BRC MND Project Manager

Job summary

The NIHR Sheffield BRC (BRC) is a research partnership between Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Sheffield, dedicated to improving the treatment and care of people living with debilitating conditions. Research within the BRC focusses on chronic neurological disorders, cardiovascular disorders, and patients with compromised immunity, chronic inflammatory diseases and emerging infections.

The BRC drives research innovation into tangible benefits for patients and the wider society, whilst enhancing the position of the UK as the preferred partner for experimental medicine collaborations. Clinical research projects take place in conjunction with partners within STHFT and will be supported by the NIHR Sheffield Clinical Research Facility.EXPERTS-ALS is a ground-breaking project that provides a platform to test drugs rapidly for their potential to slow the progression of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS, the commonest form of Motor Neuron Disease (MND)) in people living with ALS. This is done at a pace and scale not previously possible.

Although EXPERTS-ALS cannot prove that a drug does or does not have long-term benefit in MND, it will quickly identify the most promising candidate drugs to go forward into the larger clinical trials needed to test this. This is an £8m investment in MND research by the National Institute for Health & Care Research (NIHR) through the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).

Main duties of the job

The post holder will provide key project management for the EXPERTS-ALS Programme with a specific focus on research capacity development (WS3) and the pipelines of investigational medicinal products prioritized for use in the platform (WS1).

Developing the next generation of researchers is a fundamental part of research capacity development in EXPERTS-ALS. Our funded early career researchers (ECRs) support the study, but we have made it our mission to ensure that those working on EXPERTS-ALS have access to opportunities beyond that of their day-to-day research.

The post holder will take a lead role in working with investigators and CTRUs to support the pipeline of IMPs entering the platform. This role will support the delivery of a continuous pipeline of drugs for the platform trial using the best available evidence from pre-clinical models and a wide range of data resources, including genomics, AI drug discovery programs and evidence from other neurodegenerative diseases.

The primary goal of this is to select the most appropriate compounds for prioritisation in EXPERTS-ALS, based on disease relevance, safety profile and central nervous system penetration. Furthermore, data from ECR projects delivered WS3 in response to drugs can be fed back to preclinical modelling in WS1 to identify new, or refine existing, pathways of disease relevance, and ultimately those which best predict a positive outcome in Phase III trials.

About us

You will be working for an organisation which values and respects all of its staff and the community it serves. The Trust is a leader in the NHS and research sectors and provides excellent benefits for its employees. This includes commitments to professional development but also many policies to support employees in balancing their personal and professional lives.

This vacancy is advertised on a fixed term contract basis for a period until 30/09/2028 due to the post being externally funded. The fixed term contract status of the post holder will be reviewed in accordance with the Trust's legal obligations regarding fixed term contracts taking into consideration the ongoing source of the external funding and the requirement for the post to be maintained.

Please note all existing NHS staff will only be considered on a secondment basis. This must first be agreed with your current line manager.

Job responsibilities

Please view the attached Job Description and Person Specification documents for full details regarding this post.

When completing your application please ensure that you clearly demonstrate how you meet the role criteria.

Person specification

Education and Qualifications

Essential

• MSc level qualification in health related or biomedical science or equivalent through training and research experience.

Desirable

• Educated to PhD level in Health/ Biomedical Sciences/ Neuroscience related subject or equivalent experience

Experience

Essential

• Significant experience of clinical research in the NHS, Academic or commercial environment
• Experience of the submission and approval process for set up of clinical research trials
• Experience of Project management of complex clinical trials
• Experience of managing grant submissions and awards
• Experience of report writing and contributing to annual reporting
• Experience of working independently and as part of a team
• Experience of working collaboratively with internal and external partners
• Experience in chairing multi-disciplinary meetings
• Experience of process development to improve the efficiency and quality of the service delivered
• Experience of finding and initiating new collaboration opportunities with external organisations
• Experience of monitoring a budget and reporting on spend

Desirable

• Experience of managing and/or mentoring colleagues

Skills and Knowledge

Essential

• Knowledge of research processes and research methods applicable to healthcare setting
• Ability to acquire in-depth knowledge of trial protocols and to communicate this to professionals and lay persons
• Knowledge of research legislation including research governance, GCP, Medicines for Human use (Clinical Trials) Regulations, Data Protection, Human Tissue Act, Mental Capacity Act
• Ability to interpret and communicate highly complex information effectively at all levels and overcome barriers to understanding
• Knowledge of research funding systems
• Understanding and commitment to the need for information governance and confidentiality

Desirable

• Knowledge of NHS and University infrastructure, policies, procedures aims and objectives
• Knowledge of existing regional and national research initiatives, infrastructures, and work groups

Personal Qualities

Essential

• Excellent attention to detail, whilst maintaining the ability to see the bigger picture
• Leadership skills and the ability to motivate others and demonstrate honesty and integrity
• Experience of PC applications such as Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Access, using skills at an advanced level of expertise
• Ability to build successful working relations and rapport with a wide variety of individuals from a range of roles

Desirable

• Ability to develop and adapt ways of working in line with strategic objectives