Principal, Technology Transfer and Venture Building

Principal, Technology Transfer and Venture Building

• Grade 5
• About Us

We are a health innovation company powered by a world-class ecosystem of founders, clinical innovators, leading healthcare organisations and universities. We work across London and beyond, helping innovations move from promise to real-world impact. Our work spans the full innovation journey: we forecast emerging healthcare challenges and opportunities, develop and prove breakthrough solutions, adopt what works in real clinical settings, and scale innovations so they improve and transform care.

By combining deep clinical insight with the ability to test, adopt and scale through our world-class ecosystem, we make health innovations work in practice, not just in theory. This is how we achieve our vision: a world where innovation creates better health for all.

Please visit our website to find out more about us, our values and how we work.

The Role

The Principal, Technology Transfer and Venture Building (TT&VB) sits in the new TT&VB team, which is part of UCLP’s Invention Unit. It is a matrix leadership role, requiring strategic awareness as well as demonstrated operational credibility. The role holder will work closely with the Director, TT&VB, to operationalise and deliver the commercialisation and venture-building strategy for innovations emerging from the UCLPartners partnership.

Working closely with the Director, TT&VB and with Trust senior stakeholders, the postholder will co-develop and play a key role in the integration of, an operating model to support technology transfer within the Trust(s) under their remit. With the support of the Director, they will be responsible for maintaining consistency with centralised core principles while optimising as required for individual Trust structures and governance. Once established, the Principal will lead a portfolio of NHS-originated technologies, from opportunity assessment and intellectual property strategy through licensing, strategic partnerships, spin-out formation and venture growth.

Working across a diverse stakeholder group including NHS providers, universities, industry, investors and funders, the Principal will lead the implementation of clear entry and prioritisation criteria, alongside robust investment and progression criteria. They will make evidence-based portfolio decisions and, with the support of the Director, secure the resources, partnerships and commercial agreements required to translate high-potential innovations into sustainable products, services and ventures.

The role is responsible for portfolio performance and measurable outcomes within their area of remit, including patient and system impact, deal completion, income and investment secured, venture creation and pipeline progression; it requires strategic clarity, entrepreneurial judgement, operational discipline and credibility with senior stakeholders across health, academia and industry.

Key Responsibilities

• Demonstrate growing independence within a high-performing, highly visible externally-facing team, leading some initiatives across internal and external matrices and fostering an inclusive, values-led culture.
• Build effective relationships at all levels of seniority across the external ecosystem and set the tone for the TT&VB function; be approachable for all stakeholders, from those in strategic leadership roles through to colleagues delivering day-to-day operations and earlier career innovators.
• G row UCLP’s reputation as a tech transfer and venture building leader externally and strengthen collaboration across NHS, academic, industry, investor and funding communities.
• Maintain a high level of awareness of the developing TT&VB strategy, supporting the communication and rollout across the UCLP partnership and contributing to the development where possible.
• With the support of the Director, lead the development and effective integration of the TT&VB operating model across one or more Trusts, maintaining consistency with the core principles;
• building senior stakeholder relationships within their Trust(s).
• Contribute to setting objectives and KPIs for the capability within the Trust(s) in your remit, that support the TT&VB function’s overarching strategy and KPIs.
• Working closely with the Director, TT&VB, ensure that KPIs are consistently met or exceeded on time, within budget and with measurable value and impact and/or optimised as the capability evolves.
• Model excellence in execution, as evidenced through strong stakeholder feedback alongside tangible results.
• Ensure robust portfolio, programme and project governance is developed and adhered to; manage risk, monitor progress and demonstrate sound judgement wrt escalation when delivery is off track.
• Working closely with the Director, TT&VB, enable accurate and timely reporting to the Executive Leadership Team, Board, partners, Trust leadership and investors/funders as appropriate.
• Work closely with other UCLPartners teams to align priorities, share capability and provide a consistent end-to-end offer to innovators and partners.
• Exercise sound judgement, high levels of professional maturity and emotional intelligence in complex and ambiguous situations involving multiple stakeholders, dependencies and competing priorities.

Role-Specific Responsibilities

• Deliver, support others in the delivery of and sometimes lead, impactful technology transfer and venture-building strategies for a portfolio of NHS-originated innovations, prioritising opportunities by patient benefit, commercial potential, feasibility and strategic fit.
• Working closely with the Director, TT&VB and other senior colleagues, contribute to the definition of clear portfolio entry, stage-gate, investment and exit criteria, ensuring resources are concentrated on opportunities with the strongest potential for impact and value creation.
• Deliver commercial, market and competitive assessment and determine the optimal route to impact, including licensing, collaboration, strategic partnership, spin-out formation or other venture models.
• Develop intellectual property strategy across patents, software, data assets, designs, trademarks and know-how in your area of remit, overseeing protection, freedom-to-operate analysis and risk management with specialist advisers.
• Support, and sometimes lead, the development, structuring and negotiation of commercial agreements, including licences, options, assignments, collaboration agreements and strategic partnerships.
• Deliver, and sometimes lead, venture-creation activities, developing propositions, business models, founding teams, governance, financing strategies and investment-readiness plans for suitable opportunities.
• Work with Innovation Unit, Invention Hubs and partner organisations to identify promising innovations early, shape evidence and development plans, and resolve barriers to commercial progression.
• Develop trusted relationships with industry partners, entrepreneurs, investors, funders, professional advisers and the wider innovation ecosystem to create routes to market, expertise and capital.
• Ensure commercialisation is responsible, transparent and aligned with patient benefit, NHS obligations, partner interests and appropriate approaches to benefit sharing.
• Deliver and report measurable portfolio outcomes, including deals completed, revenue and investment secured, ventures formed, pipeline conversion, partner value and patient or system impact.

Person Specification

• Qualifications and Background

Bachelor’s degree (preferably in a health-related subject) and postgraduate qualification or equivalent senior professional experience.

Demonstrable applied knowledge gained through roles in technology transfer, life sciences commercialisation, venture building, investment, innovation funding or a related field.

Evidence of continuing professional development.

Experience

• A track record of delivering impact and commercial outcomes from early-stage health, life sciences, digital or data-enabled innovations.
• Experience of intellectual property identification, protection, commercialisation, licensing, strategic partnerships and/or venture creation.
• Experience assessing technologies, markets, business models, development risk and routes to market, and making robust portfolio-prioritisation decisions against a set of defined criteria.
• Experience of successfully negotiating complex collaboration and commercial agreements with industry, academic, NHS, investor or funding partners.
• Experience building investment cases, securing external funding or investment, and supporting ventures through formation and early growth and/or equivalent experience from the funder/investor side.
• Demonstrated matrix leadership of multidisciplinary teams, including external stakeholders, and developing professional capability.
• Experience operating credibly and with a high level of independence, with senior stakeholders across NHS providers, universities, industry, investors and funders.
• Strong financial management capability, including budget oversight, forecasting, resource planning and commercial performance management.
• A record of representing an organisation externally and building productive networks within an innovation ecosystem.
• Designing and implementing end-to-end innovation funding or investment processes is desirable.

Skills and Knowledge

• Strong understanding of intellectual property strategy, technology transfer, venture building and the commercialisation pathways relevant to healthcare innovation.
• Strong understanding of the development path(s) and regulatory landscape for early healthcare innovation development.
• Knowledge of, and networks in, the innovation investor/ funder ecosystem in the UK.
• Strong knowledge of the ecosystems our innovators and partners are working in; understanding the different drivers, priorities and challenges of different stakeholders and how they may align or potentially conflict.
• Strong commercial judgement, entrepreneurial thinking and deal-making capability.
• Ability to interpret complex technical, clinical, market, financial and legal information and translate it into clear decisions and action.
• Understanding of the health and care system, NHS innovation context and the requirements for responsible commercialisation of NHS-originated assets.
• Strong strategic, portfolio and programme delivery experience, including governance, risk, performance and assurance.
• Excellent communication, influencing and relationship-building skills, with the ability to explain complex propositions to diverse audiences.
• Ability to operate effectively under uncertainty, balance competing interests and maintain momentum through complex decisions.
• Ability to identify opportunities for partnerships, income, investment and organisational growth.

Leadership Behaviours

Understands strategic priorities and how to translate them into effective operating models.

Demonstrates accountability, integrity and a commitment to high-quality outcomes.

Builds trust with colleagues at all career levels and brings partners together around shared decisions and goals.

Encourages constructive challenge, learning, innovation and continuous improvement.

Leads and mentors inclusively, champions equality, diversity and inclusion, and develops others.

Remains adaptable and resilient in a changing environment while making timely, evidence-based decisions.

Other Requirements

• Alignment with the organisation’s mission, values and commitment to better health for all.
• Practical experience of embedding equality, diversity and inclusion in leadership, decision-making and delivery.
• Willingness to work flexibly across the organisation and undertake responsibilities commensurate with the role and grade.

Values and Behaviours

Acts with integrity and consistently champions organisational values.

Builds trust and credibility with colleagues and stakeholders.

Demonstrates adaptability and resilience.

Works