The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust

Head of Investigator Initiated Trials

The closing date is 19 September 2025

Job summary

An opportunity has arisen for a Band 8c Senior Management post.The role sits within the Senior Management Team with responsibility for leading, managing & developing the management of our sponsored research portfolio. The post holder will be responsible for leading RM CTU, as well as having oversight of the management of all areas of sponsored research. The post holder will hold an honorary contract with the Institute of Clinical Research, & work closely with all the CTU's across both organisations.The key responsibilities for this management post is to oversea the Royal Marsden Clinical Trial's Unit's portfolio of high-quality, high impact clinical research sponsored by The Royal Marsden & The Institute of Cancer Research.Also to build and develop strong working relationships with researchers, research trainees & the wider research & clinical service workforce across The Royal Marsden and The Institute of Cancer Research, NIHR CRN South London, RM Partners, Oncology Translational Research Collaboration, other CTUs & research sponsors and funders (both commercial and non-commercial) and national groups such as UM TMN & UK CRC to strengthen our standing as a world-class centre of excellence for cancer research.The post-holder will also act as senior operational lead for several Themes within the NIHR BRC at The Royal Marsden & The Institute of Cancer Research, supporting successful delivery of BRC aims and objectives.

For more information contact Carmel.Keyzor@rmh.nhs.uk.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will have overall responsibility for the broad and diverse portfolio of clinical research sponsored by The Royal Marsden, delivered by through The Royal Marsden Clinical Trials Unit and tumour specific/agnostics research units. They will line manage senior clinical trials management personnel and work closely with relevant stakeholders with involvement in the trial lifecycle, including research funding/finance, monitoring, pharmacovigilance, audit, statistics and database programming staff.The ideal candidate will have significant expertise of clinical trials management for non-commercially sponsored (i.e. NHS or university sponsored) research. This expertise will have been gained through hands on experience of running individual trials, plus experience of overseeing and developing a wider portfolio of both interventional and complex non-interventional studies funded by both commercial and non-commercial funders. They will also have excellent leadership and management skills, able to inspire and motivate staff; and will be able to represent and drive forward this important portfolio of research.

Please note this advert may close early.

About us

The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust is a world-leading cancer centre. Our role is to offer our patients the best cancer care available anywhere in the world, and to continue to make a global contribution to finding better ways of diagnosing and treating cancer. We employ over 4,500 staff in a diverse range of careers including nursing, medical, science, radiography, pharmacy, occupational therapy, finance and administrative services. We have two hospitals - one in Chelsea, London, and one in Sutton, Surrey - as well as a Medical Daycare Unit in Kingston Hospital.

At The Royal Marsden, we deal with cancer every day, so we understand how valuable life is. When people entrust their lives to us, they have the right to demand the very best. That's why the pursuit of excellence lies at the heart of everything we do.

At the heart of the hospital is our dedicated team. We offer a stimulating and dynamic working environment, a wide range of staff benefits, learning and development opportunities and clear career pathways. There are opportunities to work flexibly across a range of areas and specialities and we welcome flexible working requests from point of hire to support employees work life balance. We are looking for employees who aspire to excellence, share our values and can play a crucial role in our on-going achievements.

Details

Date posted

04 September 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 8c

Salary

£82,906 to £94,632 a year per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

282-CR812

Job locations

The Royal Marsden Sutton

Sutton

SM2 5PT


Job description

Job responsibilities

For further information on this role, please see the attached detailed Job Description and Person Specification.

Working as a member of the senior management team, provide leadership and contribute to developing the strategic direction of the research directorate. Develop strategy for RM to build and sustain a nationally and internationally competitive portfolio of sponsored clinical trials, which is aligned with the research priorities of our NIHR BRC.

Provide effective and visible leadership and direction in the management of the sponsored portfolio. Line manage senior clinical trial management staff, identify and meet development needs, and review performance through the Trust Personal Development and Performance review process.

Take responsibility for the financial performance, including the achievement of financial targets, balancing the potentially conflicting demands of budgetary requirements and clinical standards.

Job description

Job responsibilities

For further information on this role, please see the attached detailed Job Description and Person Specification.

Working as a member of the senior management team, provide leadership and contribute to developing the strategic direction of the research directorate. Develop strategy for RM to build and sustain a nationally and internationally competitive portfolio of sponsored clinical trials, which is aligned with the research priorities of our NIHR BRC.

Provide effective and visible leadership and direction in the management of the sponsored portfolio. Line manage senior clinical trial management staff, identify and meet development needs, and review performance through the Trust Personal Development and Performance review process.

Take responsibility for the financial performance, including the achievement of financial targets, balancing the potentially conflicting demands of budgetary requirements and clinical standards.

Person Specification

Education/Qualifications

Essential

  • Higher degree qualification (e.g. MSc) in a relevant subject.
  • Recognised Good Clinical Practice certification.
  • Commitment to continued professional development.

Desirable

  • Project management qualification (e.g. PRINCE 2).
  • People management and leadership qualification.

Experience

Essential

  • Significant expertise of clinical trials management for non-commercially sponsored (i.e. NHS or university sponsored) research
  • Hands on experience of running individual clinical trials
  • Experience of overseeing and developing a wider portfolio of both interventional and complex noninterventional studies funded by both commercial and non-commercial funders
  • Extensive experience and excellent skills in managing and developing staff and successfully establishing and maintaining high performing, effective teams.
  • Experience of developing new infrastructure
  • Experience of working with staff from a range of backgrounds and different levels of seniority.
  • Good experience of managing change
  • Experience of managing meetings and producing reports.

Desirable

  • Experience of developing a strong culture of customer service
  • Experience of working across organisations.
  • Experience of delivering training sessions.
  • Experience of project management

Skills / knowledge

Essential

  • Excellent leadership and management skills, able to inspire and motivate staff
  • Able to work unsupervised, managing and prioritising workload, meeting deadlines and exercising initiative.
  • Able to analyse and communicate complex issues to staff at all levels
  • Excellent written and verbal skills and to produce clear written and verbal reports
  • Excellent interpersonal skills; able to build effective relationships with a wide range of people
  • Innovative and creative thinker
  • Able to network effectively; represent RM externally
  • Effective planning and organisational skills
  • Able to work under pressure and handle working on a wide range of areas simultaneously
  • General IT skills - databases, spreadsheets etc
  • Good attention to detail
  • Extensive expert knowledge of legal, ethical, managerial and regulatory requirements for clinical trials and studies
  • Knowledge of developing budgets for clinical trials and practical use of AcoRD
  • A detailed understanding of the clinical trials approval process to conduct clinical research in the UK.
  • Knowledge of the requirements of clinical trials and clinical research projects during their life cycle especially at the start-up stage.
Person Specification

Education/Qualifications

Essential

  • Higher degree qualification (e.g. MSc) in a relevant subject.
  • Recognised Good Clinical Practice certification.
  • Commitment to continued professional development.

Desirable

  • Project management qualification (e.g. PRINCE 2).
  • People management and leadership qualification.

Experience

Essential

  • Significant expertise of clinical trials management for non-commercially sponsored (i.e. NHS or university sponsored) research
  • Hands on experience of running individual clinical trials
  • Experience of overseeing and developing a wider portfolio of both interventional and complex noninterventional studies funded by both commercial and non-commercial funders
  • Extensive experience and excellent skills in managing and developing staff and successfully establishing and maintaining high performing, effective teams.
  • Experience of developing new infrastructure
  • Experience of working with staff from a range of backgrounds and different levels of seniority.
  • Good experience of managing change
  • Experience of managing meetings and producing reports.

Desirable

  • Experience of developing a strong culture of customer service
  • Experience of working across organisations.
  • Experience of delivering training sessions.
  • Experience of project management

Skills / knowledge

Essential

  • Excellent leadership and management skills, able to inspire and motivate staff
  • Able to work unsupervised, managing and prioritising workload, meeting deadlines and exercising initiative.
  • Able to analyse and communicate complex issues to staff at all levels
  • Excellent written and verbal skills and to produce clear written and verbal reports
  • Excellent interpersonal skills; able to build effective relationships with a wide range of people
  • Innovative and creative thinker
  • Able to network effectively; represent RM externally
  • Effective planning and organisational skills
  • Able to work under pressure and handle working on a wide range of areas simultaneously
  • General IT skills - databases, spreadsheets etc
  • Good attention to detail
  • Extensive expert knowledge of legal, ethical, managerial and regulatory requirements for clinical trials and studies
  • Knowledge of developing budgets for clinical trials and practical use of AcoRD
  • A detailed understanding of the clinical trials approval process to conduct clinical research in the UK.
  • Knowledge of the requirements of clinical trials and clinical research projects during their life cycle especially at the start-up stage.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Employer details

Employer name

The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust

Address

The Royal Marsden Sutton

Sutton

SM2 5PT


Employer's website

https://www.royalmarsden.nhs.uk/working-royal-marsden (Opens in a new tab)

Employer details

Employer name

The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust

Address

The Royal Marsden Sutton

Sutton

SM2 5PT


Employer's website

https://www.royalmarsden.nhs.uk/working-royal-marsden (Opens in a new tab)

Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

Head of Clinical Research Delivery

Carmel Keyzor

Carmel.Keyzor@rmh.nhs.uk

Details

Date posted

04 September 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 8c

Salary

£82,906 to £94,632 a year per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

282-CR812

Job locations

The Royal Marsden Sutton

Sutton

SM2 5PT


Supporting documents

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