Vacancy: Data Manager

Department: Irish Historic Towns Atlas
Contract type: Fixed-term (10 weeks FT, June - August 2023)
Duration: Monday 12 June - 26 August 2023 [10 weeks FT within this 11-week period of this project]
Reports to: Cartographic and managing editor, Irish Historic Towns Atlas

Overview

The Academy is seeking applications for a Data Manager with the Irish Historic Towns Atlas (IHTA), working in collaboration with the Digital Repository of Ireland (DRI). This is a fixed-term contract for 10 weeks associated with the project entitled ‘Placing our heritage: creating a digital atlas of the city of Cork’, which is funded under the Heritage Council Stewardship Fund 2023.

The IHTA is a long-standing research project of the Royal Irish Academy that carries out research and cartography focusing on understanding the development of our built heritage. Published atlases and online editions have been produced for 28 towns and cities across Ireland, north and south. The IHTA is one of nineteen European national historic towns atlas programmes. See https://www.ria.ie/research-projects/irish-historic-towns-atlas

The DRI is a certified trustworthy digital repository for the arts, humanities and social sciences, and is a national infrastructure for preserving and providing access to Ireland’s social and cultural digital data. The DRI also operates as a community hub for policy, advocacy, training and best practice in digital preservation, digital archiving, FAIR data management and Open Science. DRI is headquartered at the Royal Irish Academy. https://dri.ie/

IHTA has been developing a methodology for creating digital atlases using GIS and the ‘Placing our heritage’ project represents an opportunity to refine the current practice by creating a new prototype that capitalises on the latest advances in technology. Digital preservation is a fundamental strand of the project and IHTA is currently working with DRI to ensure broader access and digital preservation of datasets as well as the generation of geospatial metadata associated with the forthcoming atlas of Cork city (IHTA, no. 31, Cork/Corcaigh, by Howard B. Clarke and Máire Ni Laoi, due for publication by the Royal Irish Academy in association with Cork Council in 2023–4).

The Royal Irish Academy is a predominantly publicly funded institution established for the promotion of learning in the sciences and humanities across the island of Ireland. The Academy’s latest strategic plan for 2019–23 is available here: https://www.ria.ie/strategic-plan.

Key purpose of role

The Data Manager will be working as part of the ‘Placing our heritage: creating a digital atlas of the city of Cork’ project with responsibility for the preparation and entry of IHTA content into the digital atlas geodatabase and the uploading of associated files and metadata to the DRI. The role includes assisting with drafting a technical manual as well as dissemination and outreach about the project. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to work as part of a busy multidisciplinary team and contribute to the successful delivery of digital resources for the city of Cork and its heritage.

Key accountabilities

The Data Manager is responsible for:

• transferring and/or entering IHTA topographical information data on Cork city into a geodatabase
• managing the work of others as required
• carrying out checks to ensure data accuracy
• assisting in the creation of metadata for the IHTA Cork digital collections upload to the DRI
• helping to draft a technical manual associated with the project
• contributing to dissemination and outreach about the project

Person specification

Essential qualifications

• A third-level degree and/or relevant qualification
• Experience or skills in digital data management (e.g. content management and organisation, metadata creation, digital access and access rights, GIS)
• Good attention to detail
• Ability to work autonomously as part of a small team and to know when to take initiative
• Good organisational and IT skills

Desirable qualifications

• A minimum of three years’ experience working with digital data (e.g. digital archiving)
• Experience with Dublin Core, data-cleaning tools and digital preservation
• Editorial experience

Further Information

Salary: Salary is on the Admin Officer/Programme Manager Scale €39,979–€52,112 Candidates should note that entry will be at the minimum of the scale and the rate of remuneration may be adjusted from time to time in line with government pay policy. Candidates should note that different pay and conditions may apply if, immediately prior to appointment, the appointee is a serving civil or public servant.

Hours of Work: The normal hours of work are 35 hours per week.

Overtime is not paid in respect of excess attendance which, should it arise, is discharged by time off in lieu at times agreed in advance with the Executive Director.

This role is suitable for hybrid working.

Leave: The annual leave entitlement is 25 days per annum, pro-rata for shorter periods. Entitlement to leave for public holidays is in accordance with the terms of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997. There is a requirement to take up to four days annual leave where the Academy is closed at Easter and Christmas.

Medical: Staff shall, if required, and at the expense of the Academy, submit to a medical examination by a registered medical practitioner nominated by the Academy and shall authorise such medical practitioner to disclose and to discuss with the Academy the results of the examination and the matters which arise from it so that the Academy can ascertain any matters that they consider might impair a staff member from properly discharging his/her duties.

Pension: Details of the appropriate pension scheme will be provided upon determination of appointee’s status.

Permanent Pension contribution: This appointment is subject to the Additional Superannuation Contribution (ASC) effective from 1 January 2019.

Application Process

Completed applications consisting of one electronic copy (with all documents contained in one Word document) must be submitted to recruitment@ria.ie in the order as set out below:

• A brief cover letter demonstrating how you meet the qualifications and experience for the position (max. 700 words)
• A curriculum vitae summarising your qualifications and relevant experience (max. 4 pages)

Applicants will be shortlisted based on information provided in their application. 

Please note: failure to fulfil the application requisites will deem the application invalid.

Closing date: 3 May 2023 Late applications will not be considered.

It is anticipated that interviews will be held week commencing week 8 May 2023.

Please note this interview will include competency-based interview questions.

The Royal Irish Academy is an equal opportunities employer