The Director of Business Development & Licensing is responsible for identifying potential partnerships and pathways for the successful commercialization of university intellectual property. This position is primarily responsible for negotiating and managing agreements regarding all university patents and other rights in technologies. The director will need to draft, execute, and review license agreements with partner organizations. This person will conduct targeted marketing and direct outreach with external organizations that have the potential and desire to engage in technology commercialization. They will also be responsible for other agreements including inter-institutional, material transfer, and confidentiality agreements.
- Organization: University of Notre Dame IDEA Center
- Title: Director of Business Development & Licensing
- Salary: Up to $120,000
- Work Environment: On Site; South Bend, Indiana
- Visa Sponsorship: Yes
Reporting to the Senior Director of Technology and Licensing, this position will work within the IDEA Center’s existing commercialization development framework. Current commercialization support within the IDEA Center consists of essential processes, people, and resources intended to add value to early-stage technologies and ideas to translate marketable business ventures.
The Business Development & Licensing Director assists in the rigorous review and management of technologies disclosed to the IDEA Center. This person will need to:
- Analyze novel technology within the context of the current deep tech market trends.
- Be a generalist who can cover all fields of research and needs to be comfortable coming up to speed on a topic quickly.
- Understand complex technologies and reduce the central topic to a value proposition that can be exploited through a potential partnership.
- See and communicate the business opportunity present in an area of research and will need to think creatively and strategically based on that insight.
A key outcome of their work will manifest in technologies licensed. The Business Development & Licensing Director understands the feasibility, challenges, and resources needed to advance deep tech to the market. They will create and work with programs, in collaboration with others, that can address these issues. The ideal candidate needs to work with and encourage entrepreneurs as well as develop relationships with existing companies in a number of market verticals.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
- Conduct partnering and licensing outreach. Regularly engage with established companies who represent potential partners or licensees that can assist in developing the commercial potential of a market. Design and execute active and passive marketing campaigns. Solicit feedback on specific technologies and adjust commercialization strategy going forward. – 65%
- Manage IP agreements. Negotiate, draft, and route licenses and other IP-based agreements for execution. Review these agreements on a periodic and as-needed basis. Work with partner organizations to achieve the aims of these agreements. – 20%
- Coordinate with IDEA Center and other university teams. Find areas for coordination within and between the IDEA Center and other departments based on technologies under management. – 5%
- Coordinate on intellectual property protection matters. Keep apprised of relevant patent matters as to how they may define an invention. Assist in strategy for filings which may overlap with technologies currently under management. Assist the IP management team with communicating patent status and strategy. – 10%
Qualifications
A deep appreciation for how university research is conducted as well as a thorough working knowledge of intellectual property management is required. The ideal candidate will work well within a team setting and communicate effectively to achieve the desired outcome for the group. They will contribute directly to the work of other Commercialization Engine team members with faculty touchpoints.
Minimum Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in science or engineering field
- 5 years experience in university technology management
Preferred Qualifications:
- PhD
- 5 years experience in managing IP license agreements
Problem Solving:
- Capable of identifying critical issues, motivations, and preferable outcomes. Works collaboratively and through influence in advocacy of the right solution.
Policy Development and Change:
- Provides critical feedback on policy implementation and suggests potential solutions on execution.