Non Executive Director (Science and Technical)
Salary: £218 per day
Location: Nationwide
Background
At the English Institute of Sport (EIS) we think of ourselves as the team behind the team and deliver a range of performance-impacting sport science, sport medicine and technology services to over 40 Olympic and Paralympic sports, along with a select number of non-Olympic sports.
The EIS provides support for many of Great Britain’s most successful athletes, having worked with 93% of the athletes and 31 of the 34 sports that won a medal for Team GB and Paralympics GB at the Rio 2016 Olympic & Paralympic Games.
EIS is also making a significant contribution to the creation of a stronger more sustainable high-performance system, sharing knowledge and best practice across sports and continuously developing practitioners.
The EIS is led by the National Director, Nigel Walker, and employs approximately 360 staff across the EIS network. The EIS Board, chaired by John Steele, provides overall strategic direction to the EIS and is currently made up of six non-executive members, two EIS executive members and two UK Sport (UKS) executive members, with a mix of technical and business skills and sports experience.
The Board is also supported by a Science and Ethics Committee, a Remuneration and Nomination Committee and a UKS/EIS Group Audit Committee. Each of these sub committees are either chaired or attended by a representative of the EIS Board.
Board Directors Role
The Role of Non-Executive Directors of the EIS Board is to:
- Ensure that the EIS fulfils its current responsibilities as defined in the following documents:
- Deliver, and monitor progress against, the organisation’s strategic objectives and KPIs.
- Monitor and manage strategic risk.
- Oversee the governance of the organisation, including ensuring appropriate organisational policies and procedures are in place.
- Ensure the organisation operates within budget and that sound financial management is in place.
- Influence strategic stakeholders and ensure the EIS is promoted effectively.
Board members may also be asked to carry out other duties, such as involvement with sub-committees, by agreement with the Chair. We are committed to supporting diversity of background and thought on our Board as we do across the whole of the EIS.
Current Vacancy
A vacancy has arisen for a non-executive appointment to the Board with experience and a strong understanding of the British High-Performance System. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to influence the strategic direction of the EIS and the development of sport science, medicine and technology within the Institute.
This role will chair a newly reconstituted Science and Ethics panel of experts from across the high performance system in ensuring the effectiveness and appropriateness of new thinking in field of science and ethics in high performance sport. It will therefore be essential for the successful candidate to have deep expertise in Sports Science and Medicine, ensuring that the EIS continues to evolve in providing world-leading sport science and medicine support to high-performance athletes in the unequivocal and ethical pursuit of winter and summer Olympic success.
Skills/experience required:
- Substantial experience of working in elite sport and a detailed understanding of the needs of elite athletes.
- Expertise around Sports and Science Medicine research and application. Potentially from a Higher Education or from years of leading practitioners in the field of sport science.
- Ability to strategically influence others, with experience of operating and/or contributing at board level within an organisation.
- An understanding of the governance requirements of a public sector funded organisation preferred.
Terms
- Board meetings are held 4-6 times per year and the successful candidate will be required to attend these. Meetings are normally held at our offices in central London but may occasionally be held at EIS sites across the country.
- Where a Board member has additional duties (such as chairing a sub-committee) there will be additional time commitments
- An attendance fee is payable to Board members at a rate of £218 per day. In addition, reasonable travel expenses will be reimbursed.
- The appointment would be for an initial term of four years.
Terms of reference can be found here
How to apply
Please note the closing date for receipt of applications is 9am on Tuesday 31 July
Interviews will take place at the end of August, please notify us of any dates that you might not be available for interview as part of your interest for this role. The interview will be held at the EIS Central London office, 21 Bloomsbury Street, London, WC1B 3HF.
