PMI UK Cambridgeshire Branch Event: Managing Complexity in Research Projects. 14th May 2026

This event is taking place in Maxwell Centre, Cambridge

How do you manage a complex scientific programme when the scope shifts constantly, experiments fail, and key stakeholders aren’t line‑managed? This talk explores the realities of Research Project Management – one of the most high‑uncertainty, high‑complexity environments in the project world.

Drawing on experience managing the £3M Faraday Institution LEAP Project at the University of Cambridge, Alex Kersting explains what makes research delivery different from traditional PMI contexts. Research teams are diverse, autonomous, and highly specialised, with PhDs, postdocs, and early‑career researchers working across multiple institutions. Progress is non‑linear, stage gates rarely exist, and deliverables – papers, datasets, prototypes – often evolve as discoveries unfold.

The talk covers the essentials of managing a portfolio of interconnected research projects; navigating governance structures involving multiple PIs, funders, and industry partners; and responding to external forces such as shifting UKRI policies, Brexit/Horizon Europe changes, and national funding cycles. It also highlights how to manage scientific risks, from equipment delays to “null results,” and how infrastructure constraints can shape research outcomes.

Participants will gain a practical understanding of how traditional project management differs from research project management, including how to plan under uncertainty, influence without authority, measure progress, and communicate complex science to diverse stakeholders.

Speaker

Dr Alex Kersting is Programme Manager for the Faraday Institution’s LEAP Project at the University of Cambridge. She leads national research programme with a £3M annual budget, coordinating teams across multiple departments and partner universities, and guiding strategic planning, performance monitoring, and stakeholder engagement.

A Chartered Chemist with a PhD from the University of Birmingham, Alex previously held roles at the Royal Society of Chemistry, overseeing national accreditation and professional standards processes and working closely with industry, government, and regulatory bodies.

She is an active member of ARMA, PRISM, and Cambridge’s Project Management Community of Practice, and chairs the Faraday Institution’s EDI Working Group. Alex is known for her clear strategic leadership, collaborative style, and commitment to enabling high‑impact scientific research.