Director of Technology Ventures

About the Opportunity Summary: The Center for Research Innovation (CRI) at Northeastern University is seeking a dynamic and entrepreneurial Director of Technology Ventures to lead the development and acceleration of Northeastern's spinout portfolio. This role carries two closely linked mandates. First, the Director will directly oversee a portfolio of life sciences and physical sciences spinouts, working hands-on with founding teams to sharpen product-market fit, define go-to-market strategy, and move ventures from formation through launch. Second, the Director will design and run scalable programming, internal and external, that extends CRI's support across the full portfolio of roughly 50 spinouts at varying stages, including entrepreneurial training and education, pitch training, grant writing support, and structured connections to venture capital and other investors. The Director will act as a hands-on venture builder and a program architect, balancing individualized company support with repeatable infrastructure that allows CRI's impact to scale beyond what one-on-one engagement alone could achieve. This position reports to the Executive Director of CRI and works in close coordination with the Commercialization, Marketing, and Contracts teams to ensure a holistic, cross-functional approach to spinout success. The ideal candidate combines venture-building instincts (evaluating markets, stress-testing business models, and coaching founding teams) with the discipline to build programs, curricula, and investor networks that serve many companies at once. A deep understanding of the startup life cycle in science-based ventures, strong relationship-management skills across faculty, investors, and industry, and a genuine passion for developing the next generation of entrepreneurial researchers are essential. Key Responsibilities & Accountabilities 1. Venture Development & Acceleration (Portfolio Management) – 40% Lead venture development activities across a portfolio of life sciences and physical sciences spinouts, partnering with founding teams from early formation through launch and initial growth, and overseeing the execution of portfolio-level initiatives and priorities. Venture Formation and Launch: Lead the design and execution of a scalable, repeatable venture creation process spanning opportunity identification, venture assessment, founding team formation, company launch, and transition to independent operation. Partner closely with CRI's Commercialization team to align venture formation activities with intellectual property strategy, licensing negotiations, and commercialization objectives. Build and maintain a robust pipeline of future spinouts by working with faculty and the Commercialization team to identify high-potential research and invention disclosures, evaluate venture readiness, and advance promising opportunities through company formation and launch. Portfolio Oversight:  Directly oversee a portfolio of life sciences and physical sciences spinouts, managing company-level progress, milestones, and support needs while establishing strategic priorities, resource allocation frameworks, and operating processes for the broader venture portfolio. Lead and direct staff responsible for portfolio monitoring and execution to ensure consistent, data-driven oversight across companies. Build and maintain the pipeline of future spinouts by partnering with the Commercialization team and faculty to identify high-potential research and invention disclosures, assess venture readiness, and advance promising opportunities toward company formation. Product-market Fit: Work directly with faculty founders and early management teams to test and refine value propositions, target markets, and customer/end-user assumptions before and after formation.Go-to-market strategy: Guide spinouts in developing commercialization pathways and go-to-market plans, including regulatory strategy considerations for life sciences ventures and market entry planning for physical sciences ventures. Founder and Team Support: Provide direct coaching to academic founders and startup leadership on business model development, competitive positioning, and de-risking technical and commercial milestones. Talent Network: Set the strategic direction for how the Venture team builds out and maintains CRI's talent network of advisors, executives-in-residence, and potential management team members, drawing on relevant relationships to help seed it. 2. Scalable Programming – 35% Provide strategic leadership for the design, positioning, and continuous evolution of CRI's venture support ecosystem to maximize the quality, readiness, and long-term success of Northeastern spinouts. Develop scalable programs, resources, and investor engagement strategies that systematically strengthen venture formation, accelerate company growth, and extend high-impact support across the full portfolio. Design and operate programming that extends CRI's venture support across the full spinout portfolio through the following areas: Training and Education: Develop and deliver structured entrepreneurial training and education for faculty, researchers, and founding teams across the stages of the venture life cycle, both within Northeastern and, where relevant, for external audiences. Venture Resources: Develop and oversee a comprehensive venture support ecosystem that equips spinouts for successful formation, growth, and fundraising. Build, scale, and continuously enhance a portfolio of internal and external resources, programs, and service providers to address the evolving needs of ventures across stages of development. Manage and expand key support offerings, including I-Corps programming, grant writing assistance, pitch coaching, marketing and branding support, Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR) matching, build-space resources, spinout co-op programs, and investor engagement initiatives such as venture capital office hours, while