Executive Director Of Innovation And Entrepreneurship

Are you looking for a new, exciting challenge?

The University of Glasgow has been changing the world for more than 570 years, and today we are delighted to rank in the top 100 of universities worldwide in both the Times Higher Education and QS World University Rankings.

The University of Glasgow has invested strategically to unlock our significant innovation potential and to deliver on a highly ambitious agenda for innovation, entrepreneurship and economic development.  

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an Executive Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship  to lead and support a highly capable team to deliver the innovation ambitions as set out in our Innovation Strategy 2022-2025. This integral role offers a hugely exciting opportunity to be part of a compelling vision that will shift the dial on our performance across a broad range of Innovation activities, and to demonstrate the tangible economic and societal impact of the University of Glasgow.

Reporting directly to the Deputy Chief Operating Officer and Vice Principal of Economic Development & Innovation, you will be responsible for setting the foundations for a thriving and inclusive innovation culture; developing a strong pipeline of commercialisation opportunities, alongside growing industry and investor partnerships; and expanding our academic consultancy business and knowledge exchange portfolio to drive an increase in our overall income from industry and translational awards.  With a strong focus on delivery, you will establish a culture of service excellence across all aspects of Innovation services. 

The ideal candidate will be required to demonstrate considerable experience of overseeing Technology Transfer Office (TTO) functions including a thorough understanding of how to develop a strategic approach to university investment funds. You will successfully position the University as a leading innovation partner and be ambitious about the transformational change this can deliver to our mission. You will therefore, need to be able to demonstrate a strong ability to understand the scale and level of ambition we have set ourselves, identify institutional gaps and opportunities, and be able to articulate how our strategy should be executed in order to embed and deliver long-term transformational change at the University of Glasgow.

You will demonstrate a natural ability to work effectively across institutional structures and internal stakeholders, working in close partnership with our four Colleges in supporting and aligning their strategic vision, and with external partners and funders to ensure our innovation activities are fully enabled to achieve our KPIs and strategic outcomes. This role will be essential in influencing and managing our strategic relationships and partnerships with government and agencies, business, funding providers and other sectors in relation to innovation activity.

You will be critical to establishing Glasgow’s reputation as a vibrant entrepreneurial university committed to supporting the wider innovation ecosystem and in contributing to economic growth across the city region, the UK economy and have a global impact.  As such, you will be a member of the external-facing University Economic Development Board, building strong connections between the institution’s innovation strategy and a wider range of stakeholders to create a robust mechanism for maximising influence, engagement and impact. 

As a senior leader within University Services, you will be expected to lead the management of the Innovation Directorate (approx 24 staff) including developing the capabilities of colleagues, and in supporting a positive work culture.  You will also be a member of the Professional Services Group chaired by the Chief Operating Officer and University Secretary, contributing to overall professional service excellence and in ensuring that the University’s core missions and values are well supported.

The post holder will be expected to establish close working relationships with the Director of Economic Development, Executive Director of Research Services, the Vice Principal for Research & Knowledge Exchange and the Executive Director of Finance, to create a unified and synergistic approach for the realisation of our ambitions. Operating as part of a wider team, you will help to develop our future strategic plans aligned to the vision of the four Colleges in the institution.

You will deputise for the Vice Principal of Economic Development & Innovation as necessary, as well as members of the University’s Senior Management Group on matters related to Innovation and enterprise.

If you believe you are an exceptional leader, with the right strategic and delivery skills, experience and attributes for this role, we would love to hear from you. 

Please get in touch with Martina Cooper, martina.cooper@glasgow.ac.uk  if you would like an informal discussion.