Associate Director - Planning and Governance

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The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)

Associate Director - Planning and Governance

Salary: £65,262 per annum
Hours: Full time or Part time (minimum 0.8 FTE)
Contract Type: Open Ended (permanent)
Location: Polaris House, Swindon, Wiltshire (hybrid)
Grade: UKRI Band G

Closing Date: 06 May 2024

Proposed Interview Dates: 16 / 17 May 2024

Context

Responsible leading the development and continuous improvement of a strong governance framework across AHRC; ensuring that AHRC receives high quality and timely support, reporting, decision making, information and advice; establishing robust and efficient procedures and processes to ensure the smooth functioning of AHRC; providing assurance to the Senior Leadership Team and AHRC Council; leading on the maintenance of a continuous improvement culture across the organisation and supporting AHRC to transform its practices to ensure the effective and accountable management in the distribution of our funding; providing leadership on equality, diversity and inclusion and the embedding of EDI throughout all our processes and policy application.

Responsibilities

Governance:

• Ensure AHRC has robust governance and decision-making arrangements in line with best practice, providing high-quality reporting, advice and guidance to colleagues on all AHRC governance matters
• Champion, embed and deliver effective risk and issue management.
• Ensure the effective operation and high-quality decision-making/advice-giving of our Council and advisory boards, which includes managing membership and recruitment and associated processes (e.g. induction, appraisals, declarations of interest, good records management) to ensure that our Council and advisory boards function effectively and efficiently, with due regard for guidance and best practice.
• Oversee AHRC's assurance activities, ensuring that robust assurance and internal control systems are implemented in line with UK Research and Innovation's overarching control framework.

Operations and Business Change:

• Oversee business change and operations, ensuring that changes to policies, processes and systems are communicated to, and understood by, AHRC staff, and maintaining effective relationships cross-UKRI, including representing AHRC on UK Research and Innovation groups
• Lead the development and maintenance of a business continuity plan for AHRC working with UKRI BCM function
• Lead on creating new/ improving current operations for optimized efficiency and productivity.
• Lead on the introduction of changes driven by the UKRI Operating Model programme so they land successfully across AHRC.
• Engage cross UKRI to share best practice, ensure consistency of approach and deliver the implementation of effective policies, processes and practices

Planning:

• Lead the development of operational plans, the oversight of strategic and operational performance management, and reporting progress in line with the agreed Delivery Plan.
• Lead the annual business planning cycle for AHRC, engaging leaders from across the organisation to produce robust and detailed business plans, KPI's and ensure alignment with strategic priorities.
• Oversee the successful operation and improvement of the AHRC quarterly business review process.
• Ensure the AHRC workforce planning and financial management processes are operating well and reporting accurately
• Support the management staff resource requirements, deploying staffing to support successful delivery of AHRC's mission and objectives
• Coordinate high-quality, accurate and timely responses to ad-hoc operational Government and public requests for information and Freedom of Information requests. On the latter, exercise judgment as to the appropriateness of seeking legal advice from the central UK Research and Innovation Legal team.
• Oversee the management staff resource requirements, deploying staffing to support successful delivery of AHRC's mission and objectives

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion:

• Lead on embedding EDI in our approach to the design, assessment, and evaluation of funding opportunities.
• Lead on maturing our approach to becoming a learning organisation for EDI.
• Build trust with our communities, to be held accountable to the intentions of our EDI work.

Leadership:

• Input to strategic decision making as part of the AHRC Executive Chair's Directors Group and support staff across AHRC.
• Lead and inspire a diverse team to deliver strategically focused planning and governance activities, creating a culture of professional excellence, innovation, flexibility and expert services. Deliver a high quality, timely and resilient function, which combines horizon scanning and strategic planning with the ability to react to urgent/immediate requirements.

Key Skills

• Proven leadership and change management skills with an ability to motivate and develop capability within a team
• Experience at translating organisational vision and strategy into operational requirements
• Experience of running and improving a complex and interlinked suite of and governance/decision making fora
• Excellent written and oral communication skills with experience of providing succinct briefing to senior leaders at pace as well as communicate to all staff through structured communications approaches.
• Strong numeracy and analytical skills, a track record of evidence-based decisions
• Excellent interpersonal skills, able to influence, build and maintain strong working relationships with a wide range of stakeholders; collaborative and consultative
• Enthusiastic, motivated, adaptable and proactive with the ability to work flexibly in a changing environment.

Experience - Shortlisting and Interview Criteria

Essential:

• Experience of leading and improving governance, decision making and risk management processes and functions on behalf of an Executive Leadership team
• Ability to solve problems, plan and manage multiple challenges through prioritisation and delegation
• Ability to work under pressure and to respond quickly to changing circumstances and tight timetables as priorities evolve and escalate
• Experience of planning and delivering business plans, projects and business change at pace
• Experience of working at a senior level with diverse internal and external stakeholders
• Experience of developing high performing teams to deliver high-quality and resilient business-as-usual operations
• Experience of building effective cross functional working relationships

Desirable:

• Experience in or an understanding of the research and innovation sector
• An appreciation, based on close management experience, of complex HR issues.
• Business degree and/or project management qualifications, or equivalent relevant experience

Additional Information

Online applications only for this role. Please submit a CV and covering letter to the attachments section (ignore free textbox for cover letter under 'Experience' section) which clearly outlines how you fulfil the criteria specified along with your motivation for the role. Ensure that the job reference number is included in the filename description of each document uploaded. Note that failure to address the above criteria or submit an application without a covering letter may result in the application not being considered. Assessment will only be based upon the content of your submitted covering letter and CV and not the 'Experience' section of the application process.

About The Arts and Humanities Research Council

The AHRC supports world-class research that furthers our understanding of human culture and creativity. It supports research and postgraduate training in a wide range of subject areas, from ancient history and heritage science to modern dance and digital content. Research into these areas helps us to interpret our experiences, probe our identities, interrogate our cultural assumptions and understand our historical, social, economic and political context. It adds to the economic success of the UK, through its contributions to the knowledge economy and innovation agenda. The research we fund can lead to improvements in social and intellectual capital, community identity, learning skills, technological evolution and the quality of life of the nation.

Further details can be found via the following links: https://ahrc.ukri.org/

About UK Research Innovation (UKRI)

UKRI is an organisation that brings together the seven disciplinary research councils, Research England and Innovate UK. Together, we build an independent organisation with a strong voice and vision ensuring the UK maintains its world-leading position in research and innovation.

Supporting some of the world's most exciting and challenging research projects, we develop and operate some of the most remarkable scientific facilities in the world. We are pushing the frontiers of human knowledge through fundamental research and delivering benefits for UK society and the economy through world-class research, skills and business-led innovation.

More information can be found at www.ukri.org .

Choosing to come to work at UKRI means that you will have access to a whole host of benefits from a defined benefit pension scheme, excellent holiday entitlement, access to employee shopping/travel discounts and salary sacrifice cycle to work scheme. For more details, visit benefits of working for UKRI .

The role holder will be required to have the appropriate level of security screening/vetting required for the role. UKRI reserves the right to run or re-run security clearance as required during the course of employment.

How we support EDI in the workforce

At UKRI, we believe that everyone has a right to be treated with dignity and respect, and to be provided with equal opportunities to thrive and succeed in an environment that enables them to do so. We also value diversity of thought and experience within inclusive groups, organisations and the wider community. For further information, please visit 'How we support EDI in the workforce' .

Disability Confident Employer

As users of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy/ies. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

How to apply

Online applications only preferred for this role. Please submit a CV and covering letter which clearly outlines how you fulfil the criteria specified along with your motivation for UKRI and the role. Ensure that the job reference number is included in the filename description of each document uploaded. Note that failure to address the above criteria or submit an application without a covering letter may result in the application not being considered. Assessment will only be based upon the content of your submitted covering letter and CV and not the 'experience' section of the application.

UKRI seeks to ensure it creates and maintains a system of openness, fairness and inclusion - a collaborative, trusted environment, which is attractive to and accessible to everyone who is interested in developing their career with us.