Translational Research Officer

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Translational Research Officer 

As part of HEFCW’s Research Wales Innovation Fund, Cardiff University has launched an exciting 3-year Innovation Strategy to maximise the societal and economic impacts of the University’s excellent research. As part of this, a number of new posts are being created to enhance the delivery of innovation training, identification of commercialisation opportunities and support for translational activities with industry and other external organisations.

This new post will sit within the Research Commercialisation and Impact Team within Cardiff’s Research and Innovation Services Department. The team provides specialist training, support and advice on translational opportunities, intellectual property, creation of spinout companies and other impact related activities.

The post will involve developing effective working relationships across the University in order to contribute effectively to the delivery of the Innovation Strategy, which sits across a number of areas including civic mission and public engagement, student enterprise and research development. Importantly, the successful candidate will work fluidly across all academic disciplines, engaging with the University’s three colleges, Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences, Biomedical & Life Sciences and Physical Sciences & Engineering and their constituent academic schools.  They will focus on enabling translational activity aligned with the University’s strategic research strengths (Neuroscience and Mental Health; Environment and Climate; Compound Semiconductors; Creative Economy; Civic and Social Society; Crime and Cybersecurity; and Data and AI).

This post is full-time, fixed term until the 31 July 2023.

Salary:  £34,304 - £40,927 per annum (Grade 6)

Date advert posted: Friday, 10 September 2021

Closing date: Friday, 1 October 2021

This post has previously been advertised to employees of Cardiff University only.  We now invite external applications.

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.  We therefore welcome applicants from all sections of the community regardless of sex, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, trans identity, relationship status, religion or belief, caring responsibilities, or age.  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.

Job Description

Key Duties

• Provide professional advice and guidance on translational research opportunities, processes and procedures to internal and external customers that will have institute wide impacts, using judgement and creativity to suggest the most appropriate course of action, and ensuring complex and conceptual issues are understood and independently resolve issues around these where they fall within set role objectives
• Investigate and analyse specific issues associated with the translation of research outputs, creating recommendation reports, supported by advances within translational and impact-generating methods and processes
• Develop and deliver training on the translation of research outputs to academic staff engaging in translational research activities and funding applications to enable the generation of impact, intellectual property protection and commercialisation, ensuring that  understanding how research outputs can be translated into impact is delivered to the institution, proactively changing the delivery according to customer requirements providing additional capability and capacity to pursue incremental improvements to support the translational pipeline.
• Establish working relationships with key contacts, developing appropriate communication links with the University’s Schools, professional services divisions and outside bodies as required
• Create specific working groups from colleagues across the University to achieve the translation of research outputs identifying, influencing and implementing improved approaches to address the bottlenecks, gaps and barriers to translation of Cardiff’s research outputs, working in partnership with teams working on impact, civic mission, public engagement, student enterprise and other teams working to deliver Cardiff’s Innovation Strategy.
• Plan and deliver specific small-scale projects, co-ordinating and supervising project teams created as needed.
• Work with other members of staff in Research Commercialisation and Impact and RIS more widely, in addition to colleagues from all areas of the institution to ensure the delivery of the translational research objectives including the KPIs relating to spinout companies and commercialisation activities within the University’s Innovation Strategy.
• Undertake a variety of administrative duties to support the Department
• Instruct and guide other employees across the University on the methods and processes required for the translation of research as required.

• Ensure that an understanding of the importance of confidentiality is applied when undertaking all duties
• Abide by University policies on Health and Safety and Equality and Diversity
• Perform other duties occasionally which are not included above, but which will be consistent with the role

Person Specification

Important note: It is the University’s policy to use the person specification as a key tool for short-listing. Candidates should evidence that they meet ALL of the essential criteria as well as, where relevant, the desirable. As part of the application process you will be asked to provide this evidence via a supporting statement.  Please ensure that the evidence you are providing corresponds with the numbered criteria outlined below. Your application will be considered based on the information you provide under each element.

When attaching the supporting statement to your application profile, please ensure that you name it with the vacancy reference number, e.g. Supporting Statement for 12038BR.

Essential Criteria

Additional Information

Research and Innovation Services

Cardiff is an ambitious and innovative university located in a beautiful and thriving capital city. Our world-leading research was ranked 5th for quality amongst UK universities in the 2014 Research Excellence Framework and we provide an educationally outstanding experience for our 30,000 students. With an annual budget in excess of £500 million and around 6,000 staff, Cardiff is a member of the Russell Group of the 24 leading UK research-intensive universities. The University has 24 academic schools grouped into three colleges: Biomedical & Life Sciences, Physical Sciences & Engineering and Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences.

The University’s ambition is to rank consistently among the top 100 universities in the world. Cardiff is also developing its Innovation System through a focused programme of investment in people and infrastructure.  Research funding secured from competitive, external sources exceeds £100 million annually and the University aims to grow this further through winning grants from a wide range of national and global sources.

Research and Innovation Services, RIS supports the University’s research community in initiating and delivering research and innovation activities. Led by the Director, Dr David Bembo, RIS provides services via over 100 expert staff organised in five specialist teams: Research Grants and Contracts; Research Integrity, Governance and Ethics; Research Development; Research Commercialisation and Impact; and Business Engagement and Partnerships. The Department works closely with academic and professional services staff from all areas of the institution.

Job Category

Business / Strategic Management