LJMU shapes national resource hub to support technical careers in HE

LJMU has helped to shape a new national resource hub designed to support technical careers in higher education.

The UK Institute of Technical Skills and Strategy (ITSS) Technical Careers Resource Hub brings together toolkits, interactive workbooks, reports and videos, including contributions from LJMU’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mark Power, who began his career as a technician.

LJMU was one of 27 UK organisations in higher education and research who joined the ITSS Career Pathways Action Group in 2024, funded by Research England and formed to explore and understand existing career pathways for technical professionals in higher education and research.

Eight group projects were formed addressing four overarching themes including: career development for technical staff, technical talent management resources for managers, technical career pathways, and technical staff as partners.

The findings and outputs are now freely available within the Technical Careers Resource Hub and contributions from LJMU are housed within Project 5: Exploring Technical Careers.

Exploring Technical Careers

The project was a collaboration between LJMU, Cranfield University, Science & Technology Facilities Council, and ITSS.

Together, a library of nine short videos featuring technicians sharing their roles and career journeys – including Vice-Chancellor Mark Power, Technical Support Manager Angie Garrod, Senior Research Officer Peter Shum and Technician Team Leader Rebecca Turner from LJMU - were captured to inspire and engage technical staff across the sector. School of Art and Creative Industries students, Ashley Birdseye and Shae Tingey, were supported by technician Holly Keenan-Fallace to film and edit the videos, with a further video developed by engineering, audio visual technicians Stephen Stroud and Harriet Morley.

Think more broadly, because there are no roles in the university that somebody with a technical understanding and a passion for the university can’t achieve.

LJMU's Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mark Power, sharing his advice to technicians across the sector in his video interview

Alongside the videos, two career conversations workbooks, one supporting technicians, and the other equipping managers and colleagues to guide technicians through their career choices were also developed.

Initial pilots of the videos and workbooks were well-received by technical staff and managers, demonstrating clear appetite for this kind of structured career development support across the sector.

The project was supported by Technician Commitment institutional lead for LJMU Katie Farrance (Technical Resource Manager) and John Trantom (Organisational Development Practitioner) who represent the university on the ITSS Career Pathways Action Group.

This project gave a valuable opportunity to connect with technical managers and HR colleagues across the UK, working together towards a shared purpose. It also offered real insight into how universities can take a more holistic approach to supporting staff and shaping working environments. We particularly valued the chance to hear about the wide range of opportunities within technical roles and to learn from different perspectives.

Katie Farrance, Technical Resource Manager and Technician Commitment institutional lead for LJMU 

The Technician Commitment

The Technician Commitment is a university and research institution initiative, led by a steering board of sector bodies, hosted within the ITSS.

The commitment aims to ensure visibility, recognition, career development and sustainability for technicians working in higher education and research, across all disciplines.

LJMU has been a signatory of the Technician Commitment since 2017, pledging to take action to tackle the key challenges affecting its technical staff, and is pleased to celebrate the 9^th anniversary of the inception of the commitment at the end of this month.

LJMU TechXchange 2026

The university will be hosting its first technical conference, TechXchange, on Friday 12 June.

This will be an opportunity to celebrate the innovation, expertise, and collaboration of its incredible technical community.

LJMU staff can register to attend on Eventbrite.