Head of Research - Cancer Grand Challenges (London)

Head of Research - Cancer Grand Challenges

Salary : 75,000 - 85,000 pa depending on experience

Reports to : Director of Cancer Grand Challenges

Department : Research & Innovation

Contract : 12 month fixed-term contract

Hours : Full time 35 hours per week (flexible-working requests will be considered if it meets business needs)

Location: Stratford, London with high flexibility (we would expect you to be in the office 2 days per week).

Closing date : Tuesday 12th August at 23.55. This vacancy may close earlier if a high number of applications are received or once a suitable candidate is found, so please do not delay submitting your application to avoid any disappointment.

We have an exciting opportunity for an experienced Head of Research to join Cancer Grand Challenges (CGC)and work closely with the Director of CGC to develop and deliver the CGC research strategy and oversee the CGC research portfolio.

About the team

Cancer Grand Challenges is a global funding initiative founded in 2020 by the two largest funders of cancer research in the world: Cancer Research UK and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in the US (

Cancer Grand Challenges builds on the success of CRUK's Grand Challenge that launched in 2015 - to date we have committed in excess of c$400m to fund 16 interdisciplinary teams, and our portfolio now includes over 1200 researchers and collaborators across 16 countries. We recently launched our fifth call for applications to address seven new challenges, and we are thinking about what the next decade for the initiative will look like. So, this is an exciting time to join the team.

When you work at Cancer Grand Challenges, you'll be employed by Cancer Research UK .

What will I be doing?

• Develop and manage the delivery of the CGC research strategy, ensuring alignment with the overall CGC strategy.
• Develop an appropriate evaluation framework for the CGC research strategy, and track progress against milestones and KPIs
• Help to shape and deliver the overall CGC strategy, working collaboratively with CGC team members and other key leaders across CRUK to coordinate activity
• Build excellent relationships with members of the CGC Scientific Committee in order to shape the future research direction of CGC, and support the Committee in its work of building and shaping the CGC research portfolio
• Work with the CGC Operations Manager and other operational staff to plan and deliver CCG funding calls including application management, selecting applications to fund and award management
• Work with colleagues in the CRUK Commercial Partnership team and develop an effective interface with this team to ensure opportunities to translate CGC research to benefit cancer patients can be delivered effectively
• Responsible for the CGC research budget.
• Work with the CGC Operations Manager to monitor the research budget and oversee funding to CGC teams.
• Work with the CGC Operations Manager to prepare budget submissions and financial reports
• Develop an excellent and effective interface with the research programme management team at the National Cancer Institute, our CGC founding partner in the US
• Build partnerships with other research funding bodies to grow the CGC platform by playing a key role in identifying potential partners, constructing partnerships, and managing on-going relationships with partners
• Manage, and support the development of, the research management staff within the CGC team
• Represent CGC at relevant global science meetings, and other events.

What skills are we looking for?

• Significant experience and proven track record of developing and implementing research strategy, including establishing and managing research funding calls in a research-funding environment
• PhD in a biomedical science, with expertise in the area of cancer biology and with a knowledge of current trends in cancer research
• Experience of establishing, leading and delivering complex, multi-faceted projects, with a focus on new initiatives and dealing with ambiguity
• Extensive experience of building relationships with senior stakeholders internally and externally, including, judging situations and acting diplomatically to influence effectively and build consensus. An ability to deal with sensitive information in a professional way
• Experience of managing significant budgets (>20m)
• Excellent communications skills, with strong attention to detail, and the ability to interpret and present complex information in written form or verbally, that recognises the needs of the audience and enables effective decision making
• Numerate and analytically minded, with an aptitude to resolving problems by developing innovative, robust and pragmatic solutions, implemented with attention to detail

Our organisation values are designed to guide all that we do.

Bold: Act with ambition, courage and determination

Credible: Act with rigour and professionalism

Human : Act to have a positive impact on people

Together: Act inclusively and collaboratively

We're looking for people who can believe in and embody these organisation values and can use them to drive forward progress against our mission to beat cancer.

What will I gain?

We create a working environment that supports your wellbeing and provide a generous benefits package, a wide range of career and personal development opportunities and high-quality tools. Our policies and processes enable you to improve your work-life balance, take positive steps in your career and achieve your personal wellbeing goals.

You can explore our benefits by visiting our careers web page.

How do I apply?

We operate an anonymised shortlisting process in our commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion. CVs are required for all applications; but we won't be able to view them until we invite you for an interview. Instead, we ask you to complete the work history section of the online application form for us to be able to assess you quickly, fairly, and objectively.

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Please note: You must be eligible to work in the UK to apply for this vacancy. Cancer Research UK is not able to offer visa sponsorship.

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