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About the Role

In the role of Manager, Governance, you will provide efficient and effective secretariat support to formal committees within the University's governance structure and manage all related activities for these committees. As part of the Governance Team, the Manager contributes to the promotion of good governance across the University, provides advice and guidance on governance issues, and champions the adoption of best practice. The Manager supports the Governance Team in the delivery of project work and process improvements as required, including the current major review of governance. 

Key Responsibilities

Committee Servicing and Business Planning

• Provision of effective secretariat support to formal committees within the University’s governance structure and to any other formal committees or informal groups as required. Management of all activities associated with such committees, working closely with committee chairs and subject specialists to ensure business is conducted transparently and efficiently and in line with relevant schemes of delegation and standing orders. Drafting clear and concise committee papers in line with University house style and the committee’s terms of reference.

Provision of Advice and Promotion of Governance

• Provision of advice and guidance to key stakeholders on governance issues, and contribution to increased awareness of and participation in governance and the adoption of best practice across the University, including coordination of the committee secretaries’ network. Supporting the continuous review and development of processes, policies and guidance owned by the Governance Team, ensuring they remain fit for purpose in line with sector best practice. 

Specific Responsibilities of the Manager, Governance will be allocated on an annual basis according to business need but may include:

• Managing annual reviews of effectiveness for committees across the University, making recommendations for improvements where appropriate.
• Developing the annual business cycle for corporate and academic governance within the University through production of the committee calendar and associated communications.
• Supporting Senior Managers and the Head of Governance, to review the University’s governing documents and schemes of delegation.
• Assisting with the annual review of policies within Governance, Compliance and Legal Services and drafting new policy statements.
• Managing the biennial elections to Senate and its subcommittees, and provision of effective management of all other committee elections within the University’s governance structure.
• Managing the committee change process and ensuring that vacancies are filled promptly and according to the relevant committee constitutions.
• Producing, developing and reviewing training materials, templates and guidance for use in formal governance settings across the University.
• Providing support to the Governance Team by scheduling and managing team meetings, planning agendas and communicating actions and decisions.
• Contributing to the delivery of improved value for money by reducing maintenance costs, increasing efficiency, more effectively employing staff time, and improving economy of operation.
• Integrating records management and date protection compliance into working practices by using retention schedules file and folder naming guidelines, ensuring personal and student data are protected and scheduling regular clear-outs of redundant paper and electronic records.

About You

• Demonstrable experience of successfully managing and servicing committees, boards or working groups.
• Experience of managing complex processes and ability to contribute to process improvement.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills, including facilitation, presentation and negotiation.
• Ability to synthesise information and draft papers clearly and convincingly.
• Excellent editorial skills; attention to detail and high levels of accuracy.
• Tact and discretion, with experience of handling confidential and sensitive data
• Experience of managing business schedules.
• proficient in MS Outlook, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and in SharePoint and web-based programmes.
• Well-motivated and highly organised, with an ability to work methodically and on own initiative independently or with team members to meet deadlines.

Support with your application

If you have any questions, or need support or adjustments relating to your application, the recruitment process, or the role, please contact us on 01908 541111 or email careers@open.ac.uk quoting the advert reference number.

What's in it for you?

At The Open University, we offer a range of benefits to recognise and reward great work, alongside policies and flexible working that contribute towards a great work life balance. Get all the details of what benefits we offer by visiting our Staff Benefits page (clicking this link will open a new window).

Flexible working

We are open to discussions about flexible working. Whether it’s a job share, part time, compressed hours or another working arrangement. Please reach out to us to discuss what works best for you.

It is anticipated that a hybrid working pattern can be adopted for this role, where the successful candidate can work from home and the office. However, as this role is contractually aligned to our Milton Keynes office it is expected that some attendance in the office will be required when necessary and in response to business needs. We’d expect this to be approximately once per month.

Next steps in the Recruitment process

We anticipate that interviews for this role will be taking place online via Microsoft Teams during late April 2026.

Early closing date notification

While most roles will remain open until the advertised closing date, applications may be reviewed on an ongoing basis. In some cases, vacancies may close earlier if a sufficient number of suitable applications has been received and equality impacts have been appropriately considered. All roles will remain advertised for a minimum of one week before any early closure is implemented. If you have started an application or were in the process of applying when the advert closed, we encourage you to get in touch. We are committed to understanding individual circumstances and can offer further support where needed, including reasonable adjustments for applicants with protected characteristics.

How to apply

To apply for this role please submit the following documents:

• CV
• A personal statement of up to 1000 words. You should set out in your statement why you are interested in the role and provide examples of where your skills and experience meet the required competencies for this role as detailed in the job description.

You can view your progress and application communications when you are logged into our recruitment system.  Please check your spam/junk folders if you do not receive associated email updates.