Role: DDI Innovation Manager
Grade and Salary: Grade 8, £46,485 - £56,921 per annum
FTE and working pattern: 1 FTE, 35hrs per week, Monday – Friday
Contract: Fixed Term – 24 Months
Holiday Entitlement: 33 days annual leave plus 9 buildings closed days (and Christmas Eve when it falls on a weekday)
Purpose of Role
This is a new role that will provide leadership and specialist input to support and scale innovation activity in the National Robotarium at a time of growth. This role is part of a growing network of DDI Hub innovation support roles that will link into existing DDI commercialisation support activities such as the University of Edinburgh’s (National Robotarium joint partner) flagship Venture Builder Incubator (VBI) programme and the AI Accelerator. The postholder will be the point of contact for triaging and signposting innovation support enquiries at the National Robotarium.
The postholder will be able to navigate the innovation ecosystem and have a collaborative focus on scaling innovation activity in key thematic areas related to the National Robotarium’s 5-year strategy. The successful candidate will also be responsible for inspiring and developing a pipeline of founders in the Robotics and AS field that would then have access to existing innovation support services.
Key Duties & Responsibilities
1. Leadership of:
1. All Entrepreneurship engagement on behalf of the National Robotarium.
2. Ensuring the co-ordination and engagement of all additional functions with the National Robotarium management team across Business development, operations and events.
3. Robotarium resident companies’ growth and potential collaborations across other DDI hub activity.
4. Robotarium entrepreneurship events and forums.
5. Leadership and coordination of Robotarium and partner start up developments and programmes.
6. Act as the National Robotarium representative at all DDI entrepreneur forums and programmes.
2. Manage and develop entrepreneurial and innovation support activities for the National Robotarium linking in with other DDI Hubs and Hubs based innovation delivery teams.
3. Source and inspire suitable, exciting founders and start-ups, building and developing an ongoing pipeline.
4. Contribute to Robotarium and DDI KPI outputs and reporting.
5. Identify and Build key relationships in ‘Innovation Support’ for the sector.
6. Act as advisor through 1-2-1s, helping start-ups and teams to access the best sector contacts and support across the DDI Hubs.
7. Engage regularly with other DDI Hubs Entrepreneurship delivery teams.
8. Be the point of contact and communication channel for the Robotarium team in this area.
Key Relationships
* Line Management – Robotarium COO
* Management & Centre Management – NR staff, Business Development, Marketing, tenants and Engineers.
* DDI Hub Entrepreneurship delivery Staff – work closely with DDI Hub ‘E delivery teams’.
* DDI and EI colleagues, and wider Eco-System – liaison across the Data-Driven Innovation and Edinburgh Innovations.
Essential & Desirable Criteria
Essential
1. A good honours degree.
2. Robotics and AS background.
3. Leadership training – CPD etc.
4. Experience of innovation development and/or being a successful Founder of a start-up/scale up company.
5. Experience of working in a team and line management.
6. Experience of working with and supporting early-stage founders.
7. Demonstrable experience of contributing to successful innovation/entrepreneurial support Programmes.
8. Excellent knowledge and understanding of start-up business growth and robotics /AS digital development issues.
9. Strong influencing skills.
10. Significant experience of delivering complex projects.
11. Proven organisation and project management skills.
Desirable
1. Project management qualifications.
2. Innovation/entrepreneurship training.
3. Data Driven Innovation knowledge.
4. Demonstrable knowledge of the wider innovation ecosystem.
5. Evidence of successful collaborative working in a Higher Education.
6. Evidence of proactively gathering information/data of interest to funders and partners.
How to Apply
Applications can be submitted up to midnight (UK time) on Sunday 1st December 2024.
Please submit your CV via the Heriot-Watt on-line recruitment.
We welcome and will consider flexible working patterns e.g., part-time working and job share options.
About Heriot-Watt University
At Heriot-Watt we are passionate about our values and look to them to connect our people globally and to help us collaborate and celebrate our success through working together.
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