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Title: Associate Director of Venture Development for the Institute for Applied Life Sciences (IALS)

Executive Area: Research and Engagement

College/School/MBU: Institute Applied Life Science

Department: Institute Applied Life Science

Work Location: Amherst

Schedule: Full time

Work Arrangement: Hybrid

Job Summary

Reporting to the Director of IALS Venture Development, the Associate Director of Venture Development for the Institute for Applied Life Sciences (IALS) manages and facilitates IALS Venture Development operations and collaborations within IALS, within the University innovation ecosystem, and with external parties including venture mentors, alumni, experts, investors, and representatives of industry organizations, companies, and federal agencies.

Essential Functions

• Manages the operational planning and implementation for established IALS Venture Development programs and resources including (1) the Business Innovation Fellows program, (2) Startup Law, Intellectual Property Law, and Mentor Office Hours, (3) Startup Know-How educational speakers and training workshops and (4) the IALS Venture Development web presence.
• Oversees the week-to-week development of specific pre-startups and startups as assigned, including supervision of small Business Innovation Fellows teams and their work (market assessments and landscapes, competitive analyses, financial modeling, identification of funding sources, draft pitch decks and backgrounders).
• Serves as a navigator and knowledgeable resource for IALS Venture Development pre-startups and startups. Recommends, connects and arranges services for faculty and student founders to advance their early-stage ventures. Communicates key concepts with respect to startup development including milestones, differentiation strategy, and the importance of unmet customer needs.
• Works with the Director, IALS Venture Development and other members of the IALS Leadership team to manage the Business Innovation Fellows (up to 25 MBA Fellows and 2 undergraduates).
• Works with the Director, IALS Venture Development and other members of the IALS Leadership team to design, develop, and implement new programs.
• Works with the Director, IALS Venture Development and other members of the IALS Leadership team to build awareness of and interest in pre-startups and startups through news stories, web content, social media, and events directed towards key campus and external audiences.
• Works with the Director, IALS Venture Development and other members of the IALS Leadership team to cultivate faculty, postdoctoral fellows and graduate student interest in the creation of applied science and technology startups based on campus research.
• Represent IALS Venture Development to operationalize collaborations with other venture development organizations and resources within and beyond the University.
• Works with the Director, IALS Venture Development and other members of the IALS Leadership team to define objectives and strategic goals in order to build and contribute to a translational research culture at the University by developing, implementing, and aggregating metrics of success, helping to create and administer new programs, and helping to identify key alignment areas between IALS strategic goals and the campus strategic plan.
• Collects, maintains and analyzes statistics to (1) measure the impact of IALS Venture Development, (2) inform ongoing improvement, and (3) inform the develop of new programs and resources.

Other Functions

• Participates in IALS Venture Development collaboration in the Manning IALS Seed Grants program. Works with the Translational Seed Awards Program Manager and the IALS Director of Finance and Operations to support the Translational Seed Grant process.
• Collaborates with IALS Director Venture Development and others on the IALS Leadership team on strategic relationship management efforts with the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, MassBio, and MassVentures and other organizations within the innovation ecosystem.
• Performs other related duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree and five (5) plus years of experience in a startup, research and development, venture accelerator or similar environment, or related experience, or an Associate’s degree and seven (7) plus years of experience.
• Exceptional oral and written communication skills.
• Demonstrates the ability to manage multiple projects and priorities simultaneously.
• Knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Outlook, Power Point, OneDrive, MS Teams) and Adobe Acrobat, including advanced knowledge of Microsoft Excel.
• Familiar with the use of Google Drive and G-Suite applications (Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Calendar) to facilitate collaborations.
• Ability to work accurately with many forms of data and generate relevant reports when necessary. Demonstrated attention to detail.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and judgment.
• Ability to communicate and coordinate with other University departments (including stakeholders at all levels, and especially faculty and students) effectively.
• Exceptional organizational and analytical skills.
• Familiarity with concepts of entrepreneurship, innovation, economic development, and university startups.

Preferred Qualifications

• MBA, advanced degree in a STEM discipline, or JD.
• Familiarity with the University, regional, Massachusetts, and U.S. innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystems.
• Familiarity with basic aspects of life science areas.
• Familiarity with basic aspects of intellectual property.
• Familiarity with dilutive and non-dilutive funding vehicles relevant to university startups.
• Experience in commercialization / venture development based on university research.

Working Conditions

Work is primarily performed in an indoor university environment and involves lifting and transporting materials or equipment and general physical activity, including prolonged standing, walking, or assuming low postures.

Work Schedule and Work Arrangement

Monday - Friday, 9 am - 5 pm.

This position has the opportunity for a hybrid work schedule, which is defined by the University as an arrangement where an employee’s work is regularly performed at a location other than the campus workspace for a portion of the week. As this position falls within the Professional Staff Union, it is subject to the terms and conditions of the Professional Staff Union collective bargaining agreement.

Salary Information

Pay Grade: PSSAP Grade 29

This position will remain open for the time period required by any applicable collective bargaining agreement and will continue until a suitable candidate pool is identified. Interested applicants are strongly encouraged to apply early.