Research Planning and Operations Manager - Research and Strategy and Services Grade 8

Position Details

Research and Strategy and Services

Location:

University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £47,389 to £56,535 with potential progression once in post to £63,606

Grade: 8

Full Time, Permanent

Closing date: 8th March 2026

People are at the heart of what we are and do.

The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.

We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential. With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide-range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.

Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working. In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme.

We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.

Find out more about the benefits of working for the Universityof Birmingham

The University of Birmingham has an ambitious vision to build on its research excellence and secure its position as a global top 50 university, as set out in the Birmingham 2030 Strategic Framework. The Research Strategy & Services Division (RSSD) plays a central role in delivering this ambition by providing expert, integrated support across the full research lifecycle.

As part of a strategic reorganisation, RSSD has established a new Research Performance & Systems Innovation Team, led by the Assistant Director, RSSD (Head of Research Performance & Systems Innovation). This newly created team has responsibility for research performance oversight, , systems innovation, and research data, and provides strategic leadership of the University’s REF
2029 submission.

The Research Planning & Operations Manager is a key role within the Research Performance & Systems Innovation Team. The post provides senior operational leadership for  research planning activity, translating strategic direction into robust delivery, and ensuring that complex, time‑critical institutional processes are well‑coordinated, high quality, compliant, and delivered to schedule. The postholder will also play a key role in embedding consistent approaches across Colleges, supporting senior leaders with clear guidance, high-quality data and effective operational oversight.

The Research Planning & Operations Manager will support the operational delivery of institutional research planning and , working closely with academic leads, College teams and central Professional Services colleagues.

• As part of the Research Performance & Systems Innovation Team, operational planning and delivery of the University’s REF
  2029 submission, working under the strategic direction of the…