JOB DESCRIPTION
Post:
Section Administrator (Maternity Cover or Secondment
opportunity)
Job Family/Level:
Professional Services, Level 3b
Salary:
£33,590 - £41,540 per annum
Institute:
National Heart and Lung Institute
Division:
Cardiovascular or Respiratory Science
Location:
Royal Brompton, South Kensington & St Mary’s campuses
Contract:
Fixed term for up to 6 months
Reports to:
Divisional Manager
Key Working Relationships:
All senior academic staff and other research staff,
research students and technical staff.
Heads of Sections, Departments and Divisions across and
their Administrators; College finance officers; Human
Resources and Registry staff, and Campus Administration.
Liaison with numerous visitors, colleagues and
collaborators, both national and international. Liaison with
external funding bodies.
Summary of Post
The role of the Section Administrator is to organise, support and maintain the administration
and general management of the academic groups in their remit and ensure that they run
smoothly.
The Administrator is responsible for overall administration of the academic groups and their
research, financial management, recruitment of staff, and associated liaison with Institute
administrators, Joint Research Office, HR staff, and also assisting Section Heads with various
planning and management tasks.
Duties and Responsibilities:
General Management


To ensure that administrative support runs efficiently and effectively
To be innovative in amending working practices and methods to support and
improve academic efficiency to develop the infrastructure of the sections






To help to resolve complex and difficult administrative issues and problems with
minimal input from senior academics and line manager
To be the first point of contact and communicate and co-ordinate collection of
selected relevant information to appropriate members of staff at all levels
To arrange and attend section management meetings as required, taking minutes
and keeping records and attend Campus Management meetings as the
representative for their research groups as required
To undertake administrative arrangements for placement of students and visiting
Fellows/Professors
To work independently and collaboratively to oversee all administrative procedures
relating to post-graduate students
Actively check the research groups’ compliance with college policies and advise
managers where improvements are required.
Research Management



To support Principal Investigators (PIs) in the preparation of all grant and contract
applications. This will include acting as a delegate to PI’s on the College’s InfoEd
grant submission programme, completing the InfoEd costing process, seeking
appropriate approval for the application
Support Section Heads with strategic grant management, supplying reports on
grant activity and planned applications
To support the investigators by managing awarded grants in conjunction with the
Joint Research Office and Institute Administrators. This involves the monthly
monitoring of grants via an Oracle based management system and providing
updated information, discussion of best use of funds to support the activities
Finance






To monitor income and expenditure for the research groups, particularly for
individual research projects, contracts and other sources of income and liaise and
interact with the Institute administrators, including the Finance Manager
To provide and circulate guidance on expenditure to members of the research
groups
Approve requisitions on the ICIS finance system ensuring all orders adhere to the
college financial regulations and purchasing rules
To monitor and authorise expense claims where they are in line with College
policy, re-charging projects and other accounts as appropriate
To train and keep updated nominated staff to become familiar with the ICIS
(Oracle management) financial system to enable backup when the users are
absent
To train nominated staff and keep them up to date with the relevant ICIS (Oracle
management) financial system so that they can provide cover when regular users
are absent.
HR



To coordinate recruitment. This includes finalising the job description and person
specification in liaison with the line manager, sending to Divisional Manager for
approval and liaising with HR on subsequent recruitment and selection activities
To ensure the timely monitoring of staff funding and the support and arrangement
of the redundancy consultation with the line manager
Promote awareness and ensure compliance of all HR polices including all absence
and leave procedures





To liaise with the Divisional Manager and HR regarding the appointment of
academic staff
To advise staff within the research groups on College recruitment and selection
procedures and required training for panel members
To liaise with Institute Administration in relation to the financial and administrative
aspects of staffing matters
To ensure starters and leavers complete appropriate paperwork and new staff are
inducted appropriately
To maintain all relevant files and records
To observe and comply with all College policies and regulations, including the key
policies and procedures on Confidentiality, Conflict of Interest, Data Protection, Equal
Opportunities, Financial Regulations, Health and Safety, Imperial Expectations (for new
leaders, managers and supervisors), Information Technology, Private Engagements
and Register of Interests, and Smoking.
To undertake specific safety responsibilities relevant to individual roles, as set out on
the College Website Health and Safety Structure and Responsibilities page
(http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/safety/policies/organisationandarrangements).
Job descriptions cannot be exhaustive and the post-holder may be required to
undertake other duties, which are broadly in line with the above key responsibilities.
Imperial College is committed to equality of opportunity and to eliminating
discrimination. All employees are expected to adhere to the principles set out in its
Equal Opportunities in Employment Policy, Promoting Race Equality Policy and all
other relevant guidance/practice frameworks.
IMPERIAL COLLEGE LONDON
PERSON SPECIFICATION
Imperial Expectations
These are the 7 principles that Imperial leaders, managers and supervisors are expected to
follow:
1) Champion a positive approach to change and opportunity
2) Communicate regularly and effectively within, and across, teams
3) Consider the thoughts and expectations of others
4) Deliver positive outcomes
5) Encourage inclusive participation and eliminate discrimination
6) Support and develop staff to optimise talent
7) Work in a planned and managed way
Qualifications:
Essential
 A degree or relevant vocational qualification, or equivalent experience
Experience
Essential
 Experience of managing budgets, financial reporting and providing sound financial
management advice to budget holders
 Demonstrable success in a similar post
Desirable
 Experience of recruitment, interview and selection process and procedures
 Experience of working in the Higher Education sector, or for the NHS or a research
funding body
 Experience with Oracle database software
Skills and Abilities
Essential
 Competent with Microsoft Office applications
 Ability to develop effective working relationships with all levels of staff, students and
external contacts
 Excellent organisational skills
 Ability to manage own workload, prioritise and work under pressure
 Excellent written and verbal communication skills
 A high level of accuracy and consistent attention to detail
 Ability to work independently and as part of a team, as required
 Ability to quickly establish strong working relationships with a wide range of people
and at all levels
 A high standard of numeracy, as well as the ability to interpret financial information
and communicate it to academic and research staff
 The ability to handle confidential information with tact, discretion and diplomacy
 Ability to own and resolve problems using own initiative where necessary
Desirable
 Knowledge of FEC and grant costing
 Ability to pick up new software quickly


Ability to develop new management systems
Webpage development skills
Other
 An open and positive attitude to working in a constantly changing environment
 Willingness to travel between campuses as necessary
 Willingness to undertake any necessary training for the role