Phase III

Peter Haynes - Vice Provost (Education and Student Experience) (Joint Chair)

Mary Ryan - Vice Provost (Research and Enterprise) (Joint Chair)

Daniel Mitelpunkt - Digital Media Laboratory

Jeremy Cohen – Research Software Engineers

Alan Spivey – Associate Provost (Learning and Teaching)

Pat Evans - Facilities Managers

Patrick Brown (Instrument Engineers)

Liz Elvidge (or her representative) - Early Career Researchers

Finn Giuliani, Professor of Structural Ceramics/Academic Facility Manager

Julie King Centre of Academic English

Ana Costa-Pereira, Centre for Languages, Culture & Communication

Richard Fitzjohn, Principal Architect Research Software Engineer

Daniela Olivera Mesa, Technical Analyst.

Laura Lane, Graduate School

Richard Banks – Director of the IDEA Lab (Business School)

Beatriz Jiminez - NMR Facility Manager (FoM)

Nik Matthews - Genomics Facility (FoM)

Tim Venables – Faculty Operating Officer (FoE)

Nicholas Johnson – Research Fellow (FoM)

During the February meeting, the Working Group discussed what the common characteristics of specialist roles should be. These characteristics will form the Guiding Principles for identifying, both fairly and transparently, which roles fall within the scope of this job family across Imperial. The Working Group reviewed some of the requirements of current job descriptions to aid this discussion.

Characteristics agreed upon so far included:

• The job requires knowledge that requires specialist training/qualifications, which are specifically recruited for and cannot be learned on the job.
• The individual has expertise they use to drive development and innovation in their field independently (as opposed to following protocol).
• In connection with their drive for innovation, roles may make significant contributions to writing grant proposals and may also publish.
• This job family would likely encompass roles at levels 3b to 6.

The Working Group stated that specialist roles can include researchers who are not necessarily PIs or running a research group, but still demonstrate the above characteristics.

The Working Group also discussed ensuring the job family is developed to fully recognise those with vital and specialist skills, and the work of individuals within it, to optimise their development at Imperial.

The meeting ended with discussions around the Workstream membership.

During the March meeting, the Working Group agreed on a definition for the identifying criteria for specialist roles, which was added to the Terms of Reference.

The group finalised the workstream membership and considered potential tasks that would be helpful for the workstream to undertake. It was felt that the Workstream’s input in producing general Role Profiles for the Specialist job family would be useful – this would help identify similarities/consistencies across different jobs in different areas that still sit within this job family.

It was also discussed how the ‘Specialist’ job family may fit into the current PTO structure as a fourth stream.

It was felt that the career progression of these Specialist roles (both the roles and the individuals who fill them) needs careful consideration. These individuals hold expertise that is critical to Imperial’s Academic mission; therefore, ensuring that they are appropriately supported was considered vital, both for their personal progression and for their beneficial contribution to the University. It was felt that clear guidance on this should be an outcome of this Phase, including time for Professional Development.

There was further discussion around which roles would be appropriate in this Job Family. It was also felt that some individuals are misrepresented by their job titles; they are in specialist roles with general job titles (e.g., Facilities Manager) - these individuals need to be captured and included. Post-docs were also discussed in terms of relevance to this job family.  

It was agreed that a standard language for discussing these roles and their associated attributes would be beneficial.

The workstream started with introductions and a review of the Terms of Reference of the wider Working Group.

There were discussions about whether job titles or job content determine what falls within the specialist job family, with clarity that content will be the deciding factor. Classifying the roles correctly is important to prevent them from getting lost.

It was felt that progression needs careful consideration, specifically progressing these specialist skills in a way that does not drive greater investment of time in research at the expense of other enabling responsibilities. Furthermore, the responsibilities that contribute to progression for PTO staff (i.e., line management or monetary responsibilities) were discussed, including whether these should remain for specialist roles. It was also recognised that removing these may discourage people from taking on these responsibilities.

Probation periods were also discussed, including whether 3 months is enough time to assess the individual's level of expertise and potential. 

The group also covered Fixed Term contracts, considering the impact of these roles, which, due to the nature of the work, function in this way (although individuals who have been with the university for over 4 years are placed on open-ended contracts).

The ‘innovation’ aspect of the job family and how it may look different across roles were discussed. It was felt, however, that there will always be ‘blurred lines’ with the characteristics set out for the job family – these cannot be prescriptive. Realistically, some roles may sit less comfortably within this workstream than others – a situation that already exists within the university.

Lastly, the workstream was tasked with producing role profiles for Levels 4 and 5 within the specialist job family.

At the June Workstream meeting, attendees, in groups, presented and discussed their initial efforts to complete the Role Profiles template. They captured some of the requirements they would expect to see at Levels 4 and 5 in ‘Specialist’ roles, whilst also highlighting concerns with the current structures.

Various themes emerged when considering what would be expected at these levels, including whether there should be consistency between what is expected at grades within the Specialist job family and other job families. An example discussed was management responsibilities - it was recognised that other types of management, such as line management, have valid consideration when it comes to the level of responsibilities, such as management of finances and/or facilities.

It was mentioned that expertise and seniority do not always correlate in specialist roles (as may be expected in other roles – i.e. in some cases, those junior in their field may have received the most up-to-date training on new specialist skills). Therefore, a non-standard approach to progression (and potentially pay) may be needed.

There was consensus across the workstream that those in these specialist roles have an external reputation and are expected to attend relevant external events/conferences.

In terms of qualifications, it was felt that being qualified to PhD level may not be necessary for specialist skills, and that experience/alternative relevant training may be just as relevant.

Additionally, there were reflections that a wide range of roles may fall within the Specialist job stream; therefore, fitting these within the criteria in the Role Profiles is challenging. Because of this, using ‘pillars’ to structure the Role Profiles may be useful to aid flexibility. Additionally, specific discourse may be useful when describing these roles.

There was much discussion about some of the contentions in the current structure – this included discussions about visibility, budget restrictions (and subsequent hiring implications), and general worries about ensuring the established criteria capture the roles they're supposed to.   

It was felt that, following initial discussions, the workstream would benefit from repeating the Role Profiles task to focus on what is needed for the roles, rather than on what does not currently work.

Following these discussions, the workstream reviewed representative Job Descriptions for specialist roles within their area, identifying skills, requirements, and language that appeared relevant across other specialist roles.

The Specialist job family Characteristics, originally established by the Working Group, were reviewed again, and amendments were suggested for the Working Group to consider.

The June meeting began with an update on what was discussed at the March Working Group meeting; previously, the group established Specialist stream characteristics to guide which roles fall within scope, and decided that it would be useful for the Workstream to try to fill out Role Profiles for the Specialist stream.

Following this, a summary was provided of the discussions that had taken place in the Workstream (probation times and Fixed-Term contracts, expectations for Specialist roles, and how innovation fits in) as well as the outcomes of the Role Profiles task. Key themes/questions from the role profiles task included consideration of how the Specialist job family aligns with other job families, how management may be unconventional within this stream (given the focus on expertise), and expectations regarding external profiles.

The Working Group further discussed the need to implement an appropriate promotions process in the Specialist stream, how longer probation periods might work, and how to ensure a sense of belonging within the job family. The question was also raised about how individuals would be reviewed and transferred to the Specialist job family.

The group revisited the Specialist job family characteristics, which had also been commented on by the Workstream, and made some further amendments.

The group reviewed the Professor of Practice position to see whether it would be an appropriate route within the Specialist job family. Upon review and discussion, it was felt that it would not be an appropriate fit as an aspirational route (though individuals could still pursue this through the usual promotion processes).

The group will meet again in September to continue discussions.

During the July meeting of the Workstream, it was shared that the Workstream Members’ views on the roles of Level 4 and 5 individuals had been collated and combined with more general language to create full job profiles. These job profiles were then extended to appropriately cover Level 3B and 6 roles by boosting the language and adjusting the expectations and responsibilities. Workstream members were encouraged to share comments and provide additional perspectives on the new profiles.  

The group discussed the expectations and opportunities, or lack thereof, around progression and promotion for individuals who fall within this remit. There was discussion around at which grade Co-PI and PI responsibilities and opportunities are both available and/or expected. It was agreed that further clarity would be needed for staff affected by these profiles to ensure expectations are managed and progression opportunities are made clear.   

The group considered how these job profiles could be translated locally into specific job descriptions to ensure that the wording does not cater too heavily to a particular job family, while allowing flexibility in shaping department-specific job roles and expectations. There was agreement that, while wording should be aligned and recognisable across most roles, a glossary that clarifies terminology in the context of the central department would be useful and support line managers in creating realistic, aligned job descriptions and promoting clear conversations in the ARC process.   

There was a brief discussion on how to address staff who fall within this remit, taking on responsibilities above their grade before promotion, specifically new staff given additional tasks beyond the original duties advertised within their role. It was outlined that, from a recruitment perspective, the new job profiles would ensure that roles were appointed at the correct grade from the outset. However, it was generally expected in other job families with personal promotion that colleagues demonstrate they are capable of operating at the grade to which they apply for promotion. 

This dialogue will inform the job profiles shared with and discussed by the Working Group at the next meeting, scheduled for August.

The meeting began with an update on progress since the last session. The previously reviewed role profiles for Levels 4 and 5 were shared with the Working Group and reviewed alongside the Level 3B and Level 6 job profiles, which had been developed since the last Working Group meeting with guidance from the workstreams.  

 The Working Group reviewed and agreed upon the new Specialist Role Profiles for Grades 3B–6. It was acknowledged that while the profiles outline general expectations and themes for each Level, not all responsibilities listed would apply to every role covered by the descriptors. 

 Key discussion points included: 

• The consistent inclusion of Safety and Wellbeing across all Levels. 

• Expectations regarding individual contributions and reputations both within their fields and across Imperial. 

• Minor refinements to wording and the sequence of points within the profiles. 

The group also discussed the implications of the Research Excellence Framework (REF) and grant costing for these roles. It was agreed that these profiles indicate a contribution to research outputs; therefore, budgeting should account for this work. 

 A major point of discussion was whether Technical Specialist Role Profiles should be part of an existing job family or constitute a separate one. The consensus was that a standalone job family would more appropriately reflect distinct career paths and progression routes. This will inform ongoing PTO&L Framework Review discussions.