by Ambassadors, which ensure messages and information are accurate and robust.
•    Manage the day-to-day operation and future development of a range of existing and new engagement networks to deliver outstanding and exemplary activity in support of the project outcomes, including recruitment of education settings and Ambassadors.
•    Manage the projects on behalf of the Principle Investigator (PI), including
•    monitoring and completion of project deliverables, including project plans and progress reports.
•    Working with the PI to ensure key deliverables are met within deadlines set. Engage with all members of the project, through collaborative methods such as workshops.
•    Establish, develop and maintain successful partnerships with internal/external stakeholders on behalf of the PI, including the national project team, through peer-to-peer knowledge transfer and learning with the national project team, external partners, and other Regional Hub Managers.
•    Deliver internal and external events for the project including engaging key stakeholders in the project activities.
•    Support the project team’s ambition and vision to inform and influence actions and stakeholders. Key to this role is engagement with education settings and collaboration with a network of organisations from academia and wider society.
•    To compile and present administrative, management and performance information at review meetings. To take notes and distribute minutes of the meetings. To coordinate a diary of meetings.

The Person (Essential)

Knowledge, Skills and Experience 
•    Knowledge of climate change action in relation to decarbonisation and climate resilience
•    Experience of developing engaging and educational climate and sustainability resources/content
•    Excellent communication skills, both oral and written, including the ability to give presentations to internal and external partners.
•    Proven ability to work independently and as part of a team.
•    Strong interpersonal skills including negotiating and relationship/partnership building.
•    Excellent organisational and time management skills; ability to manage a demanding workload, recognise priorities and work to deadlines.
•    Proven ability to work with a broad range of stakeholders and actively manage the relationships.
•    Evidence and experience in project management.
•    Proven ability to use initiative and to think strategically.
•    Excellent team development skills, tact and diplomacy when dealing with sensitive and confidential information, and an ability to work well under pressure.
•    ICT literate in all Office applications - especially Word, Excel and PowerPoint and potentially in project management and collaboration tools (e.g. Microsoft Teams, etc.).

Attributes and Behaviour

Communicating
•    Uses clear, concise and accurate communication, tailoring the approach accordingly and encouraging a two-way communication process
•    Encourages and supports a free flow of communication and information across own area, and the wider University where appropriate
•    Understands how best to appeal to the other person/group, correctly interpreting the right way to approach a situation
•    Uses visual and verbal presentation to add impact
•    Plans communication methods to add impact to messages

Influencing
•    Persuades, convinces, and influences others in order to achieve results and gain support
•    Explains how own proposals will support the interests of others (i.e. using win-win strategies)
•    Has a keen sense of timing; seizes opportunities

Planning and Organising
•    Manages time and resources by prioritising and organising effectively
•    Sets own priorities in conjunction with team and area objectives
•    Plans workload and tasks in a systematic way
•    Ensures that all activities are completed on time
•    Uses systems and tools to ensure records and audit trails are clear and up to date
•    Ensures that others know how process and systems work
•    Identifies quickly what is important and prioritises accordingly
•    Maintains flexibility in work plans to allow for changing circumstances

Delivering Services
•    Knows and understands customer/stakeholder needs
•    Demonstrates high energy and commitment to the delivery of excellent services
•    Co-operates with others in achieving targets
•    Pays attention to detail
•    Takes responsibility for achieving own targets
•    Ability to work flexibly when required and willingness and availability to travel to national project meetings for overnight trips that can last for multiple consecutive days and within the hub region

Qualifications

•    Degree or equivalent level qualification

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.  As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society.  We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent.  We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a silver Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality.  We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC.  We are aDisability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe. 

Requisition ID: 26935

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