REF Lead Developer

About the Research Excellence Framework (REF)

The Research Excellence Framework (REF) is the system for assessing the quality of research in UK higher education institutions, with the most recent exercise concluding in 2021. It is a peer review assessment process involving submissions from higher education institutions across the UK.  Research England delivered REF 2021 on behalf of the four UK funding bodies and the results have driven the annual distribution of approximately £2 billion of research funding to UK universities.

Purpose of the role

An exciting opportunity to lead and shape the design, development, and delivery of the UK’s next research assessment exercise.

We require systems to be delivered to support:

• Administration of the exercise
• The submission of large volumes of research data from all participating HEIs
• The distribution and assessment of all elements of the research data submitted

Working in an agile development team following a user centered design approach.  We require passionate and innovative full-stack developers working with a combination of bespoke software and off the shelf products to produce a robust, accessible, and performant suite of systems to support the exercise over the next 5 years.

About you

A leader and a mentor, your team will be made up of developers who you will be able to coach and mentor to increase resilience within the team.

Previous experience of working in a user centered design framework is desirable and ability to balance user needs with technical implementation is a must.

As lead developer you will be expected to have skills at the cutting edge of technology and capacity for continuous improvement. Working with both bespoke developments and integrating with existing infrastructure and architectures within the wider organisational environment.

You will:

• guide the ways in which the team works
• be proficient in a wide range of technical systems
• lead the identification of appropriate technology and approaches, deciding when and how software should be written
• contribute to the developer community
• provide technical leadership, coaching and mentoring your team
• promote knowledge sharing and adoption of good practice

UKRI can offer the successful candidate:

• Flexible Working
• 30 days annual leave + Public Holidays
• Access to Civil Service Pension Scheme
• Various everyday discounts through our dedicated provider