Appointment brief Appointment of College Secretary Imperial College London
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Appointment brief Appointment of College Secretary Imperial College London
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CONTENTS
1. About Imperial
2. Strategy 2020 – 2025
3. Imperial locations
4. Faculties
5. Education and research
6. Equality, diversity and inclusion
7. The Role
8. Person Specification
9. Terms of Appointment
10. How to Apply
Imperial College London | College Secretary
SB Imperial College London | College Secretary
SB About Imperial Imperial College London’s mission is to achieve enduring excellence in research and education in science, engineering, medicine, and business for the benefit of society. Imperial College London is one of the world’s greatest universities, renowned for its ground-breaking research, talented community of staff, students and alumni and its international reach. With a mission to achieve enduring excellence in research and education in science, engineering, medicine and business for the benefit of society, the College was founded in 1907 in South Kensington, bringing together nineteenth-century institutions including the Royal College of Science, the Royal School of Mines and City and Guilds College. Today, Imperial collaborates extensively with neighbouring institutions, including the Royal College of Art and the Royal College of Music. From its location in this great cultural quarter, Imperial provides one of the world’s best educations in STEM subjects for more than 19,000 students, over half of whom come from overseas, reflecting its status as the UK’s most international university. Its alumni and members also include 14 Nobel laureates and three Fields Medallists. Throughout its history, the College has been involved in many major breakthroughs, including the discovery of penicillin and the creation of the hologram. This tradition has continued with recent innovations such as wirelessly transferring power to drones in flight, the discovery of a new form of light and major new research in climate change, amongst much else. Imperial has four academic faculties – Engineering, Medicine and Natural Sciences, and the Imperial College Business School – as well as a significant number of interdisciplinary research centres focusing on challenging world problems. The College’s mission is supported by 8,500 highly diverse staff, who collaborate widely in the UK and internationally, often across disciplines. In 2019-2020, the College had a total turnover of £1.026 billion, of which £452 million directly supported research through grants and contracts. The College’s 2020-2025 Strategy is built on underpinning foundations that make Imperial a great academic institution and the talented, diverse and inspirational people who help make up our university community. The College’s success is recognised all over the world, and is evidenced by daily coverage of Imperial discoveries and innovations in the international media. For the latest annual report click the following link: Annual-Report-and-Accounts Imperial College London | College Secretary
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Imperial College London’s mission is to achieve enduring excellence in
research and education in science, engineering, medicine and business for
the benefit of society.
Imperial College London | College SecretarySB
Our Strategy 2020 – 2025
Our strategy is built on underpinning foundations that make Imperial a great academic institution and
talented, diverse and inspiration people who make up our university community. Our partners make our
work possible and help us to deliver the benefit to society through our research and education. Enablers
help us to deliver our strategy.
Foundations
• We will continue to specialise in science, engineering, medicine and business. This is the
foundation of which we build our future.
• We will maintain world class core academic disciplines. All research and education must be
underpinned by a deep understanding of the fundamentals.
• We will encourage multidisciplinary research. Only by bringing together expertise from different
disciplines can we solve today’s global challenges.
• We will embed our educational experience in a vibrant, research-led, entrepreneurial environment.
By learning alongside researchers who are experts in their fields our students gain the practical,
entrepreneurial, and intellectual skills to tackle societal problems.
People
• We will build a supportive, inclusive and highly motivated staff community across all disciplines,
functions and activities. This will help us to attract and retain the talented and diverse staff we
need to achieve our mission.
• We will enrich the student experience. Providing a broad range of activities, services and support
for our students beyond their studies helps them to develop wider talents and to be successful.
• We will build strong relationships with our alumni and friends. This lifelong exchange of ideas and
support benefits all of us.
Partners
• We will strengthen collaboration with business, academia, and non-profit, healthcare and
government institutions across the globe. No university can achieve excellence or realise the full
benefits of its work by itself.
• We will inform decision makers to influence policy. Our excellence, breadth of knowledge,
connections and London location allow us to bring together and inform key decision makers in
governments and industries for the benefit of society.
• We will share the wonder and importance of what we do. Collaboration with the public, schools
and out local communities fosters a shared passion for and understanding of our work.
Enablers
• We will strengthen and diversify revenues. Delivering our mission requires investment in our staff,
students and facilities.
• We will provide professional support, consistent processes and appropriate technology for all of
our staff and students. The pursuit of excellence in research and education requires excellence in
all that we do.
• We will act courageously and innovatively when pursuing new opportunities. We need to take
academic and financial risks to sustain excellence in research and education.
For further details on our Strategy 2020 – 2025 click the following link: strategy-2020-2025
Imperial College London | College SecretarySB
Imperial Locations
While Imperial’s main campus is located in South opportunities, develop talent and make tangible
Kensington, it has six other locations in London improvements in areas like education,
based at Charing Cross, Chelsea and employment, enterprise and health. Two
Westminster, Hammersmith, Northwick Park, cornerstones of this effort are the Invention
the Royal Brompton, and St Mary’s hospitals. Rooms and the new School of Public Health, both
exciting and important ways for us to work with
The College also has the Silwood Park Campus our local communities.
near Ascot, focusing on ecology, evolution and
conservation. The new Michael Uren Biomedical Engineering
Research Hub, also at White City, co-locates
Alongside these, the White City Campus is engineers, scientists and doctors in order to help
Imperial’s new 20-acre development in West solve complex medical challenges. Made possible
London, a planned £2 billion investment that through a generous donation of £40 million from
brings together world-class researchers, Sir Michael Uren, an Imperial alumnus, it opened
businesses and partners from academia to work, in 2019.
share ideas and turn cutting-edge research into
benefits for society. At Imperial, we have a global footprint, too. The
College established a new medical school, the
The campus is located in the heart of White City, Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, in
one of London’s most exciting, dynamic and partnership with Nanyang Technological
rapidly changing neighbourhoods. The area is University, in Singapore, and admitted its first
home to pioneers in arts, culture, innovation, students in 2013. We also have many highly
science and learning – organisations like BBC successful academic collaborations with
Media Village and the Royal College of Art. institutions around the world, ranging from
biomedical imaging with Tsinghua University in
We’re committed to making a positive impact, Beijing to quantum computing with MIT in
working with the local community to create new Boston.
Imperial College London | College SecretarySB
Faculties
Imperial’s research and teaching is organised within a network of faculties and academic departments.
Imperial currently has the following four faculties:
Faculty of Engineering Faculty of Natural Sciences
The Faculty of Engineering is unique in the UK in The Faculty of Natural Sciences fully embraces
supporting world-class education and teaching and research activities across core
fundamental research across the full range of scientific disciplines.
engineering disciplines. The Faculty is led by the
Dean and is home to over 1,700 staff and over The Faculty is led by the Dean and it employs
8,000 students. approximately 1,200 staff and has 5,000
students.
Faculty of Medicine
The Faculty of Medicine brings together eight Imperial College Business School
departments based across several campuses to Imperial College Business School combines
create a world-class teaching and research cutting-edge thinking and insight with new
environment. The Faculty is led by the Dean and technology to develop innovative solutions to
is home to around 2,500 staff and 4,000 real-world problems. The Business School is led
students. by the Dean and employs around 300 staff and
delivers education programmes to 2,200
postgraduate students.
Imperial College London | College SecretarySB Imperial College London | College Secretary
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Education and Research
Imperial is a top global university thanks to its to the big scientific questions and tackle global
cutting-edge and influential research. Students challenges.
come here to learn from, and work with, some of
the best researchers currently working in their Our research is also defined by its
field. We also aim to create a globally leading internationalism, innovation and impact. Two-
learning and teaching environment – students thirds of it involves an international collaborator,
who want to make their mark in the world can spanning more than 130 countries, making us
learn the skills to do this at Imperial. the UK’s most international university.
The College’s Learning and Teaching Strategy is And our talented staff don’t just cross borders;
connected directly to its overall strategy, and they transcend traditional academic disciplines to
seeks to embed learning in a vibrant, research- tackle major societal issues. Challenges like
led and entrepreneurial environment, as well as climate change, future energy supplies, antibiotic
enriching the student experience. resistance and national security can only be
tackled by bringing together highly collaborative,
Matching innovative pedagogy with cutting-edge multidisciplinary teams. Such partnerships
online and digital technology, the College’s aim require patience and curiosity and thrive in
for its graduates is that they will: environments in which the facilities and research
ethos are outstanding.
• demonstrate deep conceptual
understanding of their discipline and Over the past year, Imperial has brought its
work effectively in multi-cultural, world-leading expertise to the frontline of the
international teams and across COVID-19 pandemic. Our work has ranged from
disciplinary boundaries; the COVID-19 Response Team, who have worked
with health services and governments around
• approach challenges with curiosity, the world to plan responses to the pandemic, to
critical thinking and creativity, and apply large-scale socio-behavioural research projects
their skills to tackling complex real-world and public and community involvement
problems; initiatives.
• understand and value different cultures There are many strands to a world-class research
and perspectives while developing into university. Imperial undertakes fundamental,
independent learners, and displaying a discovery-led research while encouraging
strong sense of personal and technology transfer, policy interventions, start-
professional integrity. ups and industry connections. A commitment to
excellence in all of these underpins everything
When it comes to research, at Imperial we share we do.
ideas, expertise and technology to find answers
Imperial College London | College SecretarySB Imperial College London | College Secretary
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Equality, diversity and inclusion
As a leading institution in the heart of London, Why embracing equality, diversity and
Imperial College proudly upholds a longstanding inclusion matters
commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion.
Valuing the diversity of our community is one of Embracing equality, diversity and inclusion is not
the four cornerstones of our recent strategy and simply a matter of complying with the law,
we further inclusion and equality through though clearly we are bound by its provisions.
numerous formal and informal practices across Nor is it simply a matter of social justice, though
our institution. as a public institution it is absolutely right that we
should strive to be representative of the society
Our aim is to embed equality, diversity, and we serve. Nor is it an alternative to traditional
inclusion into all of our work at Imperial. We take notions of excellence.
pride in our declared mission “to achieve
enduring excellence in research and education in Rather, our commitment to equality, diversity
science, engineering, medicine and business for and inclusion recognises the fact that excellence
the benefit of society.” This reflects our civic role comes in forms that are changing as fast as
as a repository for knowledge and culture, as an changes in society. If Imperial is to thrive in a
institution that fosters independent and critical world that has never been more diverse and
reflection, and as an agent of positive societal inter-dependent, and to play its full part in
change. advancing social progress and mobility through
research, teaching, clinical practice,
As a university, we are defined by our community entrepreneurship, outreach and public
of staff and students. Therefore, we will only engagement, we must become more cognisant of
succeed in our mission by cultivating an the benefits that will flow from moving equality,
environment that respects, supports and diversity and inclusion to the heart of our
celebrates all the people who come to Imperial, institution.
enabling them to enrich the world and their own
lives through work and study.
Imperial College London | College SecretarySB
The Role
Responsible to: The President and the Chair of Council
Directly Responsible for:
• Central Secretariat
• Director of Safety
• Director of Risk Management
• Director of Legal Services
• Research Integrity Officer
• Executive Assistant
Key Working Relationships (internal):
• Members of President’s and Provost’s Board
• Members of Council and Council Committees
• Heads of Academic Departments
• Heads of Academic and Support Services
• Senior staff within Imperial College Union
Key Working Relationships (external):
• Senior managers from other higher education institutions
• Senior representatives from statutory authorities
• The College’s internal auditors
The Purpose of the Role
The College Secretary to Imperial College, and Clerk to its Council and Court, two primary roles with a range
of responsibilities:
i. The College Secretary is one of the College’s principal officers and members of the leadership
team, with particular responsibility for governance and legal compliance. The Secretary has
management responsibility for legal services, safety, risk management and the governance of
research integrity.
ii. The Clerk to Council, organises the work of the Council and Court and their associated
Committees, and has responsibility for Internal Audit.
This crucial member of the senior management team provides strategic advice and guidance to the
President, Provost and other senior leaders on legal matters, regulatory compliance, crisis management
and risk mitigation. The College Secretary has direct accountability for areas and functions essential to the
university, while also having more informal responsibility as a sounding board for a significant number of
ad hoc matters or situations.
The role requires trusted relationships with the President, Provost, Vice-Presidents, other senior
management team members and the Chair of Council. We seek an individual with a strategic and
versatile outlook on complex matters of governance, compliance and risk involving multiple partners or
stakeholders across the College. Experience managing a diverse team covering specific functions,
elaborated below, should be complemented by an ability to motivate others to ensure effective running of
the university. Important issues such as safety, compliance with regulations, legal disputes and risk
assessment call for a leader who can engender a sense of value and purpose across the community. The
changing external landscape requires understanding of the broader risk and compliance horizon for
effective long-term planning and strategy.
Imperial College London | College SecretarySB
Primary Responsibilities
As College Secretary, the post holder reports to the President, is a member of the President’s Board, the
Provost’s Board and attends the Council’s Audit and Risk Committee and plays a significant role in helping
to respond to, shape and inform College strategy. He or she is:
• the channel for the receipt of legal and compliance communications and responsible for
informing and advising those with senior management responsibility so that the necessary actions
are taken;
• responsible for College policies relating to fraud, regulatory compliance and irregularities,
reviewing external relationships, information governance, risk management, business continuity,
data protection, declarations and conflicts of interest, compliance with Prevent duty guidance and
freedom of information;
• responsible for investigations and case work in research misconduct, whistleblowing, fraud,
student discipline and complaints;
• chair of a variety of high-level College committees including Health and Safety Committee; Risk
and Business Continuity Steering Committee; Research Misconduct Response Group; Fraud
Group, Deterring Terrorist Activity Working Group, and attends additional Committees and
working parties relevant to the role;
• responsible for deciding on the use of College public space, the content of College Notices;
• may be requested to represent the College on external committees and bodies relevant to the
role;
• responsible, as a senior member of staff and a member of the President’s and the Provost’s
Boards, for promoting inclusion and equality.
Imperial College London | College SecretarySB
The College Secretary also leads the following functions who are, in turn, managed on a day-to-day
basis by senior staff:
The Central Secretariat
• Includes Central Secretariat, College Archives, Corporate Records, Data Protection, Freedom of
Information, dealing with student complaints and discipline at review stage, and cases sent to the
Office of the Independent Adjudicator;
• Oversees Governance and associated Statutes, Ordinances and College policies;
• Services Council, its committees, Management Board and other College committees;
• Supports the College Honours committee in overseeing nominations for national and College
honours;
• Advises Imperial College Union on constitutional and governance issues;
The Legal Services Department
• Provides legal advice across College on an independent basis, both from internal and external
resources.
• Safeguards the College from being misrepresented.
The Safety Department
• Provides expert advice to the College on safety matters;
• Develops and ensures the implementation of policies and provide codes of practice and guidance
notes;
• Provides specialist advice on safety matters as needed to the President and senior colleagues;
• Investigates accidents and near misses and ensure full reporting internally, and to the Health and
Safety Executive and other agencies;
• Monitors compliance, provide safety training and undertake safety audits.
Risk Management, Crisis Management and Business Continuity
• Develops policies and procedures taking into account the sources of risk for the College to facilitate
effective risk management and controls across the organisation;
• Identifies emerging, or new, risks in the context of external change and new ways of working;
develops dynamic risk management to deal with the changing environment.
• Oversees the Crisis Management framework, development and implementation of Business
Continuity planning, policies and systems;
• Oversees the effectiveness of regulatory compliance across the College;
• Delivers training exercises and education for managers at all levels within the institution.
Research Integrity
• Oversees the process of investigating research misconduct across the College.
Imperial College London | College SecretarySB
As Clerk to the Council, the major responsibilities are as follows:
Clerk to the Council and Court
• To report to the Chair of Council and to organise the work of the Council and some of its
committees and the work of the Court, including, in each case, preparing and overseeing papers
and monitoring the progress of actions and decisions that are made;
• To advise the Chair and other members of Council and Court, as required;
• To provide a connection between the executive body of the College, its Boards and the Council;
• To keep College governance under periodic review and take forward any changes;
• To serve as Secretary to the Nominations Committee and to the Search Committee for appointing
the President, and to attend and prepare and oversee papers for the Audit and Risk Committee.
Internal Audit
• To work with the College’s internal auditors as they carry out a regular examination and audit of
accounting, financial and other controls and prepare audit reports for review and action by
managers;
• Where necessary, to require the auditors to instigate fraud investigations and develop counter-
fraud activities;
• To provide advice on new legislation and regulations.
Other responsibilities
As the College’s representative on the Association of Heads of University Administration (AHUA), the post
holder makes an important advisory contribution to the UK HE sector, and membership of AHUA enables
information sharing and the exchange of ideas. The College Secretary is also a member of appropriate
groups within the Russell Group of universities and Universities UK.
Please note that 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.
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Person specification
It is expected that applicants will be able to show evidence of meeting the criteria outlined below to various
degrees:
Professional Experience
• Extensive experience of operating at Board level and administering governance processes and
structures within a large and highly visible organisation, including experience of having supported
the development of governance best practice and the building of highly effective Boards and
committees;
• In-depth experience of formulating workable high-level policies and procedures;
• Evidence of having proposed solutions to problems and having made difficult decisions;
• Extensive experience of dealing with legal and regulatory compliance issues;
• A strong track record of senior leadership and management within a large and complex
organisation, ideally having significant engagement with a variety of sectors;
• Experience of providing informal ‘horizon scanning’ and strategic advice to the senior staff of a
major organisation, in terms of identification and highlighting of major themes, opportunities, risks
and challenges;
• Experience of taking measured risks and driving innovation;
• A proven track record of resource management;
• Experience of competing demands and sensitive to the challenges that arise when managing in a
context of finite resources and changing funding streams;
• An understanding of the importance of risk management and health and safety within an
organisation;
• Experience of leading a diverse set of functions and delivering high quality services, and evidence
of developing collaboration and coordination across service functions where relevant;
• An understanding of the HE sector, in the UK and internationally, alongside the political, economic
and cultural factors which are influencing its evolution;
• Experience of working within higher education is not a pre-requisite.
Personal Qualities
• An appreciation of the culture and needs of an academic institution dedicated to excellence in
research, learning experience for its students and service to society;
• Excellent and effective communication skills applied within and outside the organisation,
supported by the ability to develop and maintain strong networks across the sector and with key
policy groups;
• Strong resolve and decisive judgement, alongside personal integrity and high ethical standards;
• Highly-developed ability to motivate and influence others;
• Understanding of the diversity of perspectives arising in academic settings;
• Able to determine and set priorities with excellent personal organisational skills;
• The ability to contribute to the development of strategy;
• Collegial team player able to work with people across the organisation;
• A forward-looking and dynamic approach
• The flexibility and dexterity to provide compelling leadership within a globally-leading academic
institution.
We are committed to equality of opportunity, to eliminating discrimination and to creating an inclusive
working environment for all. We therefore encourage candidates to apply irrespective of age, disability,
marriage or civil partnership status, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion and belief, gender identity, sex,
or sexual orientation. We are an Athena SWAN Silver Award winner, a Disability Confident Leader and a
Stonewall Diversity Champion.
Imperial College London | College SecretarySB Imperial College London | College Secretary
SB Terms of appointment The role will pay a competitive compensation package, which includes the employer's contribution to the Universities Superannuation pension scheme. Annual leave entitlement is 39 days for full-time staff, inclusive of public holidays and those days when the College is closed at Christmas and Easter. Relocation costs may be paid where the employee's previous home is not within reasonable commuting distance. A full set of terms and conditions will be available for those proceeding to the final stage of the selection process. Total Remuneration Package How to apply Saxton Bampfylde Ltd is acting as an employment agency advisor to Imperial College London on this appointment. Candidates should apply for this role through our website at www.saxbam.com/appointments using code WICD. Click on the ‘apply’ button and follow the instructions to upload a CV and cover letter. The closing date for applications is noon on Wednesday 21 July 2021. Imperial College London | College Secretary
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