Imperial PRISM community of practice

PRISMs are no strangers to navigating complex research landscapes and balancing diverse stakeholder needs. From setting up new projects, to agreeing governance and reporting frameworks, or re-engaging stakeholders who’ve drifted mid-project, managing relationships and coordinating key activities can present some sticky challenges. A clear and structured approach to stakeholder management and communications is essential for anyone leading or supporting research initiatives.

Join Code-Switch Consultants on 11 June at Imperial College London for a practical, full-day workshop created especially for Imperial PRISMs. Combining insights from your own challenges with our cross-sector experience in consultancy, project delivery and strategic planning, we’ll share fresh, actionable strategies to help you engage more effectively and communicate with impact.

We’ll start from the basics but build quickly. With expert facilitators and speakers, we’ll bring the latest thinking, diverse tools and perspectives to help you identify the most effective stakeholder and communication strategies for your projects. Together, we’ll refresh your existing skills and explore new ideas to help you navigate even the trickiest stakeholder landscapes with clarity and confidence.

This course is designed and organised by Anna Brady of Code-Switch Consultants. It is in person only. 

To register, please fill in this form by 3 June 2025. Any questions, contact Isabella von Holstein. 

18 March (full-day, online) & 8 May (full-day, online)   

This 2-day bootcamp will emphasise hands-on learning, enabling participants to gain practical experience with cutting-edge AI technologies and tools, while understanding responsible AI use in research environments. The two-day intensive training is designed to provide research managers with transformative skills that can immediately be applied to their professional research management practices, bridging the gap between traditional research management approaches and emerging AI technologies for efficient workflow.

We anticipate the training will be relevant to Imperial colleagues in the following roles (the list is not exhaustive, of course!): Research Development/Grant Proposal Managers, Centre Managers, Operations Managers, Research Office, Comms Managers, Innovations Managers, Engagement Managers, Knowledge Exchange Managers, and others.    

Core training areas:

• Data privacy and research integrity in the AI era
• Generative AI tools for research management, prompting best practices
• Grant management techniques using AI
• Advanced AI communication techniques for research dissemination
• Practical AI tool customisation for everyday workflow (including creating custom GPTs)
• Funding analytics and research strategy development

The course is delivered by Avi Staiman, CEO of Academic Language Experts, a world-renowned AI trainer for researchers and research managers.

To register, please fill in this form by 7 May 2025; the link and further instructions will be sent to you closer to the training. Any questions, contact Dr Marina Lomberg.

Wednesday 30 April 2025, 13.00–16.00 with lunch at 12.30

25 places only

Behind every business case is a set of strategic and tactical decision-making conversations that require contributions from multiple parties.

This focused and practical workshop takes you through the formal steps behind each of the 10 elements of a business case: problem statement, opportunity assessment and justification, objectives and goals, alternatives and options, cost-benefit analysis, risk assessment, timeline and implementation plan, stakeholder analysis, sensitivity (cost, timeline and resources) analysis, measurement metrics and KPIs. 

In this workshop you will practice developing:

• Value propositions
• Business model canvas
• Problem statements
• Project risk criteria
• SWOT analysis.

These all contribute to the development of a robust business case.

In the workshop, you will apply the theory to a current project case study, with time to critically analyse the best way to use each tool effectively in your own setting.  

You will leave the workshop with a set of efficient and effective processes that allow your stakeholders to create a clarity of direction and agreed approaches, that enable you to build  and communicate a robust business case.

The course is delivered by Caroline Broad of Broad Associates, who regularly delivers training with the Imperial Early Career Researcher Institute. 

To register, please fill in this form by 20 April 2025. Any questions, contact Isabella von Holstein.

Tuesday 13 May 2025, 13.00–16.00 with lunch at 12.30

25 places only

To enable projects with Industrial partners, PRISMs are often required to influence and facilitate:

• Shared expectations of all parties
• A cohesive communicative functioning cross organisation team
• The engagement of the unengaged
• Shared ownership in Project Management responsibilities.

Using case studies generated by the PRISM community, we will apply best practice models and frameworks to projects with industrial partners.  We will discuss how these practices can be utilised to solve knowledge exchange and relationship challenges in your own projects.

You will leave the workshop with a set of methodologies that systemise in problem solving of and enable the effective knowledge exchange and relationship management with a focus on projects with industry partners.

• Skills development
• An approach to overcome the disconnect and differences between academics and their industry counterparts
• A model to Influence without authority
• A negotiation tool to help key stakeholders commit resource.

Whether the challenge is PI engagement, effective knowledge exchange between industry and academia, commitment to project management or strategic decision making, this interactive and pragmatic workshop offers you a systematic approach, whilst utilising your existing skills and experience, to enable more successful knowledge exchange and relationship management.

The course is delivered by Caroline Broad of Broad Associates, who regularly delivers training with the Imperial Early Career Researcher Institute. 

To register, please fill in this form by 8 May 2025. Any questions, contact Isabella von Holstein.

The Center for Scientific Collaboration and Community Engagement (CSCCE) is hosting a three-hour interactive workshop to introduce members of the Imperial PRISM Community of Practice to key concepts related to community engagement in STEM. The training will cover topics such as the CSCCE’s community participation model and how to “scaffold” participation. 

Workshop outcomes
After this session, you will be able to:

• Describe the key aspects of community that encourage participation: shared purpose, belonging, culture, and power
• Identify the people and groups who are both directly and indirectly involved with the community as builders, backers, beneficiaries or bystanders
• Describe how common challenges and complexities of community-building relate to purpose, belonging, culture and power
• Identify the different types of “members” interacting with and within the community and potential barriers to their participation
• Identify examples of scaffolding that can support participation and movement across the Community Participation Model 

Workshop outline

Part 1: Who is your community for? Considering purpose, belonging, culture and power

We will begin by thinking about what “community” does (and doesn’t) mean. We will explore important aspects of communities including purpose, belonging, culture and power and describe who makes up our communities.

Part 2: Pathways to engagement

Next, we will focus on how we can support engagement and movement across the CSCCE Community Participation Model using scaffolding, “the supportive information, activities, and processes that address barriers to member participation and ensure that all members can access and engage in community programming.”

Part 3: The role of community champions

Finally, we will explore how community champions can help maintain, grow and evolve your communities (and help create scaffolding!). We will conclude by revisiting purpose, belonging, culture and power in our communities and reflecting on how participants’ thinking may have shifted since beginning the workshop.

To register, please fill in this form by 19 May 2025. Any questions, contact Isabella von Holstein.

Useful links

• CSCCE’s core values
• CSCCE’s Community Participation guidelines
• CSCCE’s virtual event safety policies and reporting
• CSCCE’s Mini-Workshop logistics sheet