WORKSHOP: Research Technical Professionals Competency Framework 3 Dec

WORKSHOP INVITATION: DEVELOPMENT OF A COMPETENCY FRAMEWORK FOR RESEARCH TECHNICAL PROFESSIONALS

The EPSRC awarded The University of Manchester a grant “Developing technical capability and capacity for UK secure data environments” that recognises the importance of Research Technical Professionals (RTPs) that build Secure Data Environments (SDEs) and Trusted Research Environments (TREs) - particularly in the health domain. This has enabled the creation of a multi-organisation hub (SDE Skills Hub) that is led by the University of Manchester in collaboration with the University of Liverpool and Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (https://sdertp.org/meet-the-team).

In 2022 The Goldacre Review highlighted the need to create teams/ institutions that have the technical skills to manage complex problems and can develop infrastructure and platforms that facilitate analytical work in health. However, in the current academic and NHS settings it is difficult to recruit and maintain the right people to deliver this, partly due to career progression limitations, and a lack of recognition of their roles as a distinct profession. For current RTPs, this is also compounded with scarce training and professional development which makes it difficult to keep skills up-to-date and connected in a rapidly evolving ecosystem. This programme of work aims to build capacity and develop the associated competency framework and training to be able to address these issues.

Competency Framework: core to this project is the development of a competency framework for RTPs who design and build SDEs. For this we will use a co-design approach with the community in two phases:

1. To ascertain the tasks, skills, technologies and standards that are important in these types of roles via two online workshops to inform the development of the framework
2. To review the draft competency framework before finalisation via a survey.

Invitation to be involved – Register for an online workshop

We are holding online workshops to address phase 1 of the development of the competency framework. We welcome involvement from across the SDE/ TRE and related technical, research and infrastructure communities, particularly in health.

During this event, we would like to work with you to define the key tasks, skills, technologies and standards that are important for individuals involved in the design and creation of the technical IT infrastructure for SDEs. These might include, but not be limited to: Platform Engineers, DevOps Engineers, System Administrators and Cloud Solution Architects.

Your participation will provide us with the lived experience, knowledge and diverse perspectives that are crucial to ensure our work can be effective in supporting the UK’s current and future SDE RTPs.

We appreciate any contribution you can make at this event. If you are unable to attend, or wish to include others, please do share. For any questions, comments or suggestions about the event, please contact [email protected]

Host or Publisher Team Research