Projectmanager UMCG Research BV

Research changes the future. Behind every successful research programme stands a project manager who provides direction, helps shape strategic decisions, and transforms complex collaborations into tangible results.

As a Project Manager at UMCG Research BV, you play a key role in national and international research projects that contribute to the health of tomorrow. One day, you may be coordinating an international consortium preparing an ambitious grant application; the next, you may be structuring a large-scale research programme and ensuring that researchers can focus on what they do best: advancing science.

You will work in an environment where innovation, multidisciplinary collaboration, and societal impact come together, and where your ability to connect people, provide strategic advice, and drive progress truly makes a difference.

What will you do?
As a Project Manager, you will take a leading role in shaping, structuring, and strategically steering complex research projects throughout various phases of the research lifecycle. You are simultaneously an advisor, organiser, facilitator, and connector. You will support researchers and consortia at a strategic level and actively contribute to decision-making processes within national and international collaborations.
No two days are the same. You will work on multiple projects simultaneously, collaborating with researchers, funding bodies, internal support services, and national and international partners.

Key activities

• You collaborate with researchers in the design and strategic positioning of research projects.
• You lead complex grant application and funding trajectories, helping to shape scientific choices, consortium strategies, and project positioning.
• You organise and facilitate consortium meetings, brainstorming sessions, and workshops.
• You oversee research projects by monitoring progress, quality, risks, and budgets to ensure successful project delivery.
• You operate within a complex stakeholder environment and connect diverse interests to achieve shared decisions and outcomes.
• You coordinate contract negotiations and ensure agreements align with strategic project objectives.
• You monitor project progress and ensure reports are delivered on time, meet high-quality standards, and are strategically well-founded.
• You act as a trusted sparring partner, contributing to process improvement and strengthening collaboration structures.
• You contribute to knowledge sharing and the professionalisation of the research project management field.

A typical day
You kick off the day by meeting with a researcher preparing a European grant proposal. Afterwards, you update a project plan, explore creative methodologies and perspectives to bring people together, and consider how complex ideas can be translated into concrete actions.

Later in the day, you facilitate a consortium meeting where researchers, clinicians, and support professionals jointly determine the next steps of their project. You coordinate follow-up actions with international project partners, respond to questions, identify risks, and ensure projects continue to move forward. At the end of the day, you can look back on a day in which you have helped dozens of people work together to make impactful research possible.

Where will you work?

You will join the UMCG Research BV, a 100% subsidiary of the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG). The team consists of 13 experienced project managers who support researchers throughout the entire research lifecycle through strategic advice, expertise in research funding, collaborative leadership, and professional development. Driven by a shared passion for science, the team helps researchers transform innovative ideas into successful research projects with societal impact.

Within the team, you will have considerable autonomy while never standing alone. Colleagues actively share knowledge, support one another, and collaborate whenever projects require it. Short communication lines and a broad range of expertise ensure continuous learning and development.

Who are you?

You navigate complex research and funding environments with confidence and are comfortable providing direction when needed. You enjoy connecting people and creating structure while maintaining the flexibility that research projects often require. You take ownership of strategic decisions and know how to engage and influence others. You are curious, quick to understand organisational dynamics and collaborative structures, and comfortable interacting with a wide variety of professionals. You take initiative, ask critical questions, and ensure agreements are translated into tangible results.

In addition, you bring:

• A completed HBO (University of Applied Sciences) or WO (University) degree.
• At least 3 years of experience in a complex research, funding, or international collaboration environment is considered a strong advantage.
• Experience coordinating complex projects involving multiple stakeholders.
• Excellent organisational skills and the ability to maintain oversight across multiple projects simultaneously.
• Strong communication skills in English and preferably also in Dutch.
• Experience with grant-funded projects, research organisations, knowledge institutions, healthcare organisations, or public-sector organisations is an advantage.

What do we offer?

We offer a challenging position (32-36 hours per week) in an environment that provides ample opportunities to expand your knowledge, develop your skills, and broaden your professional network both within and beyond UMCG. Initially, you will be appointed for a one-year contract with UMCG Research BV, after which there is a possibility for extension of the appointment or permanent contract.
The salary amounts to a maximum of € 5,867 gross per month (salary scale 10), depending on education and relevant (work) experience, based on full-time employment. In addition, we offer you 8% holiday allowance, 8.3% end-of-year bonus and pension accrual with the ABP, where 70% of the premium is paid by us. The conditions of employment comply with the Collective Labour Agreement for Medical Centres (CAO-UMC).

Links
UMCG Research BV and UMCG.

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