Contracts Team

The Contracts Team comprises of several different roles.

Senior Contract Manager (SCM)

SCMs fulfil the role of the Contract Managers with a focus on the more complex or high-risk negotiations, and are usually the University’s representative in negotiations concerning

• Research Framework Agreements – where a sponsor wishes to engage with the University on a variety of research activities under an over-arching set of terms
• Research Centre Agreements – where the University is establishing a research centre that will have multiple contractual relations with a wide range of partners in a single endeavour
• Centres for Doctoral Training – where the University has a multi-party centre part-funded by industry and part-funded by a research council

SCMs also work closely with the Assistant Directors for each School and will be involved in areas such as policy, strategy, ethics, and liaison with other University offices or sponsors on significant issues. The SCMs are also the authorised signatories for the University on research contracts up to a value of £2million.

Contract Manager (CM)

• Reviews, negotiates and agrees best terms and funding possible for University that support the aims and objectives of the endeavour, and enable the collaboration to flourish
• Assesses risk in key areas, such as intellectual property, publication rights, confidentiality terms, limitations on liability. Also considers risks to the University such as reputational and financial
• Liaises with PIs to understand their research portfolios and obligations, to ensure the negotiation process remains centred on the requirements of the collaboration
• Liaises with departments, sponsors and the wider University to ensure the negotiation takes into account, where necessary, the broader context
• Advises and works with the Contracts Administrators at key stages

Junior Contract Manager (JCM) / Research Contracts Specialist (RCS)

Role and responsibility is similar to the Contracts Managers, but tends to focus on less complex contracts, or those where less contextual analysis is required.

Contracts Administrator (CA)

Supports the contracts managers throughout the negotiation process. Responsibilities include

• Carrying out standard checks on contracts, such as funding value, payment terms, contact details, dates for performance
• Overseeing the administration process of contracts, including liaison with sponsors, departments and principal investigators
• Setting up research codes – each research project’s unique identifier
• Providing general advice on the Research Operations Office and its processes