Open Access Librarian – Academic Services – 53040 – Grade 7

Job title:

Open Access Librarian – Academic Services – 53040 – Grade 7

Company

University of Birmingham

Job description

Job Description:Position DetailsAcademic ServicesLocation: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UKFull time starting salary is normally in the range £34,980 to £44,263 with potential progression once in post to £46,974Grade: 7Full Time, PermanentClosing date: 18th August 2024‘Open House’ Drop In Session: We will be holding an ‘open house’ drop in session at the University’s Exchange building at the café, in Centenary Square, Birmingham, between 10am and 5pm on Monday 15th July 2024. If you’re interested in working at the University of Birmingham and perhaps have a few questions, this is an opportunity to meet colleagues in the Recruitment team. It will be a relaxed and informal event – you can drop in at any time.BackgroundLibrary Services supports the information resources and services needs of staff and students undertaking high quality research, learning and teaching at the University of Birmingham. The Open Access Librarian is a member of Scholarly Communications Services, a team within the Content Management and Development division of Library Services. Scholarly Communications Services are responsible for managing the ingest, description, discoverability, accessibility and long term preservation of a range of research outputs across a suite of open repositories, including published outputs, data and theses. The team also manages expenditure of the University’s centralised open access funds and provides a range of services to support staff and student’s open research practice.In alignment with public and charitable Research Funders, the University of Birmingham recognises the benefits that open access brings. The publishing landscape has been transformed by open access over recent years. The Open Access Librarian provides expert support to researchers and research administrators to help them navigate increasingly complex options for the effective dissemination of research outputs. The post holder will monitor the rapidly evolving external policy and publishing landscape, alerting and advising key stakeholders and developing information and training resources as necessary.Library Services holds a dedicated open access budget and manages open access grants in excess of £1m. Open access is also now a key element of Library Services negotiations with publishers and the Open Access Librarian will support data gathering and decision making during such negotiations. The post holder will provide day to day administration of, and reporting on, open access budgets. They will work closely with colleagues to ensure spending on publisher agreements is apportioned correctly between block grants and subscription funds. The post holder will also manage the Open Access Officer and oversee their work in approving APC spending against open access budgets.Role SummaryWe are seeking an enthusiastic proponent of open research to join our Scholarly Communications Services team as Open Access Librarian. The role is integral to Library and Learning Resources support offer to University of Birmingham researchers. The successful candidate will provide expert advice to researchers and research administrators, helping them navigate the increasingly complex options for effective dissemination of research outputs. They will administer approximately £1.5m per annum of dedicated open access funding; maintain oversight of our research publications repository service; and support strategic alignment in the open access space with funder requirements and emerging best practice. Initial priorities will include supporting the implementation of the University’s Rights Retention Policy and revising procedures to align with the new REF open access policy.The University maintains a suite of repositories which support its Open Research aspirations. The post holder will work closely with the wider Scholarly Communications Services team to ensure that the research outputs repository and associated support and processes remain fit for purpose. They work with the Scholarly Communication Assistant Team Leader to monitor and prioritise workload to ensure that essential open access policy requirements are met.Main Duties

• Provides advice to researchers and administrators on their options for making research outputs open access within the broader context of local and external open access policies, as well as generally accepted good open research practice.
• Maintains awareness of relevant open access policy developments in the UK and internationally, alerting Library colleagues and senior University stakeholders to significant changes, and supporting the communication of such changes via appropriate channels (including web pages, development and delivery of presentations and workshops, and messaging via other engagement channels)
• Maintains close links with internal and external stakeholders concerned with the dissemination and impact of research publishing and open access, by supporting collaboration, joining networks, taking an active role in workshops and meetings and presenting work at conferences.
• Proposes changes to, and support the implementation of, efficient and user-friendly open access processes in response to a rapidly moving external policy environment; and to new open research infrastructure developments.
• Line manages the Open Access Officer post and provides mentoring and coaching for library colleagues who may be the first point of contact for open access matters, or who may be expected to deliver advice and training on publishing research and open access options.
• Oversees the administration of budgets to support open access article processing charges and the publishing element of publisher agreements, working closely with colleagues in Library Administration, Finance and Research Strategy and Services to maintain effective procedures and ensure external block grants are used appropriately.
• Maintains records and creates regular reports on open access spending, uptake, usage and impact. This includes reporting within Library Services, to university committees and to external bodies such as funders and Jisc.
• Makes an active contribution to the Library Big Deals group in the assessment and negotiation of publisher agreements by reviewing offer documents, compiling data and other evidence, assessing value for money, writing feedback and offering recommendations
• Provides expert support to the Scholarly Communications Assistants in their work with the University’s CRIS/research outputs repository by monitoring workloads, answering complex queries and ensuring that repository processes both maintain alignment with open access policy, and take advantage of new open research infrastructure and systems.
• Keeps up to date with technical standards that apply to the description, discovery and dissemination of open research materials made available both via repositories and publisher platforms.
• Advocates for open access across the University, utilising an expert awareness of current evidence about the benefits of open access, along with local evidence of the contribution of open access to impactful research dissemination and the development of a suite of evidence on compliance with local and external open access policy.
• Promotes equality and values diversity, acting as a role model and fostering an inclusive working culture.
• Supports the University’s sustainability agenda through resource efficient working.
• Any other duties commensurate with the grade.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience

• Educated to Degree level (or equivalent qualifications) plus relevant practical experience – where no equivalent qualification is held significant practical relevant experience and expertise in a series of progressively more demanding roles will be required.
• Evidence of literacy and numeracy, with the ability to write clearly, and to produce and analyse information and data.
• Proficient in the use of standard office software,
• Experience using financial, arithmetic and charting functions in MS Excel or similar to manage and report on complex data sets
• Substantial experience in a customer facing role in a library, research administration, publishing or similar position
• In-depth understanding of the scholarly communications landscape, particularly in relation to publishing and open access
• Familiarity with metadata schemas and standards used in repositories and research information systems
• Familiarity with copyright and licensing (including open licensing) as it applies to modern academic publishing
• Experience using a broad range of resource and discovery tools to an advanced level, including generating and interpreting bibliometric data
• Experience of book keeping and/or budget management
• Methodical record keeping and attention to detail
• Experience designing and delivering training and workshops to a range of audiences
• Demonstrable ability to summarise and explain complex systems and processes clearly and at a level tailored for a given audience
• Demonstrable negotiating and influencing skills
• Approachability, diplomacy and confidence in dealing with a wide range of University staff, including tact and assertiveness as appropriate
• Ability to prioritise and schedule work in the face of conflicting demands
• Knowledge of the protected characteristics of the Equality Act 2010, and how to actively ensure in day to day activity in own area that those with protected characteristics are treated equally and fairly.

Role contextRoles at this level will require a broad understanding and practical experience of an administrative or professional field which will be used to plan the running and development of services and/or lead shorter term projects or contribute to larger projects. You will work with information which needs interpretation and analysis; you will use your judgement to identify the best solution to differing problems and issues, offering recommendations for managing more complex situations. You are likely to be responsible for managing a team of staff, being accountable for recruiting and developing them and for managing performance. You may also need to liaise and/or co-ordinate activities across a number of different sections within the department or possibly with wider department or external bodies as appropriate.Core competencies/transferable skillsWorking at this level you will be able to develop and successfully demonstrate the core competencies/transferable skills outlined in each of the areas shown below. As appropriate for the level, our Birmingham Professionals will take ownership for getting things done. You will be expected to be flexible as required in supporting your department and wider University.Informal enquiries to Mike DaintonView our staff values and behavioursWe believe there is no such thing as a ‘typical’ member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone .

Expected salary

£34980 – 44263 per year

Location

United Kingdom

Job date

Fri, 19 Jul 2024 22:52:48 GMT

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