Director, Technology Transfer

University of New Hampshire

1d•$107,030 - $207,180•Onsite

About The Position

Reporting to the Associate Vice President & Chief Business Development and Innovation Officer, The Director of Technology Transfer works closely with faculty and researchers to identify promising discoveries and accelerate their development toward market for societal and economic benefit. The Director identifies opportunities, uses their expertise and network to develop go-to-market strategies, and fosters partnerships to ensure commercial success and market adoption. The Director will be in charge of the day-to-day operations of the technology transfer office (TT) and management of faculty training, agreement processing, intellectual property (IP) protection, marketing, outreach, and licensing. The Director will manage and continuously improve the technology transfer and commercialization process and will represent UNH's interest in these matters to external organizations including state agencies, relevant professional organizations, and private business and industry. UNH is an R1 research university with over $200 MM in annual research expenditures and is one of a limited number of land-, sea- and space-grant universities. It is important to note that the UNH Technology Transfer office is small by many standards and consists of the Director and one Licensing Manager. Additional support for license administration, finance and other tasks are supported on a shared service basis with other units. We believe that the best intellectual property development and commercialization outcomes are driven by working closely with faculty, researchers and partners. This is a full-time in-person role and the Director will have the primary duties and responsibilities outlined below.

Requirements

Bachelor's Degree in business, marketing, science/engineering, or related field.
Minimum 10 years’ experience in the area of technology transfer, including working experience or knowledge of intellectual property protection.
5 years supervisory experience.
Business development, Research partnership formation, Intellectual property asset management.
Demonstrated understanding of the technology transfer life cycle, including the ability to guide scientific development and research programs toward commercialization goals.
Success engaging industry in corporate sponsored research and licensing opportunities where IP is a significant component.
Familiarity with USPTO and experience in intellectual property protection and prosecution.
Knowledge of state, federal, and international laws re: technology transfer and intellectual property.
Proven success in identifying commercialization pathways and negotiating complex (business) agreements.
Strong analytical skills for market/needs assessment, technology evaluation and strategic problem-solving.
Experience with the private sector and with institutions of higher education.
Excellent verbal and written communications skills.

Nice To Haves

Master's or PhD, or JD/MBA preferred.
Prior experience leading a technology transfer unit or organization.
Strong familiarity with federal funding mechanisms (e.g., SBIR/STTR), research compliance, and startup incubation.
Registered Technology Transfer Professional (RTTP) or Certified Licensing Professional (CLP) certification.

Responsibilities

Lead Technology Transfer Office & Operations
Meet with and advise faculty and researchers to identify opportunities for intellectual property (IP) protection, commercialization and resultant economic and societal benefit.
Manage disclosure to out-license process.
Negotiate terms and manage licenses and other IP agreements and coordinate with other units such as the General Counsel’s office or Sponsored Programs Administration.
Manage office budget including patent expenditures and external legal firms.
Enhance development and tracking of metrics.
Design and deliver training in technology transfer and commercialization for faculty and staff.
Provide technical assistance to faculty and staff interested in licensing and/or spinning off companies arising from innovations.
Ensure compliance with IP, federal and other laws and policies.
Develop and implement strategies for productivity.
Partner, Business Development and Realizing Impact
Engage, foster, develop and grow strategic partnerships and collaborations.
Develop and maintain relationships with external public- and private-sector entities including federal and state agencies, national research centers, foundations, financial firms, business and industry.
Identify commercialization partners to license technologies.
Lead outreach efforts to faculty, staff, students and others to identify and market opportunities; create systematic ways to reach important constituents with regular updates.
Work in partnership with other offices and provide leadership across the university to develop unique and integrated approaches to technology transfer, commercialization, licensing and intellectual property.
Expand efforts to license promising inventions by improving marketing efforts, leveraging alumni resources and exploring creative business creation, funding and go-to market models.
Vision, Strategy & Representing the University
Develop and implement a vision and strategic plan to take the office to the next level and facilitate productive research-based partnerships with a focus on technology transfer and commercialization.
Specifically, develop strategies to grow revenues, economic and societal impact.
Represent the university at internal and external constituents concerning technology transfer, commercialization, licensing and intellectual property.
Collaborate with UNH units to pursue external funding through grants, philanthropy and other means.