Salary: £72,000
Closing date: Tuesday, 10 March 2026
Contract type: Fixed Term Contract – End date: March 2027
Interview dates: 1st stage (30/03 and 03/04) online/Remote
The Wellcome Trust is a global charitable foundation. We improve health for everyone by funding science, leading policy and advocacy campaigns, and building partnerships.
We plan to spend £16bn over the next ten years, funding new discoveries in life, health, and wellbeing, and taking on three global health challenges: mental health, infectious disease and climate and health.
These challenges need the bold discovery research we support. Our mission in Discovery Research, a strategic programme within the Discovery Department at Wellcome, is to generate new knowledge that has the potential to transform life, health and wellbeing in ways we can’t always anticipate. We fund researchers, the UK and in LMICs, across disciplines and career stages, creating the conditions for ambitious and transformative research ideas to flourish. By investing in tools, technologies and research cultures, we aim to remove barriers and enable breakthroughs that improve health for everyone.
We take a long-term view, helping research that spans from fundamental biology to social sciences. Our approach includes regular funding opportunities for both investigator and team-led research programmes, major long-term investments and directed initiatives in critical fields to catalyse new research approaches. Diversity and interdisciplinary collaboration are at the heart of our vision, ensuring richer insights and more impactful discoveries.
We are looking for a Researcher Networks Manager to join our team on a fixed term contract (End date: March 2027).
Where in Wellcome will I be working?
You will be working in the Discovery Research directorate, which is the largest funding area within Wellcome. The role sits within the Early Career and Career Development Researchers team within Discovery Research but will interact with all of the sub-teams covering the Open Mode funding and directed funding of research and initiatives.
This role sits at the heart of our work as a directorate to strengthen research relationships, community engagement, and innovation. The role will continue momentum on existing work while engaging with researchers across all disciplines—regardless of their funding route—and fostering strong links with community partners.
What will I be doing?
In this role, you’ll lead the ongoing development and delivery of Discovery Research’s approach to engaging research communities, helping us build strong, accessible connections with researchers across career stages and regions. We want to work to better coordinate and standardise our external engagement and optimise how we interact with diverse cohorts and ensure our engagement is inclusive, dynamic and helps with our wider strategic ambitions.
As a Researcher Networks Manager, you will:
Oversee a programme of Discovery Research–driven engagement activities, ensuring external interactions are purposeful, coordinated and aligned with strategic goals.
Refine our existing approaches and establish a “design brief” approach that ensures the tools and resources to deliver engagement activities are in place and understood by the wider team
Develop a clear understanding of the needs and priorities of diverse DR communities, and work with colleagues across DR and Research Programmes to shape activities that respond to these.
Drive progress towards a biannual cycle of activities to be delivered by sub-teams with a clear identity to the core Discovery Research vision
Identifying shared interests and creating opportunities for partnerships with funders, partner organisations, industry and the wider research community.
Work across the teams within Wellcome to support development of cross-cutting activities and represent the interested and priorities of Discovery Research in those opportunities.
Is this job for me?
If you have substantial experience in academic research and funding activity —both in the UK and internationally—and you thrive in roles that connect diverse research communities, this could be an excellent fit for you. You’ll enjoy this job if you’re confident working across complex stakeholder groups, developing targeted engagement initiatives, and using digital and in‑person approaches to bring researchers together. It’s ideal for someone who is analytical, collaborative and organised, with strong communication and interpersonal skills that help them influence and help others while delivering high‑quality, impactful work.
To apply for this role please submit an updated CV and answer 2 application questions to demonstrate that you meet the minimum requirements for the role.
Minimum Criteria:
Significant experience of working within a funder to develop and implement engagement activities within an established impact framework.
Experience of the research ecosystem (both in the UK and LMIC settings) with an understanding of the current challenges and opportunities that impact engagement approaches
Experience of developing targeted outreach initiatives, to engage with cohorts of researchers, to achieve set objectives e.g., early career researcher networks, scoping of research topics, building communities of grant holders.
Knowledge of digital platforms and approaches to creating virtual researcher networks.
Experience / knowledge of working with and running projects with universities, funders and other relevant scientific and research organisations and communities.
Applications Questions:
Using examples please provide evidence to demonstrate that you meet the minimum criteria for this role as outlined in the job description? (Up to 500 words)
Using short summaries please provide specific details of up to two different initiatives or projects you have been directly involved in that are relevant to this role. For each initiative or project please use up to 250 words to describe your role (e.g. team leader, team member), the purpose of the activity (i.e. its aims), and the major contributions you personally made.
You can view the full job description on our website
You can read more about the benefits we offer our employees on our website
Our Hybrid Way of Working
We understand that our colleagues have commitments and personal interests outside of work and we strive to build a flexible working environment, in which people can perform at their best.
At Wellcome we have a hybrid way of working which is 3 days in our Euston Road offices (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday) with the remaining 2 days working either remotely or in the office.
Diversity and Inclusion is at the heart of everything we do
Diversity and Inclusion is a priority at Wellcome. We are committed to cultivating a fair and inclusive environment, where everyone can be themselves and thrive. We are happy to discuss flexible working options for all roles. We work to ensure that our recruitment processes are as inclusive as possible to everyone. This includes making adjustments for people who have a disability or long-term condition. Please visit our website for more information on adjustments and accessibility, or contact us at jobs@wellcome.org.
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