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Volume LVI, Number 2

A Qualitative Content Analysis of Job Advertisements for Research Funding Managers-Related Positions in Australian Universities

Olanrewaju A. Wilhelm
Department of Human Resources and Administration
New Home Distribution Africa Ltd, Lagos, Nigeria

Olumide A. Odeyemi
Research Division 
University of Tasmania, Launceston, Australia

Abstract

Research funding managers require diverse knowledge, skills, and experience to provide excellent research support services. This study aims to identify the topmost critical knowledge, skills, and experience required of a research funding manager in higher education in Australia. A qualitative content analysis of the job descriptions of research manager positions in Australia was conducted. A total of 51 research funding managers’ positions were advertised within the study period. Most of the positions (92.2%) were advertised as full-time positions, and continuing positions (58.8%). Twenty-three major skills (soft and hard skills) were identified. The most required skills are communication, interpersonal, leadership, problem-solving and analytical, and organization and planning, while 11 core knowledge areas were required. The most required knowledge areas are funding schemes, contract management, research landscape, funding and institutional regulations. A total of 17 areas of experience were identified. The most required experience includes grant management and administration, research grant system, leadership, management and project management. It was also concluded that a research funding manager must know about funding schemes, contract management, research landscape, regulations of a tertiary institution environment and grant development while experience in contract management, research grant system and project management are also germane.  

Keywords: Research Administration, Research Funding, Qualitative Analysis, Soft Skills.

Introduction

Research management and administration is a dynamic profession that spans various higher education and private sectors. Professionals in this field provide support to researchers throughout the research lifecycle, helping to alleviate the administrative burden associated with research (Spencer & Scott, 2017). These professionals are required at each stage of the research lifecycle, with more than ten areas of specialization (Kerridge & Scott, 2017). They are named based on the stage or phase of the research lifecycle in which they provide support services. For example, those providing research support services at the ideation phase are called research development professionals, while those providing support at the research funding application phase are called research funding (pre- or post-award) professionals, with titles such as research funding officer, research administration officer, or grant officer. Research funding managers oversee the operation of the research funding team, providing excellent support services to improve the quality of research funding applications and increase success rates. Despite the ubiquitous usefulness of this profession, there is no formal undergraduate educational program required to enter the profession (Shelley, 2010). However, more recently, postgraduate degrees in research management and administration are being offered in some universities in the United States of America, and some professional societies are now offering short development courses and certifications. Although professional certification has been a useful tool to equip members of the profession, not all professionals are interested in pursuing certification. 

The growing demand for research funding professionals can be attributed to the increase in global research activities and the need for research funding to drive scientific innovation (Shelley, 2010). As funding requirements continue to rise, so does the need for research funding professionals to possess a diverse set of knowledge, skills, and experience to provide excellent research funding support services. Research management and administration professionals must have a wide range of competencies to support research excellence and impact (Andersen, 2018).  Job advertisements, primarily posted online, play a crucial role in attracting the most suitable candidates to fill vacant positions (Kim & Angnakoon, 2016). These advertisements typically include position descriptions that outline the knowledge, skills, and experience required for the role, as well as the responsibilities of the hired candidate. Job seekers can use these position descriptions to understand the current demands of the workplace (Bronstein, 2015; Wise et al., 2011).

Analyzing the content of job advertisements has become increasingly important for identifying the critical knowledge, skills, and experience required in various disciplines, such as library and information science (LIS) (Bronstein, 2015), knowledge management (Harper, 2012), consultancy (Carliner et al., 2015), health informatics and management (Meyer, 2019) and project management (Ahsan et al., 2013). However, despite the evolving nature of the research management and administration profession, there has been no such study focusing on this field. Therefore, this study aims to identify the top five most critical knowledge, skills, and experiences required of research funding managers in higher education in Australia. The findings of this study will be valuable in determining the most essential knowledge, skills, and experience needed for research funding positions, thereby supporting professional development and skill acquisition for those aspiring to take up managerial roles in the research management and administration profession. 

The study seeks to answer the research question: what are the top five most important knowledge, skills, and experiences required for the position of research funding managers in Australia?

Method

This study was conducted in two phases. In the first phase, research questions were formulated to guide the study and provide a clear focus for the investigation. The second phase involved the collection of job advertisements and the extraction of relevant data for content analysis.

Job Advertisement Collection

Job advertisements for research management and administration positions were collected over six months (late 2022–early 2023) from university job websites, job search websites (Seek, Jora), and LinkedIn (a professional social networking site). The collected advertisements encompassed various aspects of the research management and administration profession, including research funding (pre- and post-award), research performance, research integrity and ethics, intellectual property, research development, and research infrastructure. However, this current study focuses specifically on the data collected for research funding manager positions.

To streamline the search and ensure relevance to the profession of interest, keywords such as "research management" and "research administration" were used when searching for job advertisements on the websites. Additionally, daily or weekly notifications were set up to ensure that no potential job advertisements were missed, as most job postings are typically active for only two weeks. For each advertised position, the position description was extracted and used for data.

Data Extraction

From the position description of each job advertisement, the following information was extracted:

• The university advertising the job.
• Position and level (Higher Education Officer - HEO/Higher Education Worker - HEW).
• Core areas of knowledge required for the role.
• Working hours (full-time, part-time, or casual).
• Basis of employment (continuing, fixed-term, or contract).
• Source of the job advertisement (university website, job search website, or LinkedIn).
• Professional framework (if applicable).
• Position requirements (qualifications and education).
• Selection criteria.
• Position description.
• Roles and responsibilities associated with the position.

Data Analysis

The extracted data, excluding the roles and responsibilities, were organized, deduplicated, and analyzed descriptively using Microsoft Excel. The roles and responsibilities were downloaded into Microsoft Word and then exported to the content analysis software, NVivo (version 20), for coding and visualization of the qualitative data. The content analysis followed the method described by Meyer (2019), which includes preparing the data, organizing the data, and reporting the analyzed data.

Results

During the study period, 51 job positions for research funding managers were advertised, as shown in Table 1. Only 28.6% of these positions were advertised by Group of Eight universities. Most positions (92.2%) were advertised as full-time, and more than half (58.8%) were advertised as continuing positions. Over two-thirds (66.7%) of the advertised positions were at HEO/HEW level 8. Postgraduate education was the most preferred qualification, with 86.2% of the job listings requiring this level of education. Most of the job positions were advertised on the universities' job websites. Universities from Victoria (39.2%) and Queensland (31.4%) accounted for more than half of the advertised positions.

Table 1. Descriptive Statistics

Selection Criteria (Knowledge, Skill, and Experience – KSE)

To answer the research question, the selection criteria of the job positions were analyzed qualitatively using content analysis. The content of the selection criteria was grouped into three categories: knowledge, skills, and experience. The results, presented in Figure 1, revealed overlaps between the knowledge, skills, and experience required of research funding managers. To avoid undue repetition, overlapping requirements were not repeated in the analysis.

Skills

A total of 23 skills (soft and hard skills), mentioned 125 times, were required in all the position descriptions analyzed in this study. The skills were further categorized into communication skills, problem-solving skills, leadership skills, analytical skills, technical skills, collaboration skills, and cognitive skills, as shown in Table 2. Communication (oral and written) was the most frequently mentioned soft skill required for the position of research funding manager, appearing 24 times. Interpersonal skills were the second most required soft skill, while leadership skills were the third most required. Other skills included problem-solving, analytical, management, and organization and planning skills. The top five most required skills were discussed in detail.

Table 2. Categorization of Skills Required for a Research Funding Manager’s Position

Knowledge

Eleven core knowledge areas, mentioned 25 times, were identified and further categorized into industry (research funding), regulatory, and organizational knowledge, as shown in Table 3. Knowledge of funding schemes was the most required knowledge area, mentioned seven times. Contract management was the second most required (mentioned four times), while knowledge of the research landscape and knowledge of funding and institutional regulations were the third most required knowledge areas (mentioned three times each). The top five most required knowledge areas were discussed in detail.

Table 3. Categorization of Knowledge Required for a Research Funding Manager’s Position

Experience

Seventeen areas of experience, mentioned 65 times, were identified. The five most required experiences were grant management and administration (mentioned 21 times), research grant systems (mentioned 11 times), leadership (motivation, liaison, training), management, and project management (each mentioned four times). Only four of the top five most required experiences were discussed in detail, as leadership had already been discussed as a skill (Table 4).

Table 4. Core Areas of Experience Required for a Research Funding Manager’s Position

Overlapping of Knowledge, Skills and Experience

The analysis of the position descriptions in the job advertisements revealed overlaps among some of the listed knowledge, skills, and experience requirements, as illustrated in Figure 1. The majority (8) of these overlaps occurred between skills and experience, while no overlaps were observed between knowledge and skills. Only one overlap was identified between knowledge and experience. Interestingly, grant management and administration, contract management, research grant systems, and research partnerships were listed as knowledge, skill, and experience requirements in some of the analyzed position descriptions.

Figure 1. Knowledge, Skill and Experience (KSE)

Discussion

A content analysis of research management and administration job positions was conducted to identify the top five most requested knowledge, skills, and experiences. The position descriptions of the advertised jobs included data on the institution advertising the position, department, basis, and level of employment, position summary, responsibilities, selection criteria, and other institutional requirements, aligning with the definition of position description provided by Bhargava and Theunissen (2019). This study used a purposive sampling method, focusing on research management and administration positions advertised on university websites and job websites like Seek.

The sample size and sampling period of this study fall within the ranges reported in a systematic review by Kim and Angnakoon (2016), which found that studies on job advertisements used sample sizes between 10 and 10,000 and sampling periods ranging from two months to 44 years. Although experience in various skills was required, the position descriptions did not specify the number of years of experience.

The descriptive statistics of appointment type and qualification in this study agree with previous findings. Kerridge and Scott (2018) reported that over 70% of respondents from Oceania were employed full-time, and more than 50% had postgraduate degrees. Oliveira et al. (2023) found that 60% of 308 respondents from Oceania, primarily from Australia, had postgraduate degrees, suggesting that the profession requires highly educated individuals who can work on a continuing full-time basis. Globally, professionals at managerial levels had more postgraduate qualifications than those at operational or leadership levels. Postgraduate degrees build trust in the services provided by research managers and administrators who support highly educated researchers (Byrne, 2023). 

Research funding managers can be categorized as pre-award or post-award managers. Pre-award managers lead the pre-award research funding team and provide support services from ideation to the submission of funding applications. Post-award managers lead the team that provides support services when funding applications are successful, assisting with establishing contract agreements with funding bodies. 

The top five skills identified (communication, interpersonal skills, leadership, problem-solving and analytical skills, and organization and planning) are considered transferable skills required in the profession (Virágh et al., 2020). These soft skills can be acquired through various means, including postgraduate education. Kerridge and Scott (2017) reported that soft skills are required in higher proportions among leaders and managers compared to hard skills required by operational professionals, indicating an increasing need for transferable skills when progressing to managerial and leadership positions. The diverse skills needed to complete different tasks impact career development in research management and administration, as practitioners are multifunctional by default (Bonnici & Cassar, 2020; Reardon, 2021). Vidal et al. (2015), noted that research management and administration professionals provide basic, intermediate, and advanced support services to researchers applying for funding, with each level requiring different knowledge, skills, and experience. Advanced support, such as reviewing proposals, providing professional feedback, ensuring proposals meet funding objectives, and organizing development sessions, requires communication skills, interpersonal skills, organizational skills, and attention to detail. The study reported a 61% success rate for funding applications that received advanced support services. 

In a recent global study, Dutta et al. (2023) found that 68.1% of 3,465 respondents reported communication skills as necessary to enter the profession, with communication skills ranking first among respondents from Oceania (77.5%). These skills are essential for communicating with various stakeholders involved in the research funding lifecycle, such as communicating funding opportunities to researchers and interacting with funders and partner organizations. 

Interpersonal skills are crucial for maintaining good working relationships and avoiding reputational damage. Campo (2014) emphasized the importance of interpersonal skills for good leadership in research management and administration. Virágh et al. (2020), and Poli et al. (2023) reported that interpersonal skills are among the most important transferable skills required by research management professionals in Europe.

Leadership skills are unsurprisingly required for research funding manager positions, although there is a lack of studies on leadership roles in research management and administration, possibly due to the limited number of leadership roles in the profession. Problem-solving and analytical skills have been identified as important transferable skills with Poli et al. (2023) reporting them among the top four most important transferable skills required by research management and administration professionals in Europe. Organization and planning skills are necessary due to the complexity of tasks associated with the profession, such as organizing documents related to funding applications. Dutta et al. (2023) reported that 72.1% of respondents stated organizational skills enabled them to enter the profession, with 77% of 371 respondents from Oceania, including Australia, possessing organizational skills when starting their roles.

Research funding managers must understand the objectives and requirements of various funding schemes and rounds to provide professional advice to researchers. For example, in Australia, the Australian Research Council (ARC) and National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) have different schemes for their Discovery and Linkage Programs. Knowledge of contract management is required by post-award research funding managers to establish contract agreements with funding bodies, while both pre- and post-award managers need this skill to understand the research ecosystem and the latest developments in administering new funding opportunities and requirements.

Research funding managers are expected to have knowledge of their institution's internal requirements for funding applications. To secure funding, applications must be novel, systematic, and meet all internal and external requirements, necessitating well-written grant development. This requires good writing skills and attention to detail as specified in the funding guidelines. Research funding managers are expected to demonstrate their skills and knowledge through experience, which can be gained through employment or volunteering. 

Conclusion

In conclusion, research funding managers require diverse knowledge, skills, and experiences to provide excellent research support services. The findings of this study benefit early career research management and administration professionals intending to transition to managerial roles. The analysis of job advertisements for research funding manager positions at level 8 and above establishes that candidates must be skilled in communication, interpersonal relations, leadership, problem-solving, analytical thinking, organization, and planning. Additionally, research funding managers must have knowledge of funding schemes, contract management, research landscape, tertiary institution regulations, and grant development, as well as experience in contract management, research grant systems, and project management.

Authors' Note

Originality Note

This manuscript reflects the original work of Olanrewaju A. Wilhelm and Olumide A. Odeyemi. All references have been properly cited in the manuscript.

Corresponding Author

Correspondence concerning this article should be directed to Olumide A. Odeyemi (oluodeyemi@gmail.com). This project was completed independent of the authors’ employers.

Olanrewaju A. Wilhelm
Department of Human Resources and Administration
New Home Distribution Africa Ltd, Lagos, Nigeria.

Olumide A. Odeyemi
Research Division 
University of Tasmania, Launceston, Australia
Corresponding author: oluodeyemi@gmail.com

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