APPOINTMENT OF FIELD SPORT SCIENTIST/ SPORT NUTRITIONIST 2011

BASED IN MIDLANDS

JOB DETAILS FOR CANDIDATES

CLOSING DATE FOR RECEIPT OF APPLICATIONS: 16.02.11


Lucozade Sport & the Lucozade Sport Science Academy

Proven to Give You an Edge

Lucozade Sport

At Lucozade Sport we push top athletes to their limits to develop products that are proven to give you an edge.

Lucozade Sport Science Academy (LSSA)

The Lucozade Sport Science Academy, part of the GlaxoSmithKline group of companies, was founded in 2003 to further develop the area of sports nutrition, share expertise and help improve performance.

This has enabled us to stay at the top of our game, providing a performance edge to all sports and exercise participants, no matter what their level. Our collaborations with The Premier League, Virgin London marathon, UK Athletics and over 60 other sporting bodies, mean that we are constantly evolving to ensure we have the best range of highest quality, safe products to provide a performance edge to sports and exercise participants at all levels.

Drawing on over 35 years of experience, we continue to work closely with leading coaches, elite athletes, academics and sports professionals to advance our knowledge and understanding of what it takes to succeed at the highest level. Our focus:

  • To translate this expertise into products scientifically proven to enhance performance, trusted by athletes, and tested to ensure they are free from WADA listed prohibited substances.
  • To educate serious and elite athletes on the demands of sport, the benefits of nutrition and the development of practical strategies to enhance performance.

The sports nutrition world is full of mixed messages, myths and unfortunately, poor practice. In collaborating with leading academics and supporting elite coaches, athletes and applied practitioners, it remains our mission to lead the field of sports nutrition. We are dedicated to providing individuals with the latest advances in sport science and nutrition, how it can support health and performance, and crucially, how to develop practical strategies that meet the demands of individuals, specific sports, and those competing in challenging environments.

Lucozade Sport Science Team (LSST)

The Lucozade Sport Science Team is a team of dedicated field based sport scientists and nutritionists, who work on behalf of the LSSA to increase the awareness and understanding of effective hydration and nutrition and it’s affect on sporting performance. The LSST strive to communicate the research and nutritional product range of the LSSA in a credible and informative manner that is tailored to a wide variety of sporting audiences and abilities from Football to Judo and Grassroots to Elite Athletes. The LSST are regionally based and work to provide credible information and samples of the Lucozade Sport Nutrition Range to local sports clubs, teams and events in order to effectively educate and give individuals the courage to push harder! The LSSA are dedicated to the continuing development of the members of the LSST through exposure to a variety of elite athletes, the opportunity to undertake relevant courses and working closely with the Lucozade Sport collaborations such as UK Athletics and British Amateur Boxing Association.

Job Details

Job Title: Field Sport Scientist / Sport Nutritionist

Salary: circa £19,000 - £22,500 p.a. (depending on experience) + company car

Hours of Work: Such hours as necessary to carry out your duties. This will involve working 37 hours per week and will include working outside normal office hours at evenings and weekends and on Public Holidays.

Region: Midlands

Employer: TRO Group Ltd (On behalf of Lucozade Sport and the Lucozade Sport Science Academy).

Location: This role is essentially based from home; however travel within the regional area is a major feature and is required on a day to day basis. Occasionally this position will also require you to travel to and work in other regions.

Contract length: 12 months

Accountable to: TRO and Lucozade Sport

Overall Job Purpose

As part of the Lucozade Sport Science Team, you will be contributing to Lucozade Sports ambition to give participants from different sporting disciplines and abilities, the courage to push harder and achieve their personal goals. Delivering advice based on years of scientific research and development you will be responsible for informing individuals on the benefits of good hydration and nutrition to help motivate them and improve their personal performance.

The post holder will contribute to the achievement of the aims and objectives of Lucozade Sport and the Lucozade Sport Science Academy through:

  • Delivering credible education on effective hydration and nutrition
  • Maximise awareness and understanding of the Lucozade Sport Product Range through accurate and up-to-date information and research
  • Working within your region to develop excellent relationships with local governing bodies, event organisers and sports clubs with a focus on triathlon
  • Delivering credible, interactive and engaging education on sports science and nutrition
  • Providing simple and effective sport science testing for education purposes
  • The ability to translate science into a language understood by athletes

Key Roles and Responsibilities

  • Conducting visits to Triathlon, Cycling, Athletics and Boxing events, clubs and teams in your area and educating the key coaches and influencers on the benefits of sound sports nutrition practice and how Lucozade Sport can aid the performance of their athletes
  • Organising visits as well as attending visits that are allocated by Lucozade Sport and other agencies
  • Liaising with Event Organisers, Clubs, and other contacts to efficiently and effectively organise and carry out a successful visit
  • Supporting the activation programmes of Lucozade Sport focusing on Triathlon but supporting the activation of the Athletics and Boxing
  • Assisting in the development and creation of educational resources
  • Working with Lucozade Sport collaborations to improve the offering and strength of relationships
  • Liaising and working with other agencies connected to Lucozade Sport i.e. Fasttrack
  • Undertaking projects set out by the LSSA
  • Communicating with the area Manager and TRO on a regular basis
  • This is a mobile position and will require driving a small van
  • Regular overnight stays are a feature of this role as well as working away from home for long periods
  • Anti social hours are a feature of this role e.g. you will be required to work weekends and evenings

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • A BSc (or equivalent) in Sport Science, Nutrition or related subject
  • A qualification at higher degree level (or equivalent) in Sport Science, Nutrition or relevant subject
  • BASES accredited sports scientists (or equivalent), or registered on supervised experience

Experience

Essential

  • Experience of working with the public in a sporting environment
  • 1-2 years experience of providing sport science and nutrition testing and support to sport and exercise participants
  • Experience of writing scientific literature
  • Experience in athletics, cycling or triathlon as a practitioner, researcher or participant

Desired

  • Experience of the design, implementation and evaluation of periodised programmes for athletes, and of developing and delivering sports specific performance assessments
  • Experience of working with sport governing bodies
  • Some experience of delivering sport science/ sport nutrition education
  • Experience of providing detailed feedback to athletes and coaches

Knowledge

  • An understanding of the physiological and nutritional demands and needs of sport and exercise participants across a breadth of different sports and environments
  • An understanding of how to apply this knowledge into education, strategies and techniques that are easy to understand, empathetic, credible and crucially realistic
  • Understanding of Triathlon as a sport and the sport science / nutrition which is needed to succeed in Triathlon

Skills and Abilities

  • Excellent presentation and communication skills that can motivate and influence behavioural change to have a positive impact on sporting performance
  • Ability to analyse the nutrition demands and/or the physiological demands of various sports and exercise programmes
  • Ability to communicate and interpret complex information and tailor it to be understood by a range of audiences
  • Ability to write specific scientific communications to a high standard
  • Knowledge of a variety of different digital media and how they work
  • Ability to develop relationships with event organisers, governing bodies and a range of sporting individuals
  • Ability to work effectively with colleagues from within Lucozade Sport, TRO and from other related agencies
  • Excellent organisation skills
  • Ability to work under pressure
  • Ability to prioritise own workload
  • Ability to balance conflicting demands and tight deadlines
  • Excellent problem solving and decision making skills
  • Ability to communicate fluently, in English
  • Excellent IT skills and the ability to use Office based applications
  • Ability to work irregular and unsocial hours as required involving work outside normal office hours, at evenings, weekends and Bank Holidays
  • Ability to travel within the region and throughout the UK, including occasional overnight stays

Personal Disposition

  • Works well as part of a team
  • Able to work individually
  • Personal commitment to continuous personal professional development
  • Open minded with a view to adopting new practices
  • Highly motivated with a passion for high performance sport
  • Personal integrity and the ability to invoke trust and respect from others

Other Working Requirements

  • An understanding and commitment to equal opportunities
  • An understanding of individual responsibility in complying with the Health and Safety policies of TRO and GSK

Application and Selection Process

Application

Please apply by sending a copy of your CV with a covering letter to the following email address:

Please quote reference number: FSS2011

You may, if you wish post your application to us at:

F.A.O Chris Booker

TRO

2-3 Levens Road

Newby Road Industrial Estate

Hazel Grove

Stockport

SK7 5DA

Please note the closing date for receipt of applications is 17:00 GMT on 16.02.11.

Selection Process

If your application has been successful we will contact you for a telephone interview within 2 weeks of the application closing date. Please can you indicate clearly on your application a contact telephone number where you can be contacted during office hours (i.e. 9am – 5.30pm Monday to Friday)

If you have not been contacted within 2 weeks of the closing date for this application you should assume that you have been unsuccessful.

Interviews

Dates TBC