Head of Consulting Services

With one foot in academia and the other in industry, Oxford University Innovation’s professionals undertake a wide variety of tasks, from licensing university ideas, consultancy and finding investment for spinout companies, to setting up social enterprises and supporting student entrepreneurship. The Consulting Services team within OUI works across the depth and breadth of the University’s academic disciplines and is responsible for providing a professional project negotiation, facilitation and management service to researchers who engage in consultancy, as well as for departments who undertake services work.

The Opportunity:
Due to an internal promotion, an exciting opportunity has arisen for an exceptional Head of Consulting Services to lead OUI’s activity in this vibrant area. The role will involve providing day-to-day leadership to a highly capable group, helping them to achieve OUI’s goals in generating impact from the expertise and facilities of the University’s academic community.

The key responsibilities of the role include:

• Leading and inspiring the team to ensure they are highly motivated, skilled, and developing professionally.
• Collaborating with the Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Management Team to set group goals and ensuring that the budgets are managed effectively.
• Developing strong relationships of influence with senior and high-profile stakeholders both internally within the University and externally (e.g., with industry partners).
• Working closely with the University’s four research Divisions to deliver strategic initiatives through which consultancy and departmental services can enhance the impact of their work and create new opportunities.

About you
Reporting to the COO, the successful candidate will have experience of leading a contract research or consultancy activity or working at a senior level in a related area such as technology transfer. The candidate should have experience of working in roles of responsibility at the interface between industry and academia. OUI is looking for an exceptional candidate who has the ability to act with wisdom, diplomacy, integrity and sound commercial judgement.

The successful candidate will also need to demonstrate proven ability in:

• Providing great leadership, being open and energetic and with the ability to motivate, inspire and develop teams to achieve world class performance.
• Working effectively with key senior stakeholders both internally and externally, positively influencing them and, where appropriate, showing creativity and resilience in strategic business situations.
• Having broad-based senior management experience which will enable you to work effectively with specialist functions and experts from outside your professional discipline.
• Legal and contractual matters, and Intellectual Property issues.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion:
Oxford University Innovation is an Equal Opportunities Employer and is committed to fostering an inclusive culture which promotes equality, values diversity and maintains a supportive working, learning and social environment, in which the rights and dignity of all its staff are respected, and where everyone can be themselves and are empowered to reach their full potential. This commitment is linked to and reinforces the OUI values of integrity, collaboration, and empowerment. We actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and cultures.
OUI is accredited with the Investors in People Silver status.

Our approach to hybrid and flexible working:
We believe that our employees are our most valuable asset, and we are committed to attracting and retaining the very best talent. We also appreciate that the UK workforce is becoming increasingly diverse and includes a high percentage of parents and individuals with caring responsibilities, as well as those whose interests and aspirations impact on their time.
We recognise the importance of helping our employees balance their work and home lives by offering flexible working arrangements that enable them to balance their work commitments with other priorities. This includes hybrid working and flexible working.

How to apply
If you are interested in applying for this role, please download the application form from the OUI website and send it together with a copy of your CV and cover letter to our recruitment partner Roy Bennett at roy@adlib-recruitment.co.uk – please use Ref number 256 on the forms. Information about our culture and working life at OUI can be found here https://innovation.ox.ac.uk/about/careers/

Salary for this role is commensurate with experience and is likely to be in the range of £80,000-£85,000 per annum with benefits including extensive rewards scheme, generous pension contributions (10% Employer, 2% employee), 30 days holiday + 8 bank holidays, private healthcare and flexible/hybrid working.

The closing date is midday 17th October 2024