Center Liaison Officer

Date: Jun ‎1, ‎2022
Location: Saudi Arabia
Company: King Abdullah University of Science & Technology
Position Summary
Reporting to the Head, Technology Deployment, the Centers Liaison Officer
(CLO) is required to identify suitable partners (industry and others) to drive
the deployment of innovative products from the intellectual assets of KAUST
researchers. The CLO is responsible for engaging with the academics in the
KAUST Research Centers to identify commercialisation partners for KAUST
technologies and identify opportunities where Impact Funds can be deployed to
achieve commercialization objectives. The CLO is both an internally and
externally orientated role and will be responsible for deploying KAUST
technologies to partners culminating in options, licenses and/or assignments
of KAUST IP rights. As part of the Technology Deployment Team, the CLO will
work closely with other members of the Technology Transfer Office (TTO) to
achieve the objectives of KAUST Innovation for the benefit of KAUST and the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Major Responsibilities
 Meet and engage with faculty actively in the KAUST Research Centers to
understand opportunities for commercialisation of KAUST technologies
 Develop business engagement plans (mind maps) to identify suitable partners
interested in KAUST intellectual assets
 Scouting, identifying and developing partners that can use KAUST
intellectual assets for the aim of contributing to the generation of impact
for the diversification of the Saudi Arabian economy
 Understand and communicate KAUST intellectual assets effectively to partners
to promote deployment of assets
 Development of marketing material where required to communicate technology
commercialisation opportunity
 Wherever Impact Funds have been identified to support the commercialisation
journey of the technology, provide support to the faculty member to develop a
robust application
 Effectively capture all interactions (conversations, email correspondence
etc.) in SOPHIA (KAUST intellectual property database)
 Work as part of the multi-disciplinary technology deployment team and
provide support to the Head, Technology Deployment as required
Competencies
The individual selected must be able to demonstrate interacting effectively
with academic faculty and colleagues in KAUST Innovation as well as
effectively communicating with industry partners.
The selected person should demonstrate the following capabilities:
 Strong understanding of the academic research environment
 Excellent networking skills and client engagement skills
 Substantial experience of business development with history of securing
deals
 Demonstrated success in more than one industry
 Understanding of intellectual property protection and monetization
 Capable of building strategic working relationships with external partners
 Focused and delivery orientated work ethic
 Excellent verbal and written communication skills (internally and
externally) with strong partner focus
 Excellent attention to detail
 Ability to meet time sensitive deadlines and work under pressure
 Ability to adapt to a changing environment
 Highly motivated with the ability to work independently and as part of a
team Qualifications
 A Bachelor's Degree in Science/Engineering with ‎10+ years related experience
in similar role Or MS degree in Science or Engineering with at least ‎6 years'
experience in a similar role
 Academic-Industry partnership experience is essential
 PhD qualification is preferred
 Registered Technology Transfer Professional (RTTP) preferred but not
essential