Research Fellow (Place-based Partnerships) - (7478)

Fellowship Opportunity: Place-based Partnerships

The Institute of Place Management at Manchester Metropolitan: 

Place partnerships bring together a range of public, private and community interests. Typically, they are formed to tackle specific challenges and generate positive outcomes within a defined area. Partnerships have various forms in terms of their constitution, aims and operating models; whereas some are long-term and strategically focused, others might engage with short-term place activation or place maintenance. Partnerships can also operate over a range of spatial scales, from specific locations such as a single high street to an entire region. With examples of effective partnerships led by the community, leadership by large institutions is not necessarily a precondition of success. Whilst their heterogenous nature and flexibility can be considered a strength in responding and adapting to a changing environment, evaluating the impact of place partnerships is difficult. A major research and policy challenge, therefore, concerns what makes an effective place-based partnership, what works well, what toolkits and frameworks might be developed from academic research and applied widely across a range of contexts to nurture and evaluate partnership development.

The Institute of Place Management (IPM)–a professional body and research group embedded in the triple accredited Business School–is a highly esteemed organisation, with the ambition to help communities make their places better. In addition to supporting an international network of place management professionals, the IPM is also responsible for conducting highly impactful research. Since its formation in 2006, the IPM has successfully bid for several funding awards (ESRC, Innovate, INTERREG), including the tender to establish and manage the national High Streets Task Force for England for the UK government (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities). This work has been extended to support the formation of new place partnerships as part of the government's High Street Accelerators pilot programme. The IPM also provides research services to external clients on a bespoke basis. The real world and policy impact of the Institute's work is recognised in several highly ranked REF Impact Case Studies (2014 and 2021). Emerald also publishes the IPM's own academic journal: The Journal of Place Management and Development.

About the role: 

• To undertake world-leading and internationally excellent research using latest and innovative methodologies, as relevant in your area of research. 

• To prepare, present and publish research outputs through the appropriate forums e.g. research workshops, conferences, seminars, exhibitions, portfolios, academic journals etc. 

• To develop ideas for generating income to ensure the continued success and growth of research portfolio.  

• To disseminate findings of research widely to further the institution's standing in the HE and research community and strengthen the impact of the research.

• To engage in scholarly activities conducive to a long-term successful academic career that will support and enhance the research culture within the Department/ School, Faculty and University.

About the candidate: 

Bringing relevant experience in the social sciences with strong quantitative, qualitative and analytic skills, you will have a keen understanding of place and the development of a cross-disciplinary programme of research to shape wider thinking about place-based partnerships and their effectiveness in delivering place-based outcomes. Your areas of research focus could be the development and maintenance of more effective place-based partnerships or measuring the impact of partnerships on places.

 Requirements: 

• Doctoral level qualification in a related research area. 

• Possess breadth or depth of specialist knowledge and demonstrate potential for research independence.

• Excellent track record of relevant research outputs. 

• Significant research experience in the chosen field of research, which should include where appropriate: 
  • leading the work of a team, co-ordinating effort and resources to meet objectives 
  • developing partnerships within the University and with external agencies  
  • preparing funding proposals and applications to external bodies 
  • using initiative, creativity and judgement to develop appropriate approaches to research 
  • synthesising complex data from different sources and communicating findings via written reports and articles 
  • presenting at national and/or international research meetings 
  • supervising student work and providing appropriate support and feedback. 

• Experience of managing and monitoring performance of research projects in multi-disciplinary teams.

• Ability to manage projects involving academic institutions and funding bodies. 

Please refer to the Job Description & Person Specification for a full list of essential & desirable criteria. 

Academic Contact: Prof Steve Millington (s.millington@mmu.ac.uk ) or Prof Cathy Parker (IPM@mmu.ac.uk) to discuss the fellowship opportunity in detail. 

Application Process: 

To apply to the Fellowship, please provide the following documents: 

• Research Interest Statement (no more than two sides of A4, font size 11, 2 cms margin): Statement should include your long-term career aspirations, how your research till date and plans to develop and contribute towards your research interest in the future will impact the University's Research Strategy whilst working with an existing team of researchers.  

• Research Proposal (no more than four sides of A4, font size 11, 2 cm margins): Kindly provide a research proposal focused on a specific topic within the research faculty you are applying for. The proposal should be accompanied by a Gantt chart outlining a 3-year research timeline.  

• Curriculum Vitae (include details of your education, citizenship, publications, funding, employment history & names of referees) 

Please note that panels will not consider attachments that fall outside of the limits, where specified. 

We aim to offer up to a maximum of 15 fellow appointments, for which we will be assessing applicants competitively across the four faculties that are welcoming applications. 

Assessment Timelines: 

• The application window will be available for 8 weeks and will close on 29 May 2024
• Interviews will be held on-site in Manchester (where practical) in the w/c 17 and 24 June 2024
• We aim to make offers to successful candidates in the w/c 03 July 2024

Enquiries:  

If you haven't found your specific area of research, please click here to sign up to our job alerts. 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us on researchfellowships@mmu.ac.uk  

Manchester Met University is committed to creating an intentionally inclusive culture of belonging that promotes equity and celebrates diversity. We understand the importance of having a diverse workforce and the benefits it can bring to ensuring diversity of thought and innovation in everything we do. We, therefore, encourage applications from our local and international communities, in particular people from ethnic minority groups, disabled people and people who identify as LGBTQIA+.    

We recognise the benefits and importance of an environment that supports flexible working and are open to conversations about this throughout the application process.  

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