The UK government is starting the hunt for a new chief executive of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) after Dame Ottoline Leyser confirmed she?would?not seek a second term in office.

In a?on the long-term future of UKRI, Dame Ottoline sets out her vision for the organisation she has led?since June 2020,?stating ¡°this coming year marks a particularly crucial time in the evolution of UKRI¡±?because?it is ¡°in the midst of a huge change programme¡±.

Outlining her desire for UKRI to help the government¡¯s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) to implement its Science and Technology Framework and therefore ¡°embed research and innovation so deeply across government that it informs every decision made and every action taken¡±, Dame Ottoline explains that this is a ¡°long-term project critical for the future of the UK¡± and ¡°extends well beyond the objectives often cited for UKRI, and beyond my five-year term of office as CEO¡±.

Responding to the news that Dame Ottoline would not extend her time at the ?8 billion-a-year research funder, which was created in 2018 as an umbrella body for the UK¡¯s nine research councils, a DSIT spokesperson said it?would ¡°begin preparations to ensure that a world-class candidate is primed to take over this vital role, and we will be launching a full recruitment campaign soon¡±.

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The statement added that the ¡°secretary of state [for science, Michelle Donelan] is grateful for Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser¡¯s leadership of UKRI over the past four years¡±.

¡°Dame Ottoline has provided exceptional oversight of UKRI¡¯s transformation programmes, ensuring that UKRI is an agile funder of science and innovation and delivers the recommendations of?Sir David Grant¡¯s independent review,¡± the spokesperson added.

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¡°Following Dame Ottoline¡¯s announcement that she will not be seeking another term, the secretary of state looks forward to continuing to work together during a vital period for UK science and research ¨C driving up participation in Horizon Europe, building a more efficient and joined-up approach to research funding and ultimately unleashing the power of UK research and innovation to drive growth and improve lives.¡±

In a statement to Times Higher Education, Dame Ottoline added: ¡°My term has 18 months to run and I am fully focused on the opportunities and challenges of the year ahead set out in my blog.¡±?

In her blog, the plant biologist, who ran the Sainsbury Laboratory at the University of Cambridge?before taking over at UKRI, sets out what she views as some of her organisation¡¯s successes, stating that the ¡°diverse and dynamic research and innovation needs thrown up by the pandemic vividly demonstrated the power of an integrated funding agency¡±.

With about a third of UKRI¡¯s budget ¡°collectively managed across all nine UKRI councils¡±, creating ¡°the necessary diversity and connectivity in the portfolio¡± of research investments, UKRI had been able to support new technologies such as AI, and quantum and engineering biology, says Dame Ottoline, claiming this approach was ¡°key to winning a rising budget in the last spending review and, crucially, more flexibility within that budget¡±.

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¡°There is now widespread political consensus that this kind of long-term, fully joined-up, systems-level approach is essential,¡± says Dame Ottoline. ¡°My ambition is that UKRI transcends zero-sum game thinking and creates a shared endeavour to deliver national prosperity.

¡°I aim to have amplified the momentum behind this ambition among our many stakeholders and to have shaped an organisation optimised for its delivery.¡±

jack.grove@timeshighereducation.com