Innovation Lead - Video Games

Job Purpose:

As Innovation Lead – Video Games, you will lead Innovate UK’s activity for one of the four Creative Industries Frontier Industries, providing sector leadership for Video Games and ensuring that Innovate UK’s interventions support innovation, commercialisation and business growth.

You will be responsible for developing and maintaining a deep understanding of the businesses, technologies, markets, investment environment and structural challenges shaping the sector and translating this insight into Innovate UK strategy, programmes and investment activity. A key priority will be to support the successful delivery and development of Next Wave within the video games sector, ensuring that the programme reaches high-potential innovative businesses, responds to market need and creates meaningful routes to growth, investment, collaboration and international markets.

Working with colleagues across Innovate UK and UKRI, government, industry and the wider innovation ecosystem, you will design and deliver interventions that enable innovative UK businesses to develop and commercialise new products, technologies, services and business models, access investment and new markets, and scale. You will act as a visible and credible representative of Innovate UK within the UK and international video games ecosystem.

Key Responsibilities and Accountabilities:

• Lead Innovate UK’s activity for Video Games as one of the four Creative Industries Frontier Industries, acting as the principal sector specialist within the team.
• Support the Head of Creative Industries in developing and delivering Innovate UK’s strategy for innovation and business growth in the video games sector.
• Play a leading role in the successful delivery of Next Wave, ensuring activity responds to sector needs, reaches high-potential businesses and delivers against programme objectives.
• Maintain a strong understanding of the UK and global video games industry, including emerging technologies, business models, investment trends, market dynamics and routes to commercialisation.
• Identify opportunities where Innovate UK intervention can address barriers to innovation, accelerate business growth and generate economic impact.
• Build strong relationships across the video games ecosystem, including studios, publishers, platforms, technology companies, investors, trade bodies, academia and regional partners.
• Work across Innovate UK, UKRI, government and delivery partners to develop and deliver funding, business growth, investment and international activities for the sector.
• Identify opportunities for collaboration and technology transfer between Video Games and the other Creative Industries Frontier Industries, as well as wider sectors.
• Use data, evidence and industry engagement to assess the impact of Innovate UK activity and inform future strategy and programme development.
• Represent Innovate UK externally and provide authoritative advice and thought leadership on innovation, commercialisation and growth within the video games sector.

This is not an exhaustive list and you might be encouraged to undertake any other duties across the wider directorate, commensurate with the Band and level of responsibility of this post, for which the post holder has the key experience and/or training.

Shortlisting criteria

(S) – Assessed at shortlisting

(I) – Assessed at interview

(S&I) – Assessed at both shortlisting and interview

Person Specification:

We are looking for someone with a strong understanding of the commercial and technological environment in which video games businesses operate.

You will understand the strategic importance of Video Games as one of the Creative Industries Frontier Industries and be capable of representing the sector within Innovate UK, UKRI, government and the wider innovation ecosystem.

You will understand both the creative and technology-driven nature of the sector and be able to distinguish between innovation with the potential to transform businesses and markets and the normal commercial risks associated with the production of individual games.

You will be commercially aware, comfortable operating in a complex stakeholder environment and able to use evidence, market insight and industry engagement to identify where Innovate UK intervention can have the greatest impact.

You will also have the delivery focus required to turn this insight into successful activity, including helping ensure that Next Wave achieves meaningful outcomes for innovative video games businesses.

Experience & Qualifications:

Essential –

• Degree, postgraduate qualification or equivalent professional experience in an area relevant to video games, technology, business or the creative industries (S).
• Significant professional experience within, or closely supporting, the video games sector, with strong and current knowledge of the UK and global industry, including its business models, value chains and routes to market (S).
• Experience of working with innovative businesses or technologies, with a strong understanding of how innovation, commercialisation, IP and investment support business growth and scale (S).
• Experience of managing or contributing to programmes, investments, products or projects, including assessing performance, outcomes and impact (S&I).
• Strong experience of building relationships with senior stakeholders across complex ecosystems and translating complex information into clear strategic priorities and actions (S&I).
• Sufficient technical understanding to operate credibly across technologies shaping the future of games, including AI, real-time technologies, games engines and emerging interactive technologies (I).
• Strong strategic judgement, communication and influencing skills, with the ability to provide thought leadership, work across multidisciplinary teams and deliver outcomes that maximise the impact of public investment (I).

Competencies:

All team members demonstrate compatibility with and capability against our Core Competencies such as:

• Thinking and Problem Solving
• Stakeholder management
• Communication skills
• Influencing
• Self-awareness/self-management
• Strategic awareness
• Working with others
• Project management

Some of the above competencies will be assessed at interview stage, in addition to the criteria’s listed in the person specification.

Travel Requirements:

There will be a requirement to travel, mostly national, and there is some flexibility in this. Innovate UK staff make extensive use of telepresence tools for meetings to minimise unnecessary travel.

Immigration:

Please note, if you will require sponsorship to work in the UK, as part of your sponsorship application, you and any dependants travelling with you, will be required to pay costs directly to The Home Office for the application before you start your role with us. UKRI is normally able to reimburse some, or all of these fees after you have become an employee and this can be discussed with the Hiring Manager. For more information, please visit [https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/how-much-it-costs](https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa