Jumping ship

Jon Hunt left his role as director of research and innovation at the University of Bath for a life in local government. He explains his move and shares five thoughts from the other side.

Research management has grown hugely in the past two decades. Although there have always been university administrators, predominantly for dealing with student issues and finance, research management has only really been around since the 1980s.

RAGnet, the precursor to the Association of Research Managers and Administrators, was founded back then by a group of eight colleagues. By the millennium its membership had grown to 350, and it now tops 3,000.