University of Nottingham - Deputy Director of Libraries

Welcome

Dear Candidate,

I’m delighted to share this opportunity to join my Senior Team, here at University of Nottingham Libraries.

I hope you’ll take a few minutes to watch this brief video, where I introduce you to our service and share some of the key aspects of the role, and what I’m looking for. In a nutshell, that’s someone who really understands the landscape of academic libraries, with a real eye for details and nuance, combined with the vision and leadership skills to help take our service forward.

It’s an exciting time for us in Libraries: we have recently broadened our remit to include an Educational Excellence team, and have a number of significant projects on the horizon, including plans for our service offer at the university’s brand new Castle Meadow Campus, which is currently under development. And following a number of recent retirements, we have a newly formed Senior Team, so this is an ideal time to join us, and play a key role in shaping our future direction, alongside myself and our existing Deputy Director.

I do hope that this has piqued your interest and that you’ll take the opportunity to have a conversation with our advising consultants at Anderson Quigley.

Best regards

Sue Ackermann
Director of Libraries

University of Nottingham Libraries

About Libraries

We are a large department made up of approximately 250 staff, across seven sections:

Customer Services: Home to the majority of our frontline services, with eight libraries situated over four campuses, the team are responsible for providing access to print resources, supporting inter-library loans, offering help and guidance, and managing our physical spaces. The Associate Director for Customer Services also line manages our Learning Development team, who are responsible for the delivery of academic skills.

Content and Discovery: The section is made up of three teams – Collections, Discovery and Access, and Resource Acquisitions. They facilitate the discovery and delivery of scholarly information, aiming to provide maximum value for our service users, as well as striving for an equivalent experience across the university’s three global campuses.

Educational Excellence: A new addition to Libraries, the team’s primary remit is to promote teaching and learning excellence across the university, with specific responsibility for quality and educational enhancement.

Learning Technology: Made up of three teams – Faculty and School Support, Learning Content, Learning Technology Systems – the section provides safe, secure, and robust platforms for users of our systems such as ExamSys and Moodle. They also provide a comprehensive range of services around video and multimedia production, as well as having a team of Faculty Consultants who offer training, advocacy and strategic pedagogical advice to UoN teaching staff.

Manuscripts and Special Collections: Home to both the university’s Museum of Archaeology and its own reading room, MSC is an accredited archives service, responsible for curating over 3million of the university’s treasures. This is delivered through acquisition and preservation of printed collections, management of digital records, promotion of collections, and a Public and Learning Programme, which includes highly regarded and popular exhibitions.

Research: The Research Support team have expertise in scholarly communications and open research, and contribute towards a range of activities supporting university level research priorities. This includes open access publishing, funding and compliance, research data management, systematic and literature reviews, and research intelligence.

Strategy and Planning: sitting at the centre of Libraries, the section oversees operations, space and facilities, programmes and projects including the Access and Participation Plan, and communications and stakeholder engagement.

In total, Libraries provide approximately 5,000 study spaces across our sites. Our Collections include almost a million print books, 300,000 ebooks, more than 300,000 historical books and texts, and 180,000 journal titles. Plus, nearly 3,000 metres of archives and special collections

Student satisfaction with UoN Libraries, as measured by the National Student Survey, has been above the sector average for the past 12 years. Satisfaction with our customer services is consistently high, with typically over 95% of respondents feeling we are approachable, knowledgeable and helpful. And satisfaction with both our virtual learning environment and online library consistently exceeds 90%.

About the university

The University of Nottingham provides an exceptional research-led education and an outstanding student experience. Our global outlook and pioneering heritage has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia – home to 11,500 of our 46,000 students – and cemented our position among the world’s best universities.

The University of Nottingham has award-winning campuses in the UK, China and Malaysia and hosts a global academic community in all three countries. The university has an institution-wide commitment to embedding an international dimension across all our activities enabling us to produce graduates who are empowered to excel in a challenging global environment and deliver genuinely world-class research.

Our reputation for world-class research has yielded major scientific breakthroughs such as Nobel-winning MRI techniques, drug discovery, food technologies and engineering solutions for future economic, social and cultural progress.

Already ranked among the UK’s leading universities and global polls for research excellence, our reputation for world-class research has been further enhanced with the results from the 2021 Research Excellence Framework (REF). The recent Research Excellence Framework (REF2021) assessment reaffirmed the University of Nottingham’s position among top universities in the UK for research power. Out of 157 institutions the University of Nottingham was ranked 7th for research power, which takes into account impact, research quality, critical mass and sustainability.

The university boasts four UK campuses, with a further Castle Meadow campus set to open in the city centre next year. With established woodland, landscaped gardens and period buildings set around a large boating lake, Nottingham’s flagship 300-acre University Park Campus is one of the largest in the UK. It is widely regarded as one of the country’s most attractive campuses, with a record 14 Green Flag Awards.

Equality, diversity and inclusion

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) are vital for our student and staff community (including all apprentices studying with us). We support a wide variety of activities, from short-term working groups focused on specific issues to wider initiatives to help develop training for all staff.
You can find out more about EDI at Nottingham here.

A partner in collaboration

Nottingham is a founding member of the Russell Group of universities in the UK, and a member of Universitas 21, a grouping of leading universities from around the world through which we continue to find new ways of collaborating across borders, such as the annual U21 Ingenuity Challenge.

That spirit of collaboration underpins our new civic agenda – Universities for Nottingham – which will harness the collective will of the county’s biggest institutions to deliver economic, social, health and environmental benefits to residents.

Our strategy

Our new university strategy articulates the vision, values and goals that are shared across our global community and will guide our research, teaching and operations over the long term. It was the result of an extensive consultation with staff and students on all our campuses, providing us with an ambitious and positive approach.

You can read about our strategy here.

The role

Deputy Director of Library Services, Research & Discovery (AQ1969)

Apply now

Job title: Deputy Director – Research and Discovery
Job family and level: APM Level 7
School/Department: University of Nottingham Libraries
Location: King’s Meadow Campus

JOB DESCRIPTION
Working closely with the Director of Libraries and the Deputy Director for Education and Experience, the role will help to define the strategy and future shape of UoN Libraries. As well as providing inspiring and visible leadership within the department, you will act as an ambassador within both the wider university and the sector, building effective relationships and networks, and seeking opportunities to enhance services. You will work with the Director of Libraries to shape the vision and strategy of the department, developing and delivering key strategic priorities, which align to the university’s broader strategy.

Core to the role will be your responsibility for the strategic leadership and management of large-scale core service functions, including dedicated leadership of three Associate Director positions – Research, Content and Discovery, and Manuscripts and Special Collections. You will be responsible for leading on key, discrete strategic pieces of work according to need. You’ll have a strong understanding of the sector, its challenges and its opportunities and you’ll maintain a focus on continual improvement, whilst fostering ambition and creativity and ensuring that our users are at the heart of our service delivery.

As well as managing your own portfolio of work, you will deputise for the Director of Libraries as required, both internally, across the university, and upon external committees and groups.

Main duties and responsibilities

Core Operations – 30% time per year

You will:

Provide strategic leadership and support of core library services, specifically Research, Content and Discovery and Manuscripts and Special Collections.
Maintain a comprehensive contextual awareness of all sections and key functional areas within UoN Libraries in order to prioritise and manage work effectively and appropriately.
Act as escalation point for matters arising, leading the management and resolution of issues for the department.
Have oversight and understanding of the UoN Libraries budget, so enabling effective strategic financial planning, and specifically having ultimate budgetary responsibility for Research, Content and Discovery and Manuscripts and Special Collections.

People – 30% of time per year

You will:

Provide leadership to the UoN Libraries Senior Management Team, making a valuable contribution to the ethos of collective leadership, providing constructive challenge and promoting continued excellent team performance.
In conjunction with the Director of Libraries, work to actively develop the profile and visibility of the Libraries Senior Management Team within the department in order to engage staff across all levels.
Lead on activity to develop and enhance the UoN libraries culture and behaviours, linking this directly to the university’s core values.
Foster and promote opportunities for the Senior Management Team to operate as ambassadors for UoN Libraries both within the wider university and the sector.
In the Director’s absence, be responsible for all core management functions across the whole Senior Management Team.

Relationships – 15% of time per year

Work in partnership with senior stakeholders across and beyond the institution, ensuring the UoN Libraries position is embedded within key programs of work.
Play a leadership role in the institution, providing a valuable contribution to relevant boards and working groups and the senior professional services network, working collaboratively with colleagues and maximising opportunities for Libraries to work in partnership with other departments.
Be an active participant in groups outside UoN and build effective networks across the sector.
Be a credible and visible leader within UoN Libraries, hosting events such as staff forums, and leading key meetings, such as Libraries Leadership Group.
Deputise in the absence of the Director of Libraries as required.

Programme and Project management – 10% of time per year

You will:

In conjunction with the Associate Director for Strategy and Planning, lead the scope and shape of work, ensuring development of cross-Department links, and that resources are prioritised in line with strategy.
Take responsibility for key, discrete strategic activity.

Strategy Development and Business Planning – 10% of time per year

You will:

Working with the Director of Libraries, take a lead role in the co-creation of departmental strategy and its implementation.
Sponsor departmental programmes and projects, in alignment with strategy, ensuring appropriate governance and reporting mechanisms are in place.
Be accountable for meeting departmental KPIs and service standards.
Identify opportunities for internal and external funding and develop business cases in order to maximise departmental resources and facilitate innovation.

Any other duties appropriate to the role and level – 5% of time per year

PERSON SPECIFICATION

All of the following are considered essential unless otherwise noted.

Skills

Excellent leadership and management skills including strategic planning, project and people management.
Excellent oral, written and interpersonal communication skills.

Knowledge and experience

Extensive relevant professional experience in an appropriate library or information service.
Excellent influencing skills gained at a senior level.
Proven track record of motivating and inspiring a team.
An ability to work effectively in a team environment with colleagues from different professional backgrounds.
Experience of leading and managing change.
Emotional intelligence, agility and flexibility.
A commitment to service quality.
An ability to prioritise and to schedule workloads in the face of conflicting demands.
A proven track record in operational delivery and financial management.
A proven track record in strategic planning.
Experience of managing human and financial resources in the provision of quality customer services to a diverse range of users within a framework of accountability.
A strategic understanding of the potential of information and communications technologies in HE.
Knowledge of the University sector and current drivers. (Desirable)
Experience of participation in regional/national/international initiatives. (Desirable)

Qualifications, certification and training (relevant to role)

Education to degree level or equivalent.
Graduate professional qualification or commensurate professional experience.
(Desirable)
Appropriate higher degree. (Desirable)
Formal training in project or programme management. (Desirable)

The University of Nottingham is focused on embedding equality, diversity and inclusion in all that we do. As part of this, we welcome a diverse population to join our work force and therefore encourage applicants from all communities, particularly those with protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010.

Expectations and behaviours

The University has developed a clear set of core expectations and behaviours that our people should be demonstrating in their work, and as ambassadors of the University’s strategy, vision and values. The following are essential to the role:

Valuing people Role models the highest ethical standards to cultivate a collaborative workplace that develops talent and enhances wellbeing, whilst also balancing the needs of the various stakeholders.

Taking ownership Translates the vision into a strategy for own area, enabling people to take the right action for the wider organisation. Can resolve complex problems, balancing the needs of varied stakeholders.

Forward thinking Always has the overall strategic goal in mind, manages to stimulate agile and forward thinking in others, motivating them and giving them the confidence to drive for continuous improvement.

Professional pride Goal is to be best in class; ensuring this can be achieved in line with long term strategy regardless of short term challenges. Supports people to do what is best for both the organisation and the department.

Always inclusive Promotes how collaboration and positive partnerships are essential to success, constantly looking ahead to explore how to involve other potential stakeholders.

Key relationships with others

Apply now

Terms of appointment

The salary will be negotiated with the successful candidate, based on experience and within the university’s agreed pay scales.

The university offers a wide range of employment benefits – you can read more here.

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 advertisements.

Applications should consist of:

A full CV.
A covering letter (maximum of two pages) outlining your relevant experience and how you meet the criteria of the person specification.
Please include details of two referees on your CV, though please note that we will not approach your referees without your prior consent and only should you be shortlisted.

For a confidential discussion, please contact our advising consultants at Anderson Quigley: Elliott Rae on elliott.rae@andersonquigley.com or +44 (0)7584 078 534, or Alicja Janowska on alicja.janowska@andersonquigley.com or +44 (0)7743 927 783.

Appointment of the Deputy Director of Library Services, Research & Discovery

Welcome

University of Nottingham Libraries

About Libraries

About the university

The role

Deputy Director of Library Services, Research & Discovery (AQ1969)

Terms of appointment

How to apply