Appointment of the Director Aston Professional

Aston University

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Welcome

Dear Candidate,

Thank you for your interest in the role of Director Aston Professional at Aston University.

This is a particularly exciting time to be joining Aston as we deliver our ambitious 2030 Strategy, positioning the University as inclusive, entrepreneurial and transformational. Central to this is the continued growth of Aston Professional as a major driver of commercial innovation, employer engagement and revenue diversification.

This role represents a significant leadership opportunity at the heart of that ambition. Reporting to the Chief Commercial Officer, you will lead the transformation and growth of Aston Professional, shaping a distinctive, market-facing portfolio of professional education and training. Working in close partnership with industry, you will develop and deliver high-quality, employer-led programmes including executive education, degree apprenticeships and new commercial offers aligned to emerging market needs.

You will ensure that all provision is delivered to the highest standards of quality and compliance, working within the requirements of Ofsted, the Office for Students (OfS) and the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), and positioning regulatory excellence as an enabler of sustainable commercial growth. Alongside this, you will play a leading role in shaping a global professional education offer, leveraging Aston’s existing and developing international hubs and partnerships to extend our reach and impact.

We are seeking a commercially astute and collaborative leader who can translate opportunity into sustainable growth. You will build strong partnerships, develop scalable income streams and ensure excellence in delivery and customer experience, strengthening Aston’s position as a university that works in partnership with business to deliver real-world impact.

Aston University is a distinctive, business-engaged institution with a proud history and a clear focus on employability, innovation and social mobility. Our strong industry links, applied research and commitment to student success set us apart both nationally and internationally.

During this process, you will learn more about our ambitions and the important contribution this role will make to our future. If this is a challenge that excites you, I very much hope you will consider applying and I look forward to hearing from you.

Professor Gurpreet Jagpal
Chief Commercial Officer

About

Founded in 1895 and a University since 1966, Aston has long been recognised for its world-class teaching quality and strong links to business and the professions. Located in the centre of Birmingham our green, 40-acre campus houses all the University’s academic, social and accommodation facilities for our community of 20,000 students.

Aston University is an agile and innovative organisation that thrives on collaboration and partnerships with businesses and the community. We are ranked 25th in the United Kingdom in the Guardian University Guide 2024. Our integrated placement year, our applied high-impact research, and our commitment to enhancing the employability and social mobility of our students, all help to make Aston University distinct both nationally and internationally.

Students from over 120 countries choose to study at Aston University – a safe and friendly campus enjoyed by a global, multicultural community. Birmingham is one of the UK’s most diverse cities and home to an unrivalled cultural heritage, top sporting events, music, performing arts and outstanding world cuisine.

The University has been recognised by a number of awards, including The Guardian 2020 University of the Year Award and Entrepreneurial University of the Year Award. But most importantly, we are highly regarded by our students at Aston University. In the 2023 National Student Survey, we ranked 11th in the sector in the Student Voice Category, and significantly outperformed sector benchmarks in four of the seven categories. We recently received a Gold TEF Award for Student Experience.

We have an award-winning Careers and Placements team, who were named the best University Placement Service in the UK at the 2022 National Undergraduate Employability Awards. Employability is embedded into everything we do at Aston University. We finished runner-up in the Graduate Employment category at the Times and Sunday Times University Guide 2024 and were ranked 29th in the UK for graduate prospects in the Complete University Guide, 2024. Our staff are committed to doing all they can to meet the needs of students and in assisting them to achieve their career ambitions on graduating.

The 2021 Research Excellence Framework (REF) assessments published in May 2022, ranked 79% of Aston University research as ‘world leading’ (4*) or ‘internationally excellent’ (3*). We are building on our world-class research capability to help transform industries, support economic growth, and improve lives. Our research is organised within comprehensive interdisciplinary University Research Institutes and across a wide range of outstanding research centres and research groups. Learn more about our awards and rankings here.  

Our Structure

Our research and enterprise activity is driven by big ideas, bold action and a commitment to real-world transformation. Powered by our people and our place in the heart of Birmingham, we deliver applied, high-impact research that responds to global challenges, strengthens industry, and improves lives.

In the Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021), 79 per cent of Aston’s research was rated ‘world-leading’ (4*) or ‘internationally excellent’ (3*). This reflects a strong, confident research culture, collaborative, interdisciplinary and focused on impact.

Our research activity enables agility, encourages cross-disciplinary working, and supports engagement with business, public sector and community partners.

Big ideas, bold action, transformation – powered by people and place.

Aston’s research and enterprise identity is shaped by three defining principles:

Inclusive
Diverse thinking underpins our research culture. We champion the people behind our discoveries and ensure our work delivers meaningful impact for the communities and sectors we serve.

Entrepreneurial
With a long-standing reputation for working with business and the professions, Aston applies a hands-on, problem-solving approach to research. We translate ideas into innovation, policy influence and commercial opportunity.

Transformational
We focus on research that makes a difference. Our work addresses complex challenges across health, digital, sustainability, business and society, driving change locally, nationally and globally.

Aston Breakthroughs

Aston Breakthroughs is our flagship research and enterprise campaign, showcasing how our research delivers real-world impact. Through compelling storytelling, it highlights innovation in action, strengthens engagement with partners, and reinforces Aston’s reputation as a university that turns knowledge into outcomes.

We are here to answer the call- putting our greatest minds to the challenges that matter, pushing boundaries, and delivering impact now.

Learn more about Aston Breakthroughs

Our Vision, Purpose and Values

Vision

Our Vision is to be a leading university of science, technology, and enterprise, measured by the positive transformational impact we achieve for our people, students, businesses, and the communities we serve.

Purpose

Our Purpose is to make our world a better place through education, research, and innovation, by enabling our students to succeed in work and life, and by supporting our communities to thrive economically, socially, and culturally.

Values

Ambition: our ambition drives us to advance and accomplish our goals, strive for excellence, and impact, and create value for our beneficiaries and communities.

Collaboration: we believe in the value of working together for a shared purpose, by engaging and collaborating across our teams and disciplines, as well as with our beneficiaries.

Inclusion: we provide an inclusive, caring, and empowering environment for all and respect and support the values that diversity and inclusion bring to our whole community.

Innovation: we nurture an innovative environment that values new ideas, seeks diverse perspectives, and pursues game-changing innovations that make a positive impact.

Integrity: by valuing honesty, trust, fairness, and ethical behaviour, we always act with integrity and hold ourselves and others accountable.

2030 Strategy

Our 2030 Strategy – Inclusive. Entrepreneurial. Transformational.

In September 2023, following an extensive process of engagement with our community, we were proud to launch our Strategy for 2030.

Through this process explored possible scenarios for our future within our city, our region, and more broadly within the national and international context, and how we navigate the challenges of a changing world. The culmination of this was three things which will define our future, each of which requires strategy and hard work to achieve.

We will be Inclusive. From the beginning, our founder’s dream was that Aston University would be defined not by whom we exclude but by whom we include and how they succeed. Inclusion and diversity: these two essential values go right to the heart of who we are as a university. Each and every one of us here at Aston University is unique, and we are proud of that. We come from different backgrounds and cultures and have different experiences, skills and ideas. We all belong here at Aston University, and in Birmingham, one of the most welcoming, diverse, and inclusive cities on Earth.

We will embrace our innovative past and become a truly Entrepreneurial university. The past two decades have been witness to the most frenzied period of innovation and creativity in the history of the world. We’ve made significant strides in almost every field, driven in particular by science, technology and digital transformation. Connectivity has exponentially multiplied human progress. With the Birmingham Innovation Quarter (B-IQ) here at Aston University we are co-creating an innovation ecosystem of global significance with all the essential ingredients, to enable innovation at scale and pace, attract enterprising talent, and create enterprising graduates – our future leaders of innovation and change.

Learn more about the Birmingham Innovation Quarter (B-IQ) here

Thirdly, our vision of Aston is as a Transformational university measured by the positive impact that we achieve for our people, students, businesses, and the communities we serve. Being Transformational means thinking and acting differently beyond the conventional boundaries of today, as we create a more agile and adaptive university, a learning organisation for the future powered by digital innovation.

View our full strategy here

Research & Enterprise

Our research and enterprise activity is driven by big ideas, bold action and a commitment to real-world transformation. Powered by our people and our place in the heart of Birmingham, we deliver applied, high-impact research that responds to global challenges, strengthens industry, and improves lives.

In the Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021), 79 per cent of Aston’s research was rated ‘world-leading’ (4*) or ‘internationally excellent’ (3*). This reflects a strong, confident research culture, collaborative, interdisciplinary and focused on impact.

Our research activity enables agility, encourages cross-disciplinary working, and supports engagement with business, public sector and community partners.

Big ideas, bold action, transformation – powered by people and place. Aston’s research and enterprise identity is shaped by three defining principles:

Inclusive
Diverse thinking underpins our research culture. We champion the people behind our discoveries and ensure our work delivers meaningful impact for the communities and sectors we serve.

Entrepreneurial
With a long-standing reputation for working with business and the professions, Aston applies a hands-on, problem-solving approach to research. We translate ideas into innovation, policy influence and commercial opportunity.

Transformational
We focus on research that makes a difference. Our work addresses complex challenges across health, digital, sustainability, business and society, driving change locally, nationally and globally.

Aston Breakthroughs

Aston Breakthroughs is our flagship research and enterprise campaign, showcasing how our research delivers real-world impact. Through compelling storytelling, it highlights innovation in action, strengthens engagement with partners, and reinforces Aston’s reputation as a university that turns knowledge into outcomes.

We are here to answer the call- putting our greatest minds to the challenges that matter, pushing boundaries, and delivering impact now.

Learn more about Aston Breakthroughs

Academic Structure

The University is organised across three Colleges: Business and Social Sciences, home to our Triple-Accredited Business School, Engineering and Physical Sciences, and Health and Life Sciences, including our growing Medical School.  These are complemented by the growing Aston Online and Aston Professional offers, all with a strong focus on applied, industry-relevant education and research. Aston’s academic model is deliberately practical, outward-facing and aligned to the needs of students, employers and society.

College of Business and Social Sciences 

  • Aston Business School
  • School of Law and Social Sciences

Learn more about Aston Business School here

College of Engineering and Physical Sciences

  • School of Engineering and Innovation
  • School of Computer Science and Digital Technologies
  • School of Infrastructure & Built Environment

Learn more about the College of EPS here

College of Health and Life Sciences

  • Aston Medical School
  • Aston Pharmacy School
  • School of Biosciences
  • School of Optometry

Learn more about the College of HLS here

Driving Growth

A Chief Commercial Officer portfolio, central to the delivery of Aston 2030, has been established to lead the growth agenda, providing integrated leadership across brand, recruitment, internationalisation, business engagement, enterprise, and commercial and philanthropic income growth. It brings together multiple revenue-generating and reputation-critical functions into a single, cohesive portfolio that underpins the University’s financial sustainability, global reach, and civic impact.

Marketing, Communications & Student Recruitment

The CCO portfolio leads Aston’s end-to-end brand, reputation, and student demand strategy across all domestic and international markets.

This includes responsibility for institutional brand positioning, media relations, PR, website and digital platforms, internal communications, and external stakeholder communications, ensuring a consistent and compelling narrative aligned to Aston’s mission and strengths. The team actively manages Aston’s public profile through proactive press engagement and thought leadership.

Critically, the portfolio holds direct accountability for student recruitment, delivering integrated, data-driven growth across undergraduate, postgraduate, online, international (working with International Recruitment and Development), executive and professional (working with Business Development and Advancement), marketing and admissions. Recruitment is delivered through a sophisticated omni-channel model, supporting growth across:

  • Aston Birmingham,
  • Aston London,
  • Aston Online,
  • Aston Professional, and
  • Aston Global,

maximising reach, conversion, and yield in a highly competitive global environment.

Business Development & Advancement

Drives Aston’s external commercial engagement with industry, employers, and partners and alumni, positioning the University as a trusted collaborator for business growth, skills development, and innovation.

This includes forging senior-level relationships with corporate partners and C-suite leaders, delivering Executive Education and Degree Apprenticeships through Aston Professional, and building employer-responsive provision that generates sustainable commercial income.

The portfolio also leads the launch and operation of the Aston Business Hub, Aston’s first dedicated innovation and enterprise space, supporting start-ups, scale-ups, SMEs, and corporate collaboration.

Alumni Relations and Philanthropy 

In parallel, the team champions alumni engagement, development, and philanthropy, fostering lifelong connections and active participation in Aston’s mission. This includes delivering tailored alumni programs, facilitating mentoring and volunteering opportunities, and cultivating relationships that inspire philanthropic support, thereby advancing the University’s strategic priorities and creating opportunities for current and future students.

Together, these activities diversify income, strengthen employer and alumni pipelines, and embed Aston more deeply within regional, national, and international business and community ecosystems.

International Recruitment & Global Development

Internationalisation is a major growth engine for Aston, with the CCO portfolio providing strategic leadership across international recruitment, partnerships, and transnational education (TNE).

The portfolio leads direct international recruitment to Aston Birmingham, including global agent management, in-country recruitment teams, and scholarship strategy. It also has oversight of TNE as a priority growth area, encompassing partner selection, governance, commercial models, and academic alignment.

In parallel, the CCO leads Aston’s Global Hub strategy, enabling long-term presence and partnership development. Operational hubs are established in China, India, and Singapore, with further hubs in development across Dubai, India (additional locations), Vietnam, Hong Kong, and Greece. This model supports scalable growth, market intelligence, and risk-managed international expansion.

Aston Centre for Enterprise & Entrepreneurship

Formerly the Aston Centre for Growth, the Aston Centre for Enterprise & Entrepreneurship anchors the University’s enterprise, innovation, and business growth agenda.

The Centre delivers high-impact programmes supporting entrepreneurs, SMEs, and scale-ups, including Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses UK, Government-funded Help to Grow Management CourseGreen Advantage, and major WMCA-funded contracts. For students and graduates, the Centre runs the long established BSEEN start-up bootcamps and incubator, supporting new business creation at a rate of one per week, and high-profile enterprise learning events attracting over 1,000 students annually. Its work integrates enterprise education, innovation space, and regional economic development, delivering measurable impact in business productivity, job creation, and inclusive growth.

Overall, the CCO portfolio demonstrates Aston University’s distinctive strength in integrated commercial leadership – aligning brand, recruitment, international development, enterprise, and industry engagement into a single, coherent engine for growth. This breadth, maturity, and ambition provide a strong platform for the next Vice-Chancellor to accelerate Aston’s trajectory as a globally connected, business-engaged, and impact-driven university.

Global Academic Hubs

PVC Global Academic Hubs is a recent appointment and role (July 2025).

  • It was developed due to the significant increase in strategic, including TNE, partnerships the University has signed up to. The role is to lead the academic and resource strategy for all Global Academic Hubs including London, Singapore, India and Dubai, to secure the academic delivery model within the Hubs ensuring students studying in hubs as an Aston student experience the same high quality outcome through the partnership.
  • The portfolio role holds academic leadership responsibility for all of Aston University Global Academic Hubs from registration to graduation. Core to this growth is the positive relationship between Aston and our valued TNE partners, to ensure the delivery of a high-quality student experience and measurable student satisfaction.
  • The focus of the role has been setting up the academic governance structure and operating structures for the partnership models which has now been largely completed with an agreed template for future partnerships. This structure includes a Joint Partnership Committee and a supporting Academic Delivery Management Group to ensure the ongoing delivery of the academic portfolio.
  • Included in the governance are representatives from the academic and professional service staff from Aston University, the partnership organization alongside Aston Student Union (ASU) to ensure the student voice is heard and supported.
  • Under discussion is also the development of the role ‘Director of Operations for Global Academic Hubs’. The Director of Operations role together with identified individuals responsible for Global Academic Hubs i.e. Academic Director (such as for Aston London) should allow for successful continued academic delivery.
  • The role has specific responsibility for bringing our off-main campus established activities in support of international growth strategy
  • Executive lead for Aston London Hub working with strategic partner Cambridge Education Group (CEG) on the delivery of expansion of student growth and income through initiative curriculum design and delivery.
  • Support the university ambition and relationship with partners extending the university’s profile and global reach as the Vice-Chancellor representative at events in the UK, Singapore (launching the Kaplan Singapore Hub) and Vietnam.
  • Ensuring all regulatory standards are met including B3, graduate outcome and E6 for all TNE partners through monitoring and interventions.

Engaged University

Our Civic Duty

At Aston, we are a proudly civic University, and our regional and civic engagement aligns with our core mission to collaborate and co-produce mutually beneficial activities with the people who live, work and study in the West Midlands. We’re committed to engagement, performance, and our communities in the Midlands and beyond.

A third of our students come from Birmingham, and half come from the wider West Midlands. We inspire school leavers to consider a University education and support them with varied routes to achieve that, with Open Days or access to University through alternative means, including Institute of Technology and Foundation Year or Degree Apprenticeship. 40% of our students work locally once they graduate, helping to reduce skills gaps in the region. Our outward-looking approach puts the needs of the regional economy and our student body first.

We deliver economic growth, productivity enhancement and social impact through five key themes:

Research and knowledge transfer

  • We collaborate closely with companies and public sector organisations to pursue new knowledge transfer projects that support and encourage all forms of innovation.

Degree apprenticeships and work-based learning

  • One of the UK’s leading providers, our Degree Apprenticeships and work-based learning initiatives are specially designed to fill skill gaps in business and industry.

Employability and entrepreneurship

  • We value independent thinking and entrepreneurship, with our students well-prepared for the world of business and rank highly for employability.

Regional and civic engagement

  • Our regional and civic engagement aligns with our core mission: to collaborate and co-produce mutually beneficial activities with the people who live, work and study in the West Midlands.

Business engagement

  • We provide innovative services for new businesses, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and large companies through our dedicated business support programmes focusing on leadership, innovation, and growth.
  • The University has a long-term partnership with Aston Villa Football Club as its official UK University partner.
  • Villa Vision raises awareness of the importance of eye health to children in schools and individuals in local communities. This is a project between the Aston Villa Foundation, Aston University’s School of Optometry and optical lens supplier, Essilor Vision for Life.
  • Aston University was an Official University of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. More than 13,000 volunteers helped to organise, run, and manage this event including students and staff from Aston University.

Students

OUR STUDENTS – Ready for work and life

Under our Strategy 2030 we have established five key value propositions which we will provide to all our students, which the CSO is central to the delivery of:

  1. Skills and support needed to enhance lifelong career potential.

Engagement with business and industry is central to all that we do at Aston. Professional practice will be embedded in our courses, while at UG level undergraduate level, all students will undertake an Aston Power Skills stackable module which develops digital skills; build leadership, management, and entrepreneurship skills; and develop an awareness and understanding of environmental sustainability and its implications for professional practice.

  1. An environment and tools for a positive approach to health and wellbeing as a life skill.

We will develop a positive, data-informed approach to health and wellbeing as an important life skill and provide integrated healthcare support through the interconnectedness of the new Aston Health Services Hub and our Sports Centre.

  1. Unique opportunities to personalise individual learning journeys.

Recognising the unique interests of each student all taught provisions will enable our learners to make choices about what, and how, they study and the nature of their assessment, while our new Block Learning Mode will provide our students with a better-paced learning mode leading to higher rates of success, satisfaction, and retention.

  1. Access to contemporary physical and digital resources for all courses of study.

Our Digital Enterprise strategy and next-generation information systems will evolve to support technology-rich learning approaches anywhere at any time, and we will provide contemporary digital tech to all learners, encompassing relevant e-texts and e-links to online learning resources, including the hardware and software required for their programme of study.

  1. Lifelong learning opportunities and personalised end-to-end student support.

We will offer our students career support for life, with students becoming part of Aston for Life, which is a thriving community that offers a unique portfolio of personal and professional development and networking opportunities, insights and support that are essential for work and life, both during study and beyond. We will develop a new Student Services in the Cloud platform (a virtual Student Services Hub) that provides end-to-end engagement and support for our students.

Through our commitment to building graduate outcomes for work and life, learners are encouraged and supported to network and build collaborations within the university and externally, in support of lifelong learning development and greater adaptability to the future of work in a changing world.

Global Alumni Network

We have a global network of over 100,000 alumni in over 100 countries, reflecting our position as pioneers of the placement year more than 60 years ago. Our alumni have established communities across the world, including in the United States of America, Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, New Delhi, Malaysia and Nigeria, and these groups maintain an active connection with the University.

This professional network is supported centrally by the University, and also through our local international colleagues, as well as through the activities of teaching and research staff. Aston alumni are generous with their industry knowledge and professional connections in order to support the University and our beneficiaries.

The University is embarking on developing and implementing its new alumni strategy, ‘Aston For Life’ during 2021-22. Through this we will provide a tailored, tech-driven, development programme which supports the long-term career aims of our graduates. We will also continue our strong work in development and fundraising. Our aims are to support our students and key projects through philanthropy, and to drive income through alumni-brokered industry partnerships.

The role

Director Aston Professional (AQ3541)

Apply now

JOB DESCRIPTION

Grade: Band 1
Salary: £67,280 to £104,712 per annum, depending on experience
Contract Type: Permanent
Basis: Full Time

Job Purpose:

This is an exciting period of strategic transformation at Aston University, Birmingham. Aston 2030 Strategy is positioning Aston Professional as a major driver of revenue diversification, commercial innovation and employer-led programme growth. The Director of Aston Professional, working alongside the Director of Business Development and Advancement, will be instrumental in identifying and converting new markets, employer sales opportunities, and commercial partnerships. The Director of Aston Professional will lead the design of tailored client propositions; lead high-performing delivery teams; and ensure quality assurance, regulatory compliance and learner satisfaction – all underpinned by a strong commercial and client-centric approach.  Integral to the successful delivery of this role will be the use of advanced data analytics, CRM systems and digital technologies to provide commercial insight, pipeline visibility, performance reporting and scalable delivery models.

As a member of the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) portfolio, the Director of Aston Professional will lead the Commercial Training Development (including commercial Executive Education Programmes); Professional education staff recruitment (including Industry Fellows), Marketing and Business Development; Customer and Client Data Systems; Learner Support and Wellbeing; Professional delivery teams, Degree Apprenticeship Quality Assurance, Compliance (Ofsted) and Reporting (ESFA); Employer Networks, Partnership and Market Intelligence and other activities critical to driving commercial growth, customer satisfaction, compliance excellence and market expansion.

The post holder will have a strategic and operational reach across the University to deliver Aston Professional objectives and outcomes. The post holder will have a track record of client management, demonstrable experience of building commercial pipelines and delivering income growth and have a broad understanding of the curriculum offer and potential new offers considering emerging markets and technologies required by businesses and industry.  The post holder will be instrumental in overseeing the Degree Apprenticeship provision and meeting the requirements of Ofsted, OfS, and ESFA, ensuring regulatory compliance is a strategic enabler of commercial growth. The post holder will have established professional networks both within Education and Business and the ability to foster and maintain relationship across Aston University, with a proven track record of implementing a commercial growth strategy in partnership with businesses and industry.

The Director will work closely with the Director of Business Development and Advancement and the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) to deliver ambitious revenue targets, strengthen key employer accounts, and co-develop commercial strategies that support Aston 2030.

Main Duties and Responsibilities:

  • Lead the transformation of Aston Professional, aligning the structure to Aston 2030 Strategy and the needs of the various stakeholders and the University’s commercial growth targets.
  • Develop the operational plans to deliver income growth, market expansion, regulatory excellence and operational effectiveness.
  • Implement consistent and robust quality systems across the service, which are centrally managed and digitally supported, and as appropriate maximise AI, green technologies to enhance efficiency, compliance management and customer experience.
  • Build strong and effective partnerships with other teams across the University to jointly deliver employer-focused, commercially viable professional programmes.
  • Shape and lead a range of commercial market-led, scalable and financially sustainable offerings which are capable of being scaled up as and when required by customers and clients.
  • Lead the commercial growth plan for Aston Professional, working with Business Development & Advancement on pricing models, sales pipeline development, conversion strategies, and key account management.
  • Deliver an exceptional Apprentice Degree programme, which embeds quality and compliance with Ofsted, OfS, and ESFA while growing employer-funded income and ensuring an outstanding apprentice and employer experience.
  • Ensure that accreditation, validation, evaluation and reporting and end-point assessment are embedded and meet the standards of a programme which is working at optimal efficiency.
  • Develop routes into employment by maximising the Partnerships and Employers Networks.
  • Be instrumental in the development of data analytics, KPIs, performance targets, income, and expenditure. This includes commercial performance dashboards, sales forecasting, margin analysis, and employer engagement analytics.
  • Maximise existing partnership arrangements to grow and further develop and commercially scale offerings.
  • Lead on partnership activities to deliver real benefits to a range of organisations including large companies, SMEs, Public and third sectors.
  • Maximise opportunities to work collaboratively with a wide range of organisations to attract funding which delivers skills, knowledge, expertise required nationally, regionally, and locally.
  • Maintain and develop highly effective learner support and wellbeing structures, which lead to successful student outcomes/results.
  • Identify, manage, and address areas of underperformance.
  • Ensure that Health and safety, risk assessments and contingency plans underpin the activities of the Service.
  • Identify, scope, and implement other commercial education and training programmes with clear commercial cases, pricing strategies, speed-to-market processes and measurable return on investment.
  • Pursue other growth opportunities as requested by the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) in line with Aston 2030 Strategy objectives and proactively collaborate on major commercial initiatives and employer partnerships.

Additional responsibilities

  • Engage in continuous personal and professional development in line with the demands of the role, including undertaking relevant training and development activities to develop themselves and support the development of others, with strong commercial awareness and compliance capability.
  • Provide visible leadership of compliance, audit, and regulatory teams to ensure Aston’s licence to operate is protected while enabling agile commercial decision-making.
  • Build high performing teams within Aston Professional and develop a positive culture that is agile, innovative, and responsive to the needs of the University and external stakeholders.
  • Ensure and promote the personal health, safety and wellbeing of staff and students.
  • Carry out duties in a way which promotes fairness in all matters, and which engenders trust.
  • Promote equality of opportunity and support diversity and inclusion as well as working to support the University’s environmental sustainability agenda and practices.

Person Specification

All of the following criteria are considered essential.

Education and qualifications – assessed by application form

  • Relevant degree/ postgraduate qualification, or substantial and extensive vocational experience demonstrating professional development and achievement in a series of progressively more demanding, influential, and broad roles.
  • Hold a relevant high-level qualification and or professional membership in e.g., management, marketing, business, or education or in an equivalent related area.

Experience – assessed by application form and interview

  • Demonstrable experience in designing, leading, and implementing organisational and process change with sustained evidence-based impact.
  • Substantial experience in developing and managing Professional Services with sustained evidence-based impact.
  • Proven experience delivering commercial success, revenue growth and employer-funded programme expansion for their institution by working with businesses and industry.
  • Evidence of designing and running or overseeing Degree Apprentice programmes with demonstrable regulatory and commercial success.
  • Experience in working at Senior Leadership level, to develop cross University Strategy for engaging with business nationally, regionally, and locally.
  • Financial management and understanding of funding forecasting and implication on numbers.
  • Experience of managing highly effective teams and functions within a regulated and compliance-driven context balancing strict regulatory requirements with commercial agility.
  • Experience working closely with business development, marketing or advancement teams to deliver income targets, pipeline growth and key account management.
  • Evidence of a strong track record of performance management which supports and delivers the University Strategy.
  • A track record of mentoring and developing staff to maximise their performance.
  • Substantial experience developing and maintaining effective networks which include large companies, SMEs, Public and third sectors.
  • Experience in the requirements of OfS and other regulatory bodies (ESFA and Ofsted) with evidence of impact and leading compliance teams to successful external audit outcomes.
  • Experience of writing or contributing to the writing of bids and application process for external funding, including commercial tenders and employer contracts.

Aptitude and skills –  assessed by application form and interview

  • Ability to demonstrate a clear understanding of the HE sector and the challenges it faces, including the commercialisation of professional education, employer demand trends and funding models.
  • High-level strategic thinker with strong commercial acumen.
  • Excellent judgement and creative thinking; ability to resolve complex issues and problems which may arise with a diverse range of stakeholders, whilst balancing regulatory constraints with commercial opportunities.
  • Strong communication skills, with the ability to be effective and engaging with different audiences, e.g., at Executive, partnership meeting, senior stakeholders in commercial world etc, including the ability to pitch value propositions and influence senior business stakeholders.
  • Ability to translate regulatory requirements into commercially viable delivery models.
  • A clearly demonstrable commitment to Equality, Diversity & Inclusion.
  • Integrity, collegiality, collaboration, empathy, and action-and-outcome-centred leadership abilities.
  • Demonstrable ability to incorporate continuous improvement in all systems under Professional Services maximising the use of Green Technologies, AI, and Digital systems.
  • Personal flexibility; a supportive approach that promotes a trusting and empathetic work environment.
  • Strong emotional intelligence, with the ability to challenge constructively.
  • Personal resilience, with a supportive approach that promotes a trusting and empathetic work environment.

 

 All staff are expected to demonstrate/promote the University’s values and expectations, which are an integral part of our strategy and underpin the culture of the University. In addition, our leaders are expected to be accountable, help to execute strategic visions of the University and share and set clear expectations that inspire those around them.

Birmingham: Living and Working

Aston University is in a great, central location. Ideally positioned in the centre of Birmingham – one of the youngest cities in Europe – our campus is only a 10 minute walk to the city centre.

CULTURE AND HERITAGE
Home to some of the greatest creators and inventors, culture and heritage makes Birmingham a great city.

WONDERFUL PERFORMING ARTS
Birmingham hosts the best of British musicals, pantomimes, opera and ballet.

THE ULTIMATE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE
With over 200 shops across the Bullring and Grand Central, Birmingham is a shopper’s paradise.

FANTASTIC FOOD AND DRINK
Michelin-starred restaurants, the Chinese quarter, street dining, farmers’ markets, high street chains to independents, Birmingham has some wonderful places to drink.

SPORTING ACTION
Birmingham has a long history of football, cricket, rugby and athletics. Aston University is the Official UK University Partner of Aston Villa Football Club in the Premier League and is the host city of the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

OPEN SPACES
Birmingham has acres of green spaces, parks, historical canals and scenic routes for walking, running or cycling

Terms

The size and scope of the university means that the opportunities on offer are as diverse as the people who work here. From a generous annual leave scheme, gym membership and flexible working to opportunities to volunteer in the community, there is something for everyone. For more information, please visit the benefit pages on our website.

Salary scales
Our salary scale can be found here, and full details of our salary scales and benefits Aston University staff enjoy can be found here.

Birmingham/Cost of living

  • Learn more about living in Birmingham here.
  • There are numerous Estate and Letting Agents in and around Birmingham that can help you find suitable accommodation. The Midland Landlord Accreditation Scheme provides a list of professional agencies and landlords who have applied with them for accreditation. Whilst accreditation is not a guarantee of quality, it provides some reassurance about the standard of the service they provide.

You can also use property search websites such as Rightmove or Zoopla.

Cycle-to-work scheme
Cycle-to-Work is open to all employees. Through our salary conversion scheme, we’ll make a bicycle available to you for commuting – alongside safety equipment, free of income tax and national insurance.

Employee travel pass scheme
The University has an affiliation to Company Travelwise in Birmingham and an on-going commitment to green transport. As a result, annual travel passes purchased under the Employee Travel Pass Scheme will be available at a discounted price.

Car park scheme
Under the Flexible Benefits Scheme, instead of the car park charges being collected from your net pay, you can exchange an amount of gross salary that is equivalent to the charge. As a result, you will pay less National Insurance, thereby reducing the cost of car park charges.

Low emission car lease scheme
The new Low Emission Car Lease Scheme offers you the opportunity of a new car, benefiting from corporate discounts and savings on Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions. The car scheme will only offer cars with low CO2 emissions (120g/km or less).

Aston gym memberships
The Sir Doug Ellis Woodcock Sports Centre is a fantastic onsite staff facility. Permanent members of staff can choose to pay their membership fee via their monthly/weekly salary or in a one-off lump sum payment. Non-permanent staff can still get Aston staff prices but must pay for the membership in one lump sum.

Charitable giving
We have been looking at ways of promoting charitable giving through the payroll and of providing the most effective way of making tax savings on donations.
There are two ways you can do it:

  • Give As You Earn (GAYE) – A way of making donations to a charity of your choice and receiving immediate tax relief.
  • Flexible Benefits Scheme – Salary conversion for donations to Aston University to support students.

Citysave Credit Union
Having a regular savings plan means building up a fund of money towards Christmas, a holiday or just for a rainy day. Having it come directly out of your salary means saving has never been easier. In addition, surplus profits the credit union makes are returned to our members in the form of a yearly dividend. Citysave is covered by the FSCS, so your savings up to £75,000 are secure.

Cinema Society Club
You can register with the Cinema Society Club to receive up to 40% off tickets.

Will Writing Service
Aston University has teamed up with Dunham McCarthy, Estate Planning & Will Specialists, to offer Aston employees and their families a free will writing service.

Conference Aston
All staff receive a 15% discount when dining at Conference Aston.

Annual Leave
The annual bookable leave entitlement is 31 days. In addition to the above bookable leave entitlement, a minimum of 13 additional days holiday per year is given as specified Bank and University holidays, the dates of which are circulated annually and are published on the University’s website. Part-time staff are entitled to the same amount of annual leave, including Bank and University Holidays, as full-time staff, on a pro-rata basis to the hours that they work.

Pension
If you are a regularly employed member of staff, you will be enrolled into a pension scheme; the exact scheme will depend upon the grade of the post. Further information is available on our website.

Recognition Vouchers
We designed this scheme to provide managers with the flexibility and autonomy to recognise individuals or whole teams ‘in the moment’ by awarding them with e-vouchers. Typically, e-vouchers are given for going above and beyond normal expectations of a job or role: completion of a project, innovative idea or process/product improvement that has had a positive impact for the university, students, staff or the wider community; excellent customer feedback; citizenship where an individual has gone out of their way to help others.

Personal/Professional Development
To equip you with all the skills you need, we offer a comprehensive range of learning and development programmes. Whatever your role and ambitions, we will support you to build your skills set and be your best at work. As well as training, we offer an induction programme for all our new starters. This induction will give you a basic overview of our organisation, along with the chance to meet colleagues from across the University.

Employee Assistance Programme
Open to all staff, the service offers confidential support for a variety of issues such as managing money; having a family; moving house; personal life; retirement; work life; returning to work after a break; family crises; personal crises; healthy choices; illness. Services are available 24/7, 365 days a year.

Relocation Support
Subject to the conditions of the University’s relocation policy, we provide assistance to new employees who have to relocate to take up a position. This policy applies to staff appointed to a position at grade 7 (salary point 25) or above on an open-ended contract or to a fixed term position of two years or more, and who have to relocate their place of residence in order to take up the appointment. Positions which are externally funded fall outside of this policy.

Employment of Ex-Offenders
Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, a person with a criminal record is not required to disclose any spent convictions unless the positions they applying for is listed an exception under the act.

Eligibility to work in the UK
Non-UK/Irish nationals will require a visa or immigration permission that allows them to work in the UK.

The most common work visas are the Skilled Worker and Global Talent immigration routes. You can find more information about these visa categories on our web page for candidates. The UKVI website also provides further detail about different work visas and the eligibility criteria for each.

Aston may be able to sponsor the successful candidate under the Skilled Worker visa route, dependent upon the salary associated with their appointment.

Please contact hr_immigration@aston.ac.uk if you would like to discuss your eligibility for Skilled Worker sponsorship.

Data Protection
Your personal data will be processed in compliance with the Data Protection Act 2018 and the General Data Protection Regulation ((EU) 2016/679) (“GDPR”). The University’s Data Protection Policy and Privacy Notices, including the Job Applicant Privacy Notice can be found at https://www2.aston.ac.uk/data-protection. Your application will only be used to inform the selection process, unless you are successful, in which case it will form the basis of your personal record with the University which will be stored in manual and/or electronic files. Information in statistical form on present and former employees is given to appropriate outside bodies.

Full details of our terms and conditions of service and associated policies and procedures are available online.

How to apply

Anderson Quigley is acting as an advisor to the University, an executive search process is being carried out by Anderson Quigley in addition to the public advertisement.

The closing date for applications is  12.00 Thursday 14th May.

Applications should consist of:

  • A full CV.
  • A cover letter (maximum of three pages) outlining your vision for Aston, your motivations for the role and how you meet the essential criteria of the person specification.
  • Please include details of two referees in either your CV or covering letter, though please note that we will not approach your referees without your prior consent and only should you be shortlisted.

Should you wish to discuss the role in strict confidence, please contact Kiersten Avery at kiersten.avery@andersonquigley.com or +44 (0)7510 384 735 or Alicja Janowska at alicja.janowska@andersonquigley.com or +44 (0)7743 927 783.

Recruitment Timetable

Closing Date
Longlist Meeting
Preliminary Interviews
Shortlist Meeting
Stakeholder Sessions & Panel Interviews (in-person)
Final Stage Meetings