2.     Welcome and intro to the day

Speakers: Alasdair Cameron (ARMA CEO) and Stuart Wilkinson (KEUK CEO)

3.     Keynote session 

Chair: Alasdair Cameron

Speaker: James Coe, Associate Editor for Research and Innovation, Wonkhe

Having welcomed a new Prime Minister to Westminster, we consider the impact of his agenda and the personnel and structural changes that have been introduced over the summer, including during the Party Conference. We will also consider leadership at the regional and local political levels and how those roles are impacting research and knowledge exchange, including via political prioritisation and funding.

5.    Lessons from models of joint service delivery

Chair: Tamsin Mann, Associate Director Sector Engagement, KEUK

Speakers:

Dr Fiona Armstrong, Director of Research Engagement, Heriot-Watt University

Dr Rachel Simpson, Director of the Scottish Funding Council funded project, Shared Knowledge Exchange Services (ShaKEs), Queen Margaret University 

This session will share lessons learned from two projects funded by the Scottish Funding Council’s Shared Services Collaboration Fund. Drawing on the experience of Trusted Research and Secure Innovation in Scotland (TReSI) and Shared Knowledge Exchange Services (ShaKEs), Fiona and Rachel will reflect on progress to date and explore the opportunities and challenges of developing cross-institutional services and balancing local priorities with sector-wide ambitions.

The discussion will highlight emerging insights on collaboration, change management, sustainability, and delivering value at scale, and offer candid reflections and actionable learning for future collaborative initiatives across the UK Higher Education sector as it undergoes transformation.

6.    The impact of AI in KE and research management process and roles

Chair: Stuart Wilkinson

AI can support productivity and improve processes, but what impact is it having now on knowledge exchange and research management roles and how will it shape them in the future? Our discussion will focus on AI tools and platforms to support delivery whilst considering the human-factor impact on careers and role profiles.

8.   Research Professional Futures: Directors Assemble

Chair: Tamsin Mann

Speakers:

Lorna Wilson, Managing Director of Research and Innovation Services at Durham University

Steph Bales, Executive Director of Research, Innovation and Business Engagement, University of Stirling

This project gives you data, evidence, typologies and tested interventions that you won’t get anywhere else, whether it’s to support you redesigning your service in the face of financial pressure, beginning to think about how you’ll evidence the contribution of research professionals within SPRE, understanding the professional development needs of your teams, or even just thinking about how you can get the most out of the incredibly busy colleagues in your teams at a time of increasing complexity and activity.

10.   Research and innovation security from the UKRI perspective

Chair: Mark Cranmer, Director of Research and Innovation Services at City St Georges, University of London 

Speaker: Mark Gaskarth, UKRI Trusted Research and Innovation Programme Director

UKRI’s Programme Director for Trusted Research and Innovation will explain UKRI’s approach to research and innovation security and its role in setting expectations for its funding awards and in managing the associated research and innovation security risks. This will include reflections on the context, including how this fast-paced topic has evolved.

11.  Closing remarks

Alasdair Cameron (ARMA CEO) and Stuart Wilkinson (KEUK CEO)

12.   Close