University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Department: CU Innovations

Job Title: Innovation Partnerships Program Director

Position #:00840632 – Requisition #:38409

Job Summary:

CU Innovations at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus is seeking a highly motivated and versatile Innovation Partnerships Program Director who will strategically lead multiple large-scale projects focused on advancing healthcare discoveries through a variety of industry and inter-institutional partnerships, including data partnerships, biobanking, and technological co-development opportunities.

This jack-of-all-trades role serves as a strategic project manager, subject matter expert, and central connector, who partners closely with faculty, industry collaborators, internal leadership, and external stakeholders to guide the execution of key programs and initiatives. The Innovation Partnerships Program Director will play a pivotal role in developing, planning and executing large-scale projects and partnerships that advance CU’s capabilities in data partnerships, and translational research collaborations. This role will be responsible for providing key programmatic and operational support to accelerate and ensure the sustainability of translational research and commercialization opportunities.

The Innovation Partnerships Program Director will partner closely with faculty, licensing managers, industry collaborators, and CU Innovations leadership to manage existing projects, initiatives, and partnerships. This includes creating relevant business materials, coordinating external engagements, and managing day-to-day operational activities. The ideal candidate will have strong project management skills and the ability to translate complex concepts into compelling business opportunities. The ideal candidate will thrive in a complex, matrixed academic medical center environment, and will be equally comfortable executing tactical deliverables and contributing to strategic decisions.

Key Responsibilities:

• Strategically lead a portfolio of CU Innovation projects and partnerships, ensuring program milestones, timelines, and deliverables are met; establish project tasks/dependencies/deadlines, allocate resources, identify and mitigate risks, gather requirements, hold review meetings and provide status updates.

• Manage day-to-day execution of CU Innovations’ partnerships, ensuring program milestones, timelines, and deliverables are met.

• Support leadership in aligning cross-campus stakeholders around shared goals and program priorities.

• Participate in strategic planning for CU Innovations including long-term visioning, infrastructure development, and operational leadership; lead the development and subsequent execution of strategic plans related partnership and project management.

• Act as an execution partner for high-value data industry partnerships and other strategic collaborators.

• Collaborate with business development and licensing teams to ensure alignment between contractual terms, deliverables, and scientific objectives.

• Help support research efforts to provide perspectives on industry trends, partner priorities, and competitive landscapes across engagements.

• Support strategy dev