RGU Director of the International Institute for Oil & Gas

1The professional University

RECRUITMENT OF

DIRECTOR OF THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR OIL AND GAS

www.rgu.ac.uk

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CONTENTS

THE OPPORTUNITY

VISION FOR OIL AND GAS

THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR OIL AND GAS


- ROLE PROFILE

- CANDIDATE PROFILE

THE PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY

TRACK RECORD

ONE CAMPUS, ONE VISION

ABERDEEN CITY AND SHIRE

HOW TO APPLY

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THE OPPORTUNITY

’THE TOP MODERN UNIVERSITY IN THE UK’ IN ‘THE TIMES GOOD UNIVERSITY GUIDE’ - THREE YEARS IN A ROW

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RGU has been supporting the Oil and Gas industry for more than 40 years, working in close collaboration with companies and sector organisations.

This support takes the form of vocational undergraduate programmes, specialist postgraduate courses, bespoke training solutions and the application of applied research.

This uniquely broad range of industrially relevant educational offerings – extending from Engineering to Management and key areas of Healthcare, has resulted in numerous alliances and joint ventures with key players in the oil and gas industry, both in the UK and internationally.

The university, in developing its new strategy, has decided that oil and gas will be a major priority and, through significant investment, RGU will seek to be recognised as a global leader in meeting the educational, training and research needs of the industry. Through the ambitious development of its profile in oil and gas, the university will also act as a magnet for high value innovation and enterprise in the industry and the supply chain, to the benefit of the North-East of Scotland

In order to realise this ambition the university has decided to create an International Institute for Oil and Gas. The Institute will promote and coordinate the university’s activities in this important area and will act as a focal point for engagement with the industry.

The university wishes to appoint a Director of the International Institute for Oil and Gas who, in possessing the necessary experience and knowledge of the industry, will coordinate the university’s offerings relevant to the oil and gas sector; will promote a single oil and gas brand embracing all relevant activity, and will develop and implement the necessary marketing and relationship strategies. Critically the Director will become the focal point for industry engagement with the university and, in collaboration with university staff, will develop new relationships, strategic partnerships and opportunities for the university.

The Director will also coordinate, lead and manage the staff of the Institute.

RGU has an international reputation for meaningful, focused and relevant engagement with the oil and gas industry. These attributes represent a competitive advantage which, through the creation of the Institute, will be enhanced and sustained through investment, systematic promotion and continuous improvement.

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OUR VISION

RGU aspires to be recognised, in Scotland and beyond, as a

distinctive university leading and shaping the debate on the

future of higher education and placing students at the centre

of the education it offers. It will be known for the impact

of its teaching, scholarship and translational research, the

employability of its graduates, its influence in the region and

nation, its growing global profile, and its strong interdisciplinary

focus on a small number of key questions and issues of concern

to the local and global community. It will achieve its goals in

partnership with academic, voluntary, public and business

organisations that share its ideals and aspirations.

The university will enter the global university rankings,

diversify and secure its income and resources, and enter into

close collaborative agreements with key strategic partners.

RGU will be a model university of the future and will shape its

own culture, practice and organisation accordingly.

RGU’s Mission and Vision RGU’s mission is to transform people and communities. It does this by ensuring that our discovery of knowledge and our dissemination of scholarship have the greatest possible economic, social and cultural impact.

RGU’s VISION FOR OIL AND GAS is to be recognised as

a global leader in meeting the needs of the oil and gas

industry in terms of education, training and research.

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BACKGROUNDRGU has been supporting, and working in close collaboration

with, the oil and gas industry for 40 years through the provision of

vocational undergraduate programmes; specialised Masters courses;

the provision of bespoke training solutions and the application and

development of applied research.

The current RGU model has produced a successful track record

and secured an international reputation in quality postgraduate and

corporate courses that produce appropriately skilled graduates,

underpinned by innovative pedagogy, multiple learning options and

successful industrial alliances.

AIMS AND AMBITIONS RGU will continue to remain committed to satisfying the educational,

training and research needs of the oil and gas industry for the

foreseeable future to ensure that a talent and expertise base is created

which will encourage companies to continue to service the global oil

and gas industry from an Aberdeen base. As such, we aspire to be

recognised as a global leader in meeting the needs of the oil and gas

industry in terms of education training and research.

THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR OIL AND GAS

Our strategy to achieve this aspiration is as follows:

• Positioning RGU as the key provider to industry – locally,

nationally and internationally;

• Developing a portfolio of activity which addresses

Government and industry priorities ;

• Building a globally recognised brand that is based upon strong

core capabilities that are best in class;

• Developing new capabilities and exploiting opportunities for

growth in both teaching and research in emerging industries;

• Winning and developing (with commercial partners)

opportunities in developed and frontier regions;

• Collaborating with relevant academic partners to build on

complementary expertise;

• Working with industry to become a global hub for well

engineering operations management;

• Leveraging cross-Faculty development opportunities in

teaching and research;

• Ensuring that quality and industry relevance remain key

differentiators.

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We recognise that the achievement of these strategic actions requires

organisational change – the development of a single oil and gas brand,

encompassing all relevant university activity. The appointment of a

Director to this institute will create a primary focus of engagement

with the industry, responsible for external liaison and co-ordination of

all relevant commercial activity.

Assuming responsibility (in coordination with RGU’s research

institutes) for the development and management of the oil and gas

research agenda, the Director will coordinate the delivery of all the

education and training activities relevant to the oil and gas sector

across the university’s portfolio.

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The Director will hold a senior university post and

will report to the Principal, while also liaising with

other senior university officers including the Deans.

Operation of the Institute will be managed by an

oversight board comprising the Institute Director

and the three Deans of Faculty.

An industry advisory group will be established to

provide guidance on the Institute’s activities and

strategy .

ROLE PROFILE


PURPOSE OF THE POST :

The Director will be expected, through collaboration and cross- disciplinary working, to lead, promote, inspire and develop the university in its strategy for enhanced engagement with the oil and gas industry. He or she will be the coordinator of all university activity – teaching, training and research, related to the oil and gas industry. He/she will promote all such activity through a single brand and will be the focus for oil and gas industry engagement with the university.

PRINCIPAL DUTIES :

• To act as a primary focus of engagement with the oil and gas industry and assume responsibility for industry liaison; • To provide professional leadership to all areas of university activity which engage with the oil and gas industry; • Through close liaison with the industry, to provide the university with key intelligence and advice on strategy; • To advise on the development of key research activity within the university; • To coordinate, in collaboration with Research and Enterprise Services, commercial activity with the industry. • To coordinate, through the Institute, education and training activities across the university portfolio that are relevant to the oil and gas sector; • To develop a relationship strategy and sustainable commercial and academic partnerships; • To develop a marketing strategy to promote the university’s capabilities, USPs and future offerings to the industry.

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CANDIDATE PROFILE

QUALIFICATIONS

Degree in relevant subject or equivalent experience.

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

Comprehensive knowledge of Oil and Gas industry, nationally and internationally;

A thorough understanding of the future development of the industry and the associated challenges;

A demonstrable appreciation of the role of Higher Education in that development;

Visionary leadership and inspirational management skills.

EXPERIENCE

Working at a senior level within oil and gas industry for a significant period. Extremely well networked in the industry;

Demonstrable experience of achieving strategic goals through successful relationship building;

Managing and co-ordinating multidisciplinary professional teams;

Evidence of personal responsibility for strategic development. Demonstrable evidence of leadership through cross- disciplinary partnership working.

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OUR HERITAGE

The name Robert Gordon has been synonymous with

education in Aberdeen since 1750 when the original college

was founded from his bequest. With the addition of Gray’s

School of Art in 1885, the School of Pharmacy in 1898 and the

Scott Sutherland School of Architecture in 1957, the original

college has evolved over the years into a substantial university

– a leading institution of learning still able to draw upon this

rich heritage.

TRACK RECORD

LEAGUE TABLES

RGU maintains strong links with industry and can trump all competition with its 97.1% employment rate.

The Daily Telegraph July 2012

In July 2013, HESA (the Higher Education Statistics Agency) officially recognised RGU as the university with the UK’s best graduate employment record.

For five successive years, Robert Gordon University has

retained the position of best modern university in the UK

(The Times, Sep 2012) and we consistently maintain one

of the UK’s best graduate employment records. In 2012

The Times, The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph all rated

Robert Gordon University the top university in Scotland for

Graduate employment.


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The second phase, our ‘Masterplan’, is a £170 million campus development project at our Garthdee campus which will culminate in the realisation of our vision - one campus at Garthdee by 2020. Summer 2013 saw the completion of Riverside East, providing accommodation for schools formerly located on the Schoolhill site, a new library and new social facilities.

one campus, one vision - garthdee 2020

• Develop the Garthdee Campus in a sustainable, phased

manner reflecting the availability of project funding;

• Re-utilise appropriate areas within existing buildings to

form a more holistic and integrated campus;

• Develop a new focus for arrival/entrance from the south,

including a new pedestrian and cycle bridge to the south

side of the river.

It will also allow staff and students from different disciplines to

benefit from working more closely together on interdisciplinary

themes which are so important in today’s society and economy.

The new facilities will complement the University’s existing

buildings in terms of their innovative design and style, while

providing an outstanding educational environment for its students.

THE MASTERPLAN 2009 AIMS TO:

• Consolidate all academic and administrative activities on

the Garthdee Campus site in order to create the finest

riverside learning environment in Europe;

• Create a clearly legible campus heart, focused around a

student-centred experience;

• Develop a new and unified academic development

on the eastern portion of the site in order to gain

from the advantages of co-location and collaboration

between disciplines;

• Retain and enhance the landscaped qualities of the site

and seek to achieve a stronger relationship between

buildings and the riverside setting.

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ABERDEEN CITY AND SHIRE

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ROBERT GORDON UNIVERSITY IS LOCATED IN ABERDEEN WHICH IS SCOTLAND’S THIRD LARGEST CITY WITH A POPULATION IN EXCESS OF 200,000 AND 400,000 INCLUDING THE WIDER ABERDEEN HINTERLAND.

The city is known internationally as the undisputed European capital

of the energy industry. However, it also has many other sides to its

character. Not least because it is located on the edge of the world

renowned Scottish Highlands and the spectacular Cairngorms - a

magnet for walkers, climbers and skiers from across the UK.

Aberdeen is undeniably a wealthy city; it has one of the highest per

capita incomes of any city after London in the UK. Such prosperity

brings many benefits. The city boasts first-class facilities. Shopping

and leisure opportunities are constantly expanding. Schooling at all

levels is well catered for – with secondary schooling, in particular,

recognised for its quality in both the public and private sectors. The

hotel sector continues to expand its full range of provision as you

would expect of an energy capital.

Aberdeen also offers a fine array of cultural attractions. There is an

eclectic mix of bars, cafés and restaurants and a host of modern

entertainments including cinemas, theatres, museums, galleries

and concert halls. And, throughout the year, Aberdeen also plays

host to several entertaining and stimulating festivals including the

Aberdeen Alternative Festival and the International Youth Festival.

Aberdeen International Airport has direct connections with the

major ‘hub’ airports of Paris, Amsterdam and Oslo as well as London

(Gatwick, Heathrow and Luton) and Dublin. It also has established

connections with a wide range of other major UK cities.

USEFUL LINKS

To view our interactive site on Aberdeenshire, with excellent

information on education, health, housing, transport and weather,

please visit: www2.rgu.ac.uk/aberdeenshire/

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Robert Gordon University, Garthdee Campus, Garthdee Road, Aberdeen, AB10 7QE, United Kingdom

Produced by The GatehouseDesign & Print Consultancy at Robert Gordon University

Robert Gordon University, a Scottish Charity registered under charity number SC013781

HOW TO APPLY

Candidates should initially submit on-line applications at:

www.rgu.ac.uk/about/jobs

Closing date Monday 28 April 2014.