Vice-President (Research)

The University of Calgary (UCalgary) is one of Canada’s top research universities, grounded in innovative teaching and learning and fully engaged with the community it serves and leads. UCalgary is building a community of discovery, creativity and innovation; and aligning its activities as one of the boldest, most welcoming, spirited, rigorous and well-run institutions in Canada. 

The university is based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, with four campuses in the Calgary area and a fifth in Doha, Qatar. UCalgary is a publicly-funded institution with 14 faculties, all bringing teaching, learning and research to life. There are more than 34,000 students and over 1,800 academic staff on campus who are actively engaged in research, scholarship and teaching. Despite its youth, at 52 years of age, UCalgary is already one of the nation’s leading research universities, with over $419 Million in annual research revenue and 146 research chairs (75 Canada Research Chairs), NSERC Industrial Research Chairs and more than 50 research institutes and centres. UCalgary benefits from the ongoing support of our community, which rallies behind the university, contributing more than $1 billion towards our $1.3 billion goal in Energize: The Campaign for Eyes High. Recently, it was gifted a 76-acre Research Park from the Government of Alberta, which will be used as a facility where research excellence and academic programming drive innovation, economic diversification and the creation of high-quality jobs. Our community’s entrepreneurial and creative thinking will help drive discovery to marketplace in a research ecosystem that is unparalleled.

On this exciting journey, UCalgary is seeking a Vice-President (Research) with limitless ambitions to match those of the institution. Reporting to the President and Vice-Chancellor, the Vice-President (Research) is the senior officer of the university responsible for defining and achieving the strategic research direction and priorities of the institution. The Office of the Vice-President (Research) is responsible for advancing the pursuit of, and promoting excellence in, compliant and ethical research, scholarship, innovation and creative activity, and for driving the university’s research enterprise towards meeting the Eyes High institutional goal to be recognized as one of Canada’s top five research intensive universities by 2022. The incumbent serves as a key member of the President’s Executive Leadership Team (ELT), and the University’s Senior Leadership Team (SLT). The Vice-President (Research) team is composed of six Associate Vice-Presidents, an Executive Director, and assistants. The successful candidate will be offered an academic appointment “With Tenure” at the rank of Professor.  The appointment as Vice-President (Research) is for a five-year period with the possibility of renewal.

The Vice-President (Research) builds consensus among students and faculty on major research initiatives and plays a key role in ensuring that university policies, processes, and facilities enable scholars to produce the highest quality research. The Vice-President (Research) promotes new models for research collaboration, innovation, and knowledge translation, and takes a leadership role with provincial and federal government partners on advancing research and development initiatives. The Vice-President (Research) is responsible for chairs and institutes at the University of Calgary, as well as compliance in research administration, ethics and animal care.

Given the key role of the Vice-President (Research) in UCalgary’s continued growth and success, it is essential that the successful candidate show evidence of proven credibility as a leader in research excellence through the following education, experience, and personal characteristics:

KEY SELECTION CRITERIA:

EDUCATION
■    A Ph.D. or equivalent, as well as career accomplishments at a rank equivalent to Full Professor.

EXPERIENCE
■    An internationally-recognized catalogue of scholarly research and a solid record of teaching excellence;
■    A minimum of 10 years’ progressive experience in leadership as well as significant post doctorate, graduate and undergraduate supervisory experience. Experience in the administration of research grants and contracts is key;
■    Strong leadership and interpersonal skills, including not only the ability to lead the research function, but also the ability to work as an integral member of a leadership team reporting to the president;
■    The demonstrated ability to acquire and facilitate the resources necessary to support best-in-class research at the University of Calgary;
■    Past intellectual service on or with national organizations relevant to providing input into research policy at the national level is an asset;
■    Prior experience in building a world leading research park that acts as a catalyst in driving innovation, economic diversification and the creation of high-quality jobs would be considered an asset;
■    Highly attuned community awareness and community engagement;
■    Strong research planning and administration skills;
■    Prior expertise advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion programs and policies;
■    The proven ability to create, communicate and inspire a vision, set and achieve objectives, and promote and develop an environment supportive of research and graduate education;
■    Experience managing significant financial resources such as those required to support research activities and graduate studies at the University of Calgary;
■    Demonstrated history of effecting change; 
■    A commitment to continuous learning, and the ability to continuously seek out and acquire new knowledge, skills and expertise;
■    Brings a clear understanding of intellectual property (IP), the development and implementation of IP policies and its importance in moving discovery to market within the value chain of commercializing discoveries; 
■    Proven expertise and ability to work collaboratively in developing strategic partnerships;
■    Strong communication skills, both oral and written, with the ability to transcend messages to a multitude of audiences;
■    Proven expertise in working with, building and leading a high functioning team.

HOW TO APPLY
A detailed profile is available here: https://live-ucalgary.ucalgary.ca/sites/default/files/teams/11/Position_Specification%20-UCalgary-Vice-President-Research.pdf. The University of Calgary is partnering with the executive search firm, DHR International on this search. All of the deliberations of the Vice-President (Research) Advisory Search Committee will be conducted with full confidentiality for all candidates.

Inquiries, nominations and applications are invited. Interested candidates should submit confidentially, in electronic form (Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF files preferred) a Curriculum Vitae, a summary of accomplishments, and a letter of interest to VPRUCalgary@dhrinternational.com by April 8, 2019.
The University of Calgary recognizes that a diverse staff/faculty benefits and enriches the work, learning and research experiences of the entire campus and greater community. We are committed to removing barriers that have been historically encountered by some people in our society. We strive to recruit individuals who will further enhance our diversity and we will support their academic and professional success while they are here. To ensure a fair and equitable assessment, we offer accommodation at any stage during the recruitment process to applicants with disabilities.

The University of Calgary’s comprehensive benefits and pension program is designed to promote productive level of health and well-being to staff members through coverage for health, dental, life insurance, income protection for disability, and retirement income planning. The base salary wage range is established to be between $200,000 and $365,000 Canadian dollars per annum and will be negotiated based on the candidate’s skills and experience.

The University of Calgary is located at 2500 University Dr. NW, Calgary, Alberta, CANADA, T2N 1N4.