The University of Manchester
Managing Director, Advanced Materials Innovation Centres
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Build the UK’s next major advanced materials & manufacturing innovation system
Unit M is seeking an ambitious, commercially minded industry leader to take on one of the most distinctive advanced materials innovation leadership roles in the UK. As Managing Director, Advanced Materials & Manufacturing Innovation Centres, you will lead the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre in Manchester’s Oxford Road Innovation District and the Sustainable Materials and Manufacturing Centre in Atom Valley, Rochdale, as two connected parts of a single innovation system.
This is a role for someone who wants to build something substantial, impactful and resilient. GEIC is already established as a nationally significant industry-facing innovation facility. SMMC will extend that capability into scale-up, manufacturing readiness and sustainable production in North-East Greater Manchester. Together, they create a powerful route for companies to move from research insight and proof of concept through to de-risking, prototyping, application development and scale-up.
You will bring strong commercial judgement, advanced materials credibility and the confidence to sell the space, services, technical capability and partnership offer of both centres. You will grow the commercial pipeline, shape compelling propositions for industry, and build lasting relationships with start-ups, scale-ups, established manufacturers, investors, government and innovation partners.
We are looking for someone with strong personal networks and real understanding of how advanced materials can create value across priority UK sectors, including manufacturing, construction, energy, composites, coatings, machinery, digitalisation and sustainable production.
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You will already have strong UK visibility and be looking for the platform to grow your reputation nationally and internationally; and be ready for a role that gives you the scale, mandate and institutional backing to do so.
You will:
- Lead GEIC and SMMC as a single, integrated, advanced materials innovation system, with a clear strategy, commercial plan and external proposition.
- Grow income, utilisation, partnerships and reputation by actively selling the centres’ space, services, specialist facilities and technical capability.
- Use your industry networks and market insight to create demand, attract partners and build a strong pipeline of commercially valuable opportunities.
- Connect research-led innovation in the Oxford Road Innovation District with scale-up and manufacturing capability in Atom Valley.
- Represent the centres, Unit M and the University at senior levels regionally, nationally and internationally.
- Lead multidisciplinary teams across two sites, setting a commercially confident, collaborative and externally focused culture.
We are particularly interested in people who can bring:
- Commercial leadership experience in advanced materials, manufacturing, engineering, innovation, technology or a related industrial field.
- A track record of business development, sales, income generation, partnership growth or market-facing service development.
- Credibility with industry and strong personal networks that can be used to build demand and open doors.
- The ability to translate technical capability into propositions that matter to business.
- Ambition to build a high-profile national and international platform for advanced materials innovation and commercialisation.
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If you are an industry leader who wants to move beyond delivering within an existing system and instead shape, grow and lead a new one, this role offers the mandate, assets, partnerships and institutional backing to make that happen.
As an equal opportunities employer we support an inclusive working environment and welcome applicants from all sections of the community regardless of age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender expression, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation and transgender status. All appointments are made on merit.
Enquiries About The Role, Shortlisting And Interviews
- Name: Vicky Roth
- Email Address: talent.attraction@manchester.ac.uk
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This vacancy will close for applications at midnight on the closing date. Please see the link below for the job description which contains the person specification criteria.
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