Data Manager

Salary: £35,608 to £37,694 with progression to £46,049 per annum

Closing Date: 27 January 2026

Introduction

The NIHR Innovation Observatory (IO) is a world-leading health and care innovation horizon scanning research centre based at Newcastle University. Our work supports government agencies, industry, regulators, charities, and researchers by delivering timely, actionable insights that inform strategic decision-making, policy development, investment guidance, funding programs and improve alignment across agencies. We work across the health, life sciences and wider care ecosystem to identify innovation, gaps and unmet needs, follow trends and signal potentially game changing innovations – ranging from medicines to medical devices to digital. Our work fosters national and international collaboration supporting the growth of the UK health and life sciences sector. We are at the forefront of developing and applying approaches to identify and analyse emerging health and care technologies, ensuring the UK is prepared to leverage scientific breakthroughs that improve patient outcomes and support system readiness.

The post holder has a responsibility for promoting the values of the NIHR Innovation Observatory through appropriate and visible leadership behaviours and actions. They will have a particular responsibility to:

• Teamwork: Collaborate with kindness, value and respecting everyone, offering help and support.  Actively promoting an open flow of information and seeking to partner with external interest holders/stakeholders in all our activities.  
• Courage and Ambition: Operate at the top of your game, valuing and actively seeking out learning and development opportunities. Giving and receiving feedback with honesty and reflecting on your approaches.  
• Curiosity and Open-mindedness: Embrace creativity and value originality, seizing opportunities to learn and innovate.
• Integrity and Quality: Walk the talk and be well-prepared and robust in your approach, delivering high quality timely outputs, and managing your time and resources effectively 

The Role

We are seeking a proactive and detail-oriented Data Manager to lead the development and implementation of data governance practices and governance across all aspects of the IO work. The successful candidate will work closely with the IO team, our collaborators legal teams, wider relevant University teams, and the IO Technical team to ensure that data is managed ethically, securely, and in compliance with institutional, legal, and funder requirements. This role is central to promoting data quality, consistency, and reusability across the organisation.

The post is full time, fixed term until 31st March 2031.

Informal enquiries should be directed to Dominic Lamb (dominic.lamb@newcastle.ac.uk) or Professor Dawn Craig (dawn.craig@newcastle.ac.uk).

To apply for this role, please submit a CV and covering letter with your application.

Key Accountabilities

Data Strategy & Governance

• Develop and implement data governance frameworks aligned with institutional, funder and regulatory standards (e.g., GDPR, UK Data Protection Act)
• Promote FAIR data principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) across research teams

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

• Design, document, and maintain relevant SOPs including, IP and data ownership protocols, Data sharing, access, and archiving, Metadata standards and documentation, etc
• Deliver training and onboarding on SOPs and monitor compliance through audits and feedback mechanisms

Coordination with Technical Teams

• Act as the primary liaison between IO project teams, our strategic partners and stakeholders, and the IO Technical team/wider IO team members.
• Ensure technical solutions meet compliance standards

Data Sharing Agreements (DSAs)

• Draft, negotiate, and manage DSAs with external collaborators and institutions.
• Ensure agreements address data access, usage rights, security, and retention.
• Maintain a central register of DSAs and monitor adherence.

Intellectual Property (IP) Management

• Identify data assets with potential IP implications.
• Collaborate with legal and technology transfer teams to support the management of licensing, ownership, and commercialisation.
• Educate researchers on IP rights and responsibilities related to data.

Metadata & Documentation

• Ensure datasets are accompanied by comprehensive metadata and documentation.
• Promote the use of standard vocabularies and ontologies relevant to the research domain.

Data Access & Security Oversight

• Define and enforce access control policies in collaboration with IO Technical team.
• Ensure secure data transfer, encryption, and anonymisation protocols are in place.

Training & Support

• Provide guidance on data management plans (DMPs), ethical data use, and compliance.
• Deliver workshops and one-on-one support for IO staff and project teams.

Confidentiality & Commercial-in-Confidence Data Management

• Ensure that commercially sensitive data is handled in accordance with institutional policies, contractual obligations, and legal requirements.
• Implement and enforce access controls and data classification protocols to protect proprietary or confidential information.
• When required, work with legal and research contracts teams to ensure non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) and data sharing agreements (DSAs) appropriately cover commercial-in-confidence clauses.
• Monitor and audit data access and usage to prevent unauthorized disclosure or misuse.
• Provide training to research staff on handling confidential and proprietary data securely and ethically.

This job description identifies the key responsibilities of the post. It is not an exhaustive list of duties and is subject to amendment as necessary, in consultation with the postholder.

The Person

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Proven experience in research data management or a similar role
• Excellent IT skills, including the ability to use databases, spreadsheets and other tools to monitor, manage and report data, as well as the ability to design and produce detailed reports
• Strong understanding of information governance and data protection regulations both within the UK and internationally (e.g., GDPR)
• Demonstrable experience of designing and implementing data policies, procedures and frameworks, along with assessing compliance against them, across diverse teams
• Experience drafting and managing data sharing agreements
• Experience of data management and governance in a research environment, including understanding IP implications
• Excellent communication and coordination skills, working as part of a complex multi-disciplinary team to deliver high quality outputs to inform policy, partnerships and investment strategies
• Experience working in a research-intensive environment (e.g., university, NHS, research institute) with a good working knowledge of the unique data environment in which research operates
• Working knowledge of metadata standards and research data repositories
• Proven organisational, time management, decision making, and prioritisation skills
• Experience working with legal, business development and/or research teams to ensure confidentiality and appropriate data access controls
• Experience of using standard project and programme management approaches to deliver work to time and budget

Attributes and Behaviour

• Proven ability to use initiative to deliver work independently
• Able to work consultatively to find solutions
• Team player
• Attention to detail
• Proven communication and interpersonal skills
• Adhere to all policies and processes of the Innovation Observatory

Qualifications

• Degree in a relevant subject area or equivalent in-depth knowledge in a relevant data management role with either commercial or technical experience

Desirable

• Postgraduate qualification (e.g., MSc, MRes, or PhD) in relevant subject area
• Professional Qualifications in either Data Protection/GDPR (e.g. BCS Certificate in Data Protection); Project or Data Management (e.g. PRINCE2 or Agile certification,) or Information Governance & Security (e.g. ISO 27001 Foundation or Practitioner) 

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.  As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society.  We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent.  We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a Gold Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality.  We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC.  We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe. 

Requisition ID: 28868