Melbourne Research

Research structure and leadership

University-level | Faculty and department | Research governance | Melbourne Research Office |

University-level

At University level the prime responsibility for academic leadership in research, and delivery of the University's research agenda, lies with the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research). This role is supported by the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research) whose responsibilities include research performance and ethics & research integrity; the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research Collaboration) who has responsibility for research infrastructure and for ensuring the effective establishment of cross-faculty research institutes; and the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research Partnerships) who is responsible for managing relationships with the University's affiliated institutes.

The DVC(R) and the PVCs develop and drive implementation of the University's research strategy and promote University research capacity, performance and outcomes. See Senior Executive list.

Faculty and department

At faculty level Deans are encouraged to appoint senior academics to the part-time position of Associate Deans (Research) or equivalent. This role provides ‘local’ leadership in research planning, target-setting, research development and performance review. Heads of Academic Departments also provide crucial leadership in research and research training, supported by Centre directors, senior staff and postgraduate co-ordinators. The Committee of Associate Deans (Research), chaired by the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research), was established in 2008.

Most faculties have established the position of Faculty Research Manager (or a similarly named variant) to manage, amongst a wide range of responsibilities, the administration of research activities within the faculty. The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) has sought to involve Faculty Research Managers more formally in matters impacting upon the University’s research processes and research agenda. To this end the Faculty Research Manager’s Committee, chaired by the Vice-Principal (Research), has been established.

Research governance

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) has responsibility and accountability in matters relating to research policy, strategy and investment. A new governance structure for research has been established that is streamlined in terms of its decision making processes but is also robust enough to enable input and debate from key stakeholders on critical research issues.

Under this structure there will be two committees reporting directly to the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) – an Advisory Group comprising senior academic staff that will provide advice on strategic issues such as research investment and priorities; and a Committee of Associate Deans (Research) providing advice on research policy matters and the more operational aspects of the portfolio.

A number of research sub-committees, reporting through the Committee of Associate Deans (Research), continue to perform an important function in terms of policy development and review, and engagement with external regulators. These sub-committees are:

Melbourne Research Office

The central administrative research support unit at the University is the Melbourne Research Office (MRO). Under the leadership of the  Vice-Principal (Research) MRO plays a vital role in supporting the University's research agenda. It provides research services in the following core areas:

GRANTS & CONTRACTS
  • Promoting effective grant seeking and the preparation of high quality proposals maximising the value, share and diversity of competitive research funding
  • Helping researchers access internal, Australian and international grant support facilitating research collaboration within Australia and overseas
  • Facilitating effective post-award administration of grants
  • Advising researchers and University management on the opportunities, responsibilities, risks and benefits associated with collaborative initiatives, grant conditions of award and research-related contracts
  • Facilitating research investment and collaboration through effective and efficient administration and negotiation of research-related contracts and agreements

DEVELOPMENT & COLLABORATION
  • Seeking opportunities for new major research initiatives and advising the University on key matters such as governance, IP management, compliance and risk
  • Facilitating the engagement of researchers with external organisations with a view to establishing strong research partnerships

ETHICS & INTEGRITY
  • Administering the policies and procedures established by the University’s Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC), Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) and Ethics Committees; and Gene Technology and Biosafety Committee as they relate to Commonwealth and State legislation, relevant codes and sponsor requirements
  • Reporting as required to Commonwealth and State authorities, regulatory agencies, granting bodies and University insurers on committee operations, work approved, reviews and inspections of facilities, and ensure currency of scientific establishment licenses
  • Providing specialist information and advice to committee members and staff and research students on research integrity, human research ethics, animal experimentation and animal welfare, and gene technology and biosafety through the guidelines, resource kits, administration notes, individual assistance, the office website, and training and workshop

PERFORMANCE REPORTING & ANALYSIS
  • Designing, managing and maximising the result for the University from major research performance collections, ensuring compliance with internal guidelines, external statutory requirements and inter-institutional agreements on data exchange
  • Providing specialist information and advice on ways of measuring R&RT performance and reporting against benchmarks and targets
  • Leading the planning and analysis associated with the University’s participation in the Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) initiative

RESEARCH SYSTEMS
  • Managing Themis Research and related systems to provide the best possible IT platform for research management and administration
  • Overseeing systems changes and enhancements that are considered high priority by the Research Office
  • Participating in system testing resulting from upgrades and modifications to Themis
  • Working with all areas of research management to improve the fundamental data quality of information captured in research systems and the Management Information System

The Melbourne Research Office has a very strong client focus and a culture that drives the provision of high quality research services, nurtures strong relationships with both academic and administrative staff, and ensures that research activities are administered in a fashion that optimises outcomes for the University, while at the same time minimising risk. This is achieved through the dedication of a workforce that is committed to achieving our aim of “supporting the University of Melbourne to become one of the finest universities in the world”.
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