Senior Portfolio Engagement Officer

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The opportunity

What is the purpose of the role?

UAL Awarding Body has a pipeline of new qualifications in development for 14 -19-year-olds and 19+ year-olds, and a qualifications revision cycle that needs to be undertaken to meet regulatory requirements and exploit commercial opportunities.

As Senior Portfolio Engagement Officer, you will specifically support the research & stakeholder engagement capacity of the team.

You will commission focused pieces of research and gathering intel from internal and external stakeholders on new qualification ideas, quality improvements, refinements and enhancements to our existing product and resource offer.

You will project manage the process of gathering stakeholder letters of support for external qualification submissions, and evidence to support business cases, options papers and reports. you will also manage and report on the performance of each portfolio area.

You must have strong research and communication skills, and the ability to work across multiple projects while prioritising your workload. 

Duties and Responsibilities

Sector awareness

• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of UCAS, funding, educational policies, regulatory guidance (including Ofqual, CCEA Regulation and Qualifications Wales) and use these to define new qualification products.
• Maintain an up-to-date knowledge of our portfolio areas and key concerns/requirements in the schools, the Further Education and the Higher Education sector that may shape qualification proposals.

Portfolio Management

• Manage the end-to-end production of business cases to secure senior management approval for the qualification proposals being developed.
• Organise and leads internal working groups to gain input from colleagues around new qualification proposals.
• Use primary and secondary research to support new qualification proposals, business cases, or qualification improvements as directed by the Portfolio Engagement Manager and/or the Head of Qualifications and Assessment.
• Provide regular progress reports to the Portfolio Engagement Manager and/or the Head of Qualifications and Assessment on areas of discovery.
• Produce portfolio status reports and maintain performance dashboard for each of our portfolio areas which may include recommended actions to improve, enhance or refine our existing qualifications/assessments.

Stakeholder engagement

• Develop and maintain a range of stakeholder relationships pertinent to the identification and shaping of new qualification proposals.
• Manage the commissioning and on-going relationship within external suppliers

Customer service

• Facilitate and leads external and internal meetings related to new qualification and assessment ideas, content etc.
• Represent the Awarding Body during internal and external conferences and events, including with Regulators, funding institutions and the Federation of Awarding Bodies.
• Keep colleagues and customers up to date regarding recommended qualification proposals.

Administration

• Responsible for proofreading business cases, external reports by self and colleagues with attention to detail including SPaG and formatting.
• Maintain accurate, auditable records of scoping, expenditure and other activities using the Awarding Bodies IT systems along with paper and other electronic software.

General duties

• Perform duties and tasks consistent within the scope and grade of your role as reasonably may be expected and assigned to you from anywhere within the university. 
• Undertake health and safety duties and responsibilities appropriate to the role. 
• Work in accordance with the University’s Staff Charter and Dignity at Work Policy and anti-racism plans, promoting equality diversity and inclusion in your work. 
• Undertake continuous personal and professional development, and to support it for any staff you manage through effective use of the University’s Planning, Review and Appraisal (PRA) scheme and staff development opportunities. 
• Make full use of all information and communication technologies to meet the requirements of the role and to promote organisational effectiveness. 
• Conduct all financial matters associated with the role in accordance with the University’s policies and procedures, as laid down in the Financial Regulations.
• Contribute to the University’s Climate Action Plan and Social Purpose Strategy which sets out our principles, commitments and goals towards climate justice and our socio-environmental purpose. 

About you

Person Specification

Specialist Knowledge/Qualifications

• Knowledge of data collection and analysis tools (Microsoft forms, power BI, etc.),
• Knowledge of the qualification development and design cycle. (desirable)
• Understanding of the school, FE and/or HE sectors. (desirable)

Relevant Experience

• Experience of developing proposals and initiating projects both collaboratively and independently.
• Experience of conducting research and interpreting and synthesizing the information gathered.
• Experience of co-ordinating and organising events
• Experience of engaging and consulting with stakeholders

Communication Skills

• Communicates effectively orally and in writing adapting the message for a diverse audience in an inclusive and accessible way.
• Numerate and able to work with both quantitative and qualitative information. 

Planning and Managing Resources

• Plans, prioritises and manages resources effectively to achieve long term objectives.

Teamwork

• Works collaboratively in a team and where appropriate across or with different professional groups.

We are UAL

University of the Arts London (UAL) offers an extensive range of courses in art, design, fashion, communication and performing arts. We are a collegiate University spread across London with six Colleges, four Institutes and five Research Centres. UAL also has two subsidiary companies, delivering specialist activities – UAL Short Courses Ltd, and UAL Arts Temps Ltd.

We’re made up of all types of people, coming together in London, the world’s creative capital. We are designers, artists, performers, thinkers, researchers and makers. Our students, staff and graduates form a global network of creatives, entrepreneurs and leaders. Together, our ideas change the world. Because the world needs creativity.

We are ranked highly across the board. We are ranked first for specialist art and design, second in the world for Art and Design in the 2023 QS World University Rankings (for the fifth year in a row), ranked fifth in sustainability and two of our colleges were rated in the top three fashion schools in the world.

Our culture

We have become one of the world’s most international Universities, welcoming over 22,000 students and 6,000 staff from 130 countries. And, as a global university, staff and students learn from different cultures and perspectives, which leads to new conversations and innovative work. At our very core, everything we do seeks to challenge the status quo by driving social purpose and standing up for what matters.

We welcome applicants from all backgrounds including those who may feel underrepresented in the workforce due to their socioeconomic circumstances such as those from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (B.A.M.E.) backgrounds. We aim to be a university where everyone can be themselves and are supported to reach their full potential.

With our commitment to inclusion and diversity, we are proud to be a Race Equality Charter (REC) member to help us reduce barriers that negatively impacts B.A.M.E. staff, a Stonewall Diversity Champion to ensure all LGBTQ+ people are valued at work, a Disability Confident Scheme Committed employer and member of the Business Disability Forum which help us to improve the lives of disabled people in the workplace.

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