Head of Data Applications

Salary: £32,000 - 72,000 per year

Requirements:

• SCQF level 9, 10 or 11 qualification (ordinary/honours/postgraduate or equivalent) plus broad relevant experience at an appropriate level
• Extensive knowledge of legislation and regulations applying to clinical trials and data governance, including Good Clinical Practice, ISO 9001, ISO 27001 and GDPR
• Extensive and expert knowledge of data strategy, data governance and information security
• Extensive and expert knowledge of clinical trial technologies, electronic data capture platforms, software application lifecycles and systems integration
• Extensive and expert knowledge of data controllership, processing and management
• Degree qualification in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data Science, Information Systems or a related technical discipline
• Professional certification or training in software development methodologies, cloud technologies, database management, enterprise architecture or data engineering
• Knowledge of modern software development practices and frameworks, including Agile, DevOps, CI/CD, version control and software quality assurance
• Knowledge of cloud-based data platforms and services relevant to clinical research environments
• Ability to provide strategic leadership and operational management across data management, information governance and software applications functions
• Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to engage constructively with a diverse range of colleagues and clients
• Strong ability to lead and manage complex organisational challenges and changes with tact and diplomacy
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including producing high quality documents and formal presentations
• Strong organisational skills with the ability to drive multiple projects simultaneously
• Ability to provide strategic oversight of software architecture, database design and data integration solutions
• Ability to interpret and critically review technical specifications, software development proposals, database designs and systems architecture documentation
• Ability to use SQL and data analysis tools to interrogate datasets, validate outputs and support decision-making
• Strong understanding of data lifecycle management principles, including data quality, metadata management, data migration and data retention strategies
• Ability to communicate effectively with technical specialists and translate complex technical concepts for senior stakeholders
• Leadership and management experience in a research organisation
• Experience of leading effective professional teams and building a strong and responsive customer service culture
• Extensive experience of managing and governing data in a highly regulated environment
• Extensive experience leading and managing teams responsible for software engineering, application development, systems integration and technology delivery
• Experience of working in partnership with senior colleagues to formulate, develop and implement strategies and major projects
• Extensive experience leading major technology transformation programmes, including implementation of enterprise software platforms and organisational change
• Experience of managing relationships with software vendors and external technology partners, including contract management, service governance and performance monitoring
• Experience of overseeing software development teams delivering bespoke web-based applications
• Experience of working with relational database management systems such as SQL Server, PostgreSQL or MySQL
• Experience of leading or supporting data migration, systems integration or application modernisation projects
• Experience of implementing or governing APIs, data exchange standards and interoperability solutions
• Experience of working with cloud-hosted applications, infrastructure or data platforms
• Experience of managing technical teams responsible for software development, database administration, data engineering or platform support
• Experience of introducing software development governance frameworks, including code review, release management, testing and validation processes

Responsibilities:

• Provide operational leadership across our data management, software applications and information governance functions, including line management for senior managers and specialist staff
• Lead organisational planning, prioritisation and resource allocation to deliver objectives, service levels and key performance indicators during technological and organisational change
• Lead the creation, implementation and evolution of our data strategy, leveraging multiple data sources and technology to support secure data management solutions
• Identify future challenges and new solutions in the data strategy and digital e-health landscape, addressing issues and vulnerabilities to keep us competitive and sustainable
• Foster collaborative relationships between our centre and other parts of the University, including support for College initiatives in data strategy
• Lead the planning, governance and delivery of major digital transformation initiatives, including change management, stakeholder engagement, risk management and business continuity
• Monitor performance against agreed objectives and ensure operational and regulatory requirements are met during transition
• Lead the development of future operating models for Data Management and Software Development services
• Lead the operational development, implementation and governance of our electronic data capture and clinical trial applications portfolio, including OpenClinica and bespoke application services
• Ensure effective integration between platforms through secure and compliant interfaces and APIs
• Lead the assessment, selection and implementation of technology solutions that deliver value, scalability, efficiency and regulatory compliance
• Lead continuous improvement across the full lifecycle of collection, processing and management of research data
• Implement standardisation of data collection, management and delivery protocols
• Implement efficient, effective and secure procedures to support high quality data provision, control and governance
• Devise standardisation of data outputs to statisticians and data analysts
• Develop and implement data management metrics reporting for internal and external stakeholders
• Standardise logging and structuring of data held within controlled repositories
• Lead complex data handling activities, including data merging, wrangling, pooling and structuring of datasets for research exploration
• Lead the production of accurate and comprehensive documentation for data strategy, data governance and software development
• Contribute to research protocols, contracts, patient information sheets and information governance records
• Contribute to data linkage applications involving public datasets
• Contribute to costing, budgeting and resource models related to data strategy, information security and software delivery
• Support the identification of new sources of funding, including grants and commercial funding opportunities
• Direct the sourcing and implementation of new software, information management and cloud-based solutions
• Lead the management, implementation and continuous improvement of software and application infrastructures for internal project coordination
• Contribute to our quality infrastructures, including input to ISO 27001 and ISO 9001 certification
• Ensure legal, regulatory and contractual responsibilities relating to data management, information governance and software development are fully compliant
• Produce, review and approve standard operating procedures and guidelines for the Information Security Management System
• Collate information and create reports to provide oversight and inform progress against agreed strategies
• Propose relevant key performance indicators and lead their introduction within our processes
• Produce bids, reports and presentations for clients, stakeholders and funders
• Contribute to wider operational functions by working collaboratively with fellow operational leads
• Provide operational and strategic support to, and deputise for, the Director of Operations when required

Technologies:

• CI/CD
• Cloud
• DevOps
• Support
• MySQL
• PostgreSQL
• SQL
• Security
• Web
• D3

More:

We are the University of Glasgows Robertson Centre for Biostatistics, working within Team UofG as part of a world-changing, inclusive community that values ambition, excellence, integrity and curiosity. This is a full-time, open-ended Grade 9 role with a salary of £59,966 to £67,468 per annum, and relocation assistance will be provided where appropriate. We offer a warm, welcoming and engaging culture, generous terms and conditions including 41 days of leave for full-time staff, pension and benefits packages, a flexible approach to working, and support for health and wellbeing including a free 6-month UofG Sport membership for all new staff. The role is based at our CTU offices on the Gilmorehill campus for a minimum of 50% of the working week, with hybrid working available for the remaining time on a non-contractual basis. We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion, and we welcome applications from under-represented communities. The closing date is 23:45 on Tuesday 29th September 2026.

last updated 36 week of 2026