Description:

Reporting to and in support of the Assistant Vice President of Intellectual Property, this position will manage a portfolio of intellectual property (IP) cases and lead the licensing of IP to industry partners and startups. The Director is responsible for working with faculty to identify potential inventions, evaluate the commercial potential, develop and execute commercialization strategies, actively market the IP, negotiate licenses, and monitor license performance.

1. Cultivate relationships with inventors to identify attractive UH technologies for licensing to startups or established companies.
2. Negotiate, draft, and execute options and licenses with optimal deal structure with legal support including leading negotiations, providing support to the lead negotiator, and providing guidance to faculty and staff through negotiations.
3. Engage with industry partners, startups, and investors to build relationships to understand their needs and develop commercialization strategies for a portfolio of technologies.
4. Structure licensing terms based on valuation, the appropriate risk factors, and ensure pragmatic milestones are included to encourage licensees to commercialize the technology, ensures review of the agreement, collects signatures, and closes out the agreement.
5. Supervise and mentor licensing staff, evaluate performance and provides formal and informal guidance; set departmental goals and objectives, including workforce planning and assess priorities as appropriate in order to achieve objectives.
6. Balances the needs of a complex set of stakeholders including faculty, students, administration, industry partners, entrepreneurs, and investors.
7. Performs other job-related duties as required.

MQ: Requires a thorough understanding of both theoretical and practical aspects of an analytical, technical or professional discipline; or the basic knowledge of more than one professional discipline. Knowledge of the discipline is normally obtained through a formal, directly job-related 4 year degree from a college or university or an equivalent in-depth specialized training program that is directly related to the type of work being performed. experience in the management and marketing of intellectual property, technology development, identification of industry partners, academic or industry technology transfer, licensing, or the creation of startups. 7 years of job-related experience required.


Additional Responsibilities:

The candidate will work in the UH Office of Technology Transfer and Innovation (UH-OTTI) which is part of the UH Division of Energy and Innovation (UH-DEI). The candidate will directly report to the AVP of IP and Industrial Engagement. The candidate will work closely with the Director of IP, Director of Licensing and Operations, and the Director of Industry Engagement.

Additional job requirements and responsibilities are as follows:

Education:

• An advanced degree (M.S. or higher) in a science or engineering discipline is required.
• A law degree with specialty in IP law is a bonus but not required.
  
  Experience:
• Established track record with the patenting, licensing and innovation process.
• Previous experience in a technology transfer office is preferred.
• Extensive industrial experience in a technology commercialization role is preferred.
• Registered patent agent/practitioner (per USPTO) is a bonus but not required.
• Responsibilities and Qualities
• Excellent communication, collaboration and leadership skills.
• Excellent business and technology acumen.

All positions at the University of Houston-System are security sensitive and will require a criminal history check.

The University of Houston System and its universities are an Equal Opportunity Institution.