Who we are

The Greater Manchester Researcher Development Partnership (GMResDev) is a cross-institutional collaborative partnership co-founded in 2023 by Manchester Metropolitan University (McrMet), the University of Manchester (UoM) and the University of Salford (UoS). The collaboration aims to support the cross-institutional delivery of development and training initiatives and events for academic researchers, and is a community of practice for all those who support the career and professional development of researchers in the Greater Manchester area and beyond.

GMResDev initially involved co-delivering Career Conversations, an online panel series focused on careers beyond academic research, originated by UoM. The series is for current doctoral and early career researchers who are curious about, or thinking of moving to, careers beyond academic research. It aims to show that, with the right articulation and framing, researcher skills are highly prized and sought after in a variety of professions and the PhD isn’t just a route into academia.

Delivering the series collaboratively across the three institutions has had many benefits including giving access to a broader range of panellists through the extended connections of the coordinating team. Collaborative delivery has also generated critical numbers of attendees, while providing those researchers with the opportunity to meet colleagues beyond their institutions, offering valuable insights to doctoral researchers and ECRs at all three institutions which wouldn’t be possible at a single institution.

The provision delivered by GMResDev has expanded since the start of the partnership and is now shared between the partner institutions. Career Conversations is led by Mcr Met, UoM lead on the Research Staff Conference and UoS lead on a ECR peer mentoring ‘buddy’ scheme.

The GMResDev LinkedIn group, enables colleagues across Greater Manchester to join the community, receive updates about events, and network with like-minded people. The group now has over 140 members across the three universities and beyond. In 2026 we were invited by colleagues at the University of Edinburgh to contribute to a book entitled Supporting early career researchers: showcasing excellence for funders, policy makers, universities, early career researchers and staff developers (forthcoming, December 2026). In summer 2026, GMResDev was shortlisted for a Vitae Impact Culture and Engagement Award under the category ‘Research Culture Impact Through Researcher Development’.

Meet our team

Click on a name to visit our LinkedIn profiles and learn more!

Manchester Metropolitan University

University of Salford

University of Manchester