SCALE-UP
Case Study:
Services
Executive Search
Permanent Recruitment
Contract Resources
Result
Built the ITS Function from scale-up to supporting 1,500 researchers & staff
Introduction
The Francis Crick Institute ("The Crick") is a world-leading biomedical discovery and innovation centre, formed through a partnership between the Medical Research Council (MRC), Cancer Research UK (CRUK), Wellcome Trust, UCL, Imperial College London, and King’s College London. Located in King’s Cross, London, it is now home to around 1,500 staff, including 1,250 scientists.
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The Crick faced the complex challenge of developing a new IT strategy to support a state-of-the-art infrastructure for its operations.
Integration of IT teams from CRUK’s London Research Institute (LRI) and MRC’s National Institute for Medical Research, while building its own internal IT team from scratch.
Hiring a new CIO to lead the migration of legacy and new systems within a tight 18-week timeframe, requiring seamless collaboration and coordination.
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Conducted a global search to secure The Crick Institute’s first Chief Information Officer (CIO), focusing on sectors such as research institutes, universities, healthcare, and pharmaceuticals to find the ideal candidate.
Continued to support The Crick’s IT recruitment needs, introducing high-calibre professionals for key IT initiatives, including Business Transformation and IT Infrastructure projects.
Actively marketed The Crick’s work on social media, attracting a diverse pool of candidates, and sourced talent for permanent, fixed-term, and contract roles to provide flexibility and expertise across IT functions.
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The successful hiring of The Crick’s first CIO was crucial to leading the IT strategy, with the appointed candidate later named UK’s CIO of the Year at the Women in IT Awards for exceptional leadership
By securing the right talent, we enabled The Crick to complete its 18-week IT migration successfully, enhancing infrastructure and meeting critical operational goals.
Our continued support helped build a strong IT team, contributing to the success of The Crick’s digital transformation, now recognised as a significant achievement in healthcare and research.
Interim HR Director / The Francis Crick Institute
“The team at Inspire People undertook an international search assignment to find our CIO. We were impressed with their truly global reach and excellent shortlist. Their professionalism and subject matter expertise, along with their enthusiastic and commercial approach made them a pleasure to work with”
