Nic Farmer, Race Equality Lead at the Medical Research Council (MRC) and the LMB, has been awarded a Level 6 diploma from the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) in Professional Management and Leadership Practice, with a particular focus on leading Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in an organisational context. CMI is the only chartered body for management, dedicated to enhancing leadership skills.
As Race Equality Lead, Nic works alongside the EDI and HR Teams at the LMB and the MRC to integrate equality, diversity and inclusion into all aspects of the LMB and MRC’s work, building a more inclusive and positive workplace culture.
Here, Nic shares what the CMI qualification entailed, what motivated them to pursue further training and their advice to anyone considering the same.
Can you tell us a bit about your role at the MRC and the LMB?
Within the MRC, my work predominantly sits in project managing the ‘Black in Biomedical Research’ Advisory Group. The group contains 16 external members from across the UK biomedical landscape, ranging from Professors and PhD students to clinicians and healthcare professionals, all of whom are of Black heritage. The group was formed in response to the sustained underrepresentation of Black researchers and staff within MRC’s portfolio and workforce. The group aim to inform the MRC’s EDI strategy and develop new initiatives and projects to promote the inclusion of Black heritage and minority researchers.
At the LMB specifically, I put on different events promoting race equality, usually around specific awareness days or months, which are open to the entire LMB community, with the aim of increasing understanding around race equality and EDI. Additionally, I’m currently the recruitment manager for the Rising Talent Fellowship, a targeted postdoctoral fellowship for Black heritage researchers, and I’m assisting Louise Atkin, the EDI Manager, with the Career Returners Fellowship, a dedicated postdoctoral position for researchers who have had a 12 month or longer career break.
What motivated you to pursue the CMI Level 6 Award in Professional Management and Leadership Practice?
I was looking for a new challenge but also something that would solidify a lot of the transferable skills I’ve picked up in this job and previous roles. There isn’t necessarily a set university course or anything you can take in EDI, so getting a qualification to back up what I’ve learnt while working can help let people know that you have an accreditation and specific knowledge relevant to working in this field.
What did the course programme involve?
The course duration was two days, back at the end of 2024. It was a cohort of all different types of individuals from different sectors and we had a trainer who went through all the legal requirements you need to know when working in EDI. This included building an in-depth understanding of the Equality Act and, because I work in the public sector with the MRC, the kind of duties that fall within the Equality Act. We also learnt how different models can help when conducting different EDI initiatives. For example, one model we focused on was a ‘Inclusion Maturity Model’ which is a framework used to assess an organisation’s capabilities and processes against a standardised model, guiding them towards optimised and continuous improvement. I could apply these kinds of models to assess how primed for change the MRC and the LMB are for new EDI initiatives. This was also accompanied by solutions and practical considerations to help us achieve cultural changes within our organisations.
How were you assessed?
Over a year I submitted three essays around the challenges of working in EDI, a more specific examination of your organisation’s commitment to EDI and the challenges you face and the improvements you can implement.
How did you manage studying alongside your job?
It was challenging at first as the initial write-up period following the course coincided with a busy time planning the first Minoritised Life Scientists Future Forum in March 2025. Once the conference was out of the way, it became a lot easier to start allocating dedicated study time to read or draft an outline. As the assignments tied in closely to my day-to-day work, sometimes if I couldn’t think of an answer exactly at the time of writing, something would happen during the day that I could then apply to my essays.
What did you gain from the experience?
It was definitely a solidification of the knowledge that I’ve learned during my career and it’s great to now be able to talk in-depth with people about things like the Equality Act, which I didn’t know as much detail about before. It’s also helped me navigate the differences between EDI initiatives at the LMB vs the MRC. We’re really lucky at the LMB to have a Director and Senior Leadership Team that support these initiatives and that’s also reflected in the culture here. The MRC as a whole are very committed to enacting their EDI strategy, but it can be a bit slower to disseminate these goals due to the large size of the organisation. This course has helped me identify areas of improvement and has given me the confidence to speak with certain stakeholders to implement the necessary changes.
Do you have any advice for anyone else considering undertaking further qualifications?
Start writing your assignments as early as possible! But, generally, expanding your knowledge and your horizons is always a good thing! Taking part in courses like this can give you fresh perspectives and, beyond the qualification, meeting new people on these courses is a great way to learn about different people’s journeys and viewpoints that can inform your own work and life. For many people, including myself, this can be their first return to study so it’s good to get a structure in place for completing your assignments and allocate dedicated study time. Luckily, the LMB is really supportive of pursuing this sort of thing!
Further References
Equality, Diversity & Inclusion at the LMB
Career Returner Fellowship (open for applications until 17 May 2026)
Rising Talent Fellowship (open for applications until 17 May 2026)
