Executive Director, Innovation & Commercialization

Overview

Title: Executive Director, Innovation & Commercialization

Employee Classification: Exec Dir Innovation & Comm

Campus: University of North Texas

Division: UNT-Research & Innovation

Sub Division-Department: UNT-Research & Innovation

Department: UNT-Innovation & Commercialization-190300

Job Location: Denton

Salary: Salary to commensurate with experience

FTE: 1.000000

Retirement Eligibility: ORP Eligible

Values Overview:
Welcome to the University of North Texas System. The UNT System includes the University of North Texas in Denton and Frisco, the University of North Texas at Dallas and UNT Dallas College of Law, and University of North Texas Health at Fort Worth. We are the only university system based exclusively in the robust Dallas-Fort Worth region. We are growing with the North Texas region, employing more than 14,000 employees, educating a record 49,000+ students across our system, and awarding nearly 12,000 degrees each year.

We are one team comprised of individuals who are committed to excellence, curiosity and innovation. We are transforming lives and creating economic opportunity through education. We champion a people-first values-based culture where We Care about each other and those we serve. We believe that we are Better Together because we foster an environment of respect, belonging, and access for all. We demonstrate Courageous Integrity through setting exceptional standards and acting in the best interest of our communities.

We are encouraged to Be Curious about opportunities for learning, creating, discovering, and innovating, and are encouraged to learn from failure. Show Your Fire by joining our team and exhibiting your passion and pride in your work as part of our UNT System team.

Learn more about the UNT System and how we live our values System.edu.

The Innovation and Commercialization unit within the Division of Research & Innovation empowers researchers to transform discoveries into products, services, and companies. The team provides university researchers with services to support navigating the intellectual property and patent processes, development of licensing agreements with strategic industry partners, mentorship in creating startups and pursuing entrepreneurship, and administering commercialization education programs that help forge paths from academic innovation to real-world application.

The Executive Director for Innovation and Commercialization serves as the "Chief Innovation Officer" at UNT, leading the Innovation & Commercialization (I&C) unit within the Division of Research & Innovation. This position develops strategic initiatives to increase the scale of technology transfer and commercialization output, as outlined in the "Look North" UNT Strategic Plan. The Executive Director will implement strategies focused on: building and managing a high-performing team that provides excellent service to faculty, staff, and student researchers to help facilitate the translation of research discovery into commercially viable products;

cultivating relationships between researchers and industry stakeholders to foster commercialization partnerships; and developing data-driven programming and products that support the growth of UNT's research innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem. The Executive Director for Innovation & Commercialization reports to the Vice President for Research and Innovation, with a dotted line to the Office of the President, to also provide support for UNT initiatives that drive talent and workforce development efforts and ensures the university is competitively contributing to the continued economic growth of the North Texas region and throughout the state.

Bachelor's degree in related field and ten years of closely related professional experience; or any equivalent combination of education and professional experience.

• Expert knowledge in intellectual property, tech transfer, patents, licensing, and startup company support within a higher education university setting
• Familiarity with technology solutions and data analytics platforms that support technology transfer offices
• Proven track record in leading a tech transfer office, deep understanding of the commercialization process, start-up companies, and working with stakeholders including industry and local government economic boards
• Demonstrated success in designing and launching new initiatives from concept to implementation
• Proven track record in convening cross-sector stakeholder groups and experience with managing a variety of stakeholders with differing interests
• Experience in creating and managing data-driven workforce development initiatives
• Strong team building and management skills with experience supporting faculty researchers
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a proven record of managing executive-level relationships with industry, government, and academic leaders
• Ability to think strategically and…