Job Description

Position Details

IT Services

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £29,647 to £31,460, with potential progression once in post to £35,388

Grade 5

Full Time, Permanent

Closing date: 25th March 2026

Our offer to you

People are at the heart of what we are and do.

The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.

We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential. With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide-range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.

Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working. In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.

Find out more about the benefits of working for the University of Birmingham.

Background

This is an important role within IT Services working within Client Services to provide a much-needed function across End User Services. As part of the Client Services team, this role will centralise the procurement and licensing of standard / non-standard items ensuring that local teams have more time to focus on other issues.

Role Summary

The post holder will provide a highly responsive, cost effective and efficient purchasing and management service to the University, enabling hardware and software to be made available to staff and students according to agreed standards and expectations. They will support the implementation of strategies, policies, regulations whilst providing guidance to university staff and students.

The primary purpose of this role is to provide a responsive centralised service (as described above) for standard / non-standard items across End User Services. The post-holder will:

• Process orders for Hardware and Software; this will include providing support to the existing hardware and software services function within the team.
• Identify opportunities for improving Hardware and Software Services and taking a proactive role in automating or streamlining the service whenever possible.

Main Duties

• Process and place orders for agreed hardware and software items across the University, coordinating with suppliers, budget holders and the Finance Office. This includes using ServiceNow to progress requests, manage fulfilment and keep users informed in line with agreed Service Level Agreements.
• Provide support to the existing hardware and software services function within the team, including physical equipment procurement, delivery, configuration and lifecycle support.
• Track hardware assets and software licences throughout their lifecycle, from procurement to disposal, ensuring accurate and auditable records are maintained within the asset management system, including usage, compliance and audit requirements.
• Expected to learn, use and maintain proficiency in approved hardware and software asset management tools to support effective asset and licence tracking, reporting and governance.
• Manage personal workload priorities and coordinate effectively with other team members to meet overall IT Services priorities, including hardware deployment, refresh and replacement schedules.
• Provide accurate and up-to-date information on hardware and software costs to enquirers, ensuring the University achieves value for money and that proposed solutions are appropriate and fit for purpose.
• Support the continuous improvement of hardware procurement, software licensing and asset management processes, identifying opportunities for automation and self-service while ensuring appropriate controls, standards, governance and audit readiness are maintained.
• Ensure software licences and associated hardware maintenance and warranty agreements are accurately recorded, monitored and renewed proactively to maintain continuity and resilience of service.
• Act as the primary contact for the University's main hardware and software suppliers, establishing and maintaining effective relationships and monitoring performance, delivery, support and service levels.
• Liaise with counterparts at other institutions through forums such as the Academic Applications Forum to share knowledge and gain insight into current hardware standards, procurement approaches and software licensing strategies.
• Maintain the University's software delivery services and support associated hardware dependencies to enable the provision of software to staff and students, including those using non-managed devices.
• Develop and maintain effective hardware and software asset management processes, including lifecycle management, configuration tracking, licensing and renewals.
• Provide advice on non-standard hardware and software requests and use cases, working with technical and business owners to support projects and business as usual activities.
• Ensure centrally provisioned hardware assets and licences are kept up to date through effective communication with vendors, suppliers and key personnel within the University.
• Ensure Universal Services Application Packagers and other relevant parties are informed of new hardware platforms and new or updated software versions required for delivery to end users.
• Liaise with Service Owners to ensure licence servers, asset records and hardware inventories are updated with correct versions, models and configurations and coordinate deployments or releases where required.
• Support the delivery and physical distribution of hardware as required. This includes accepting and checking deliveries, managing stockroom areas, maintaining stock control and transporting equipment to locations across the campus.
• Ensure that all activities are carried out in accordance with University information security and data protection policies.
• Carry out any other duties as directed by the line manager.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience

• Five GCSEs at grade C or above including Mathematics and English or equivalent Level 2 vocational qualifications with demonstrable literacy and numeracy skills.
• Demonstrable experience in an administrative role and or order processing environment.
• Proficiency in the use of Microsoft Excel spreadsheets including the ability to create maintain and interpret data sets.
• Good current general knowledge of IT with a clear understanding of hardware technologies specifications and components.
• Ability to work effectively as part of a team to meet quality service standards priorities and deadlines.
• Excellent communication skills with a strong customer service focus and the ability to tailor communication for both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Proven ability to prioritise and manage workload effectively in the presence of competing demands.
• A structured methodical and analytical approach to problem solving.
• Willingness to adopt, support and promote new ways of working including process and service improvements.
• Willingness to coach and support colleagues within areas of personal expertise.
• A full clean driving license is desirable.

Informal enquiries to Andrew Kilminster, email: a.r.kilminster@bham.ac.uk

View our staff values and behaviours here

Use of AI in applications: We want to understand your genuine interest in the role and for the written elements of your application to accurately reflect your own communication style. Applications that rely too heavily on AI tools can appear generic and lack the detail we need to assess your skills and experience. Such applications will unlikely be progressed to interview.

We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website.