Innovation and Entrepreneurship Manager (Venture Catalyst Challenge)

Job number

PRO01456

Faculties

Provost’s Team

Departments

Enterprise

Salary or Salary range

£48,246 - £58,318 per annum

Location/campus

South Kensington Campus - Hybrid

Contract type work pattern

Full time - Open ended

Posting End Date

8 Nov 2026

About the role

The Innovation & Entrepreneurship Manager for the Imperial Enterprise Lab’s Venture Catalyst Challenge programme is responsible for delivering this flagship entrepreneurship programme, specifically designed to support the most promising entrepreneurs at Imperial.

As Innovation & Entrepreneurship Manager you will be responsible for supporting the delivery of Imperial Enterprise Lab’s activities including one-off events, workshops and programmes for our community of enterprising students, recent alumni, and post docs. This includes leading on our well-known flagship initiative the Venture Catalyst Challenge, a 3-month long programme for Imperial affiliated startups.

You will be part of an energetic and passionate team who support the growth of new entrepreneurial ideas from our talented science, engineering, medicine and business students and post docs. This role will allow you to take the lead on a range of activities to support the development of early-stage ideas and their acceleration into commercial ventures. Now in its 14th year, the VCC has supported nearly 300 startups to raise in excess of £250M in investment and grant funding. The post holder will play a pivotal part in designing and delivering the programme, securing partners and funders.

What you would be doing

• Manage the operational delivery of Imperial’s entrepreneurial programme, VCC Innovate and engage with stakeholders to ensure its successful delivery.
• Develop and deliver communications plans to ensure engagement and participation and attract support from internal & external experts and to launch a network of alumni.
• Identify and engage expert suppliers to deliver complex intellectual content and events
• Support the Head of the Enterprise Lab in securing funding and partnerships for the VCC programme and beyond
• Analyse and report progress or challenges to key internal & external stakeholders.

What we are looking for

• Experience of working in the area of innovation and entrepreneurship support at a level suitable to facilitate credibility and positive relations with staff, post docs, students, alumni and external partners
• Project management experience at a level conducive to delivering a high-quality education and professional development programme in a world-class institutional setting
• Ability to conceive, plan and own operational delivery strategies over multiple years to deliver near, mid- and longer-term College objectives.

Important note

Diverse teams really are the best teams. We know that candidates (especially women research tells us) may be put off applying for a job unless they can tick every box. So if you are excited about working with us and think you can do much of what we are looking for but aren’t sure if you are 100% there yet… why not give it a whirl?

What we can offer you

• Training, learning, and personal development opportunities
• The opportunity to work with groundbreaking young entrepreneurs

• A kind, fun, and supportive team and team culture

• The opportunity to continue your career at a world-leading institution

• Sector-leading salary and remuneration package (including 43 days off a year)

Further information

This is a full time, open-ended position based at South Kensington campus (hybrid).

Please do make the most of the opportunity to provide a supporting statement to demonstrate how your experience and aspirations make you a strong candidate for the role.

If you require any further details on the role, or would like to have an informal and confidential discussion please contact: Chantelle Young [email protected]

Available documents

Attached documents are available under links. Clicking a document link will initialize its download.

Please note that job descriptions are not exhaustive, and you may be asked to take on additional duties that align with the key responsibilities mentioned above.

We reserve the right to close the advert before the stated closing date, should we receive a high volume of applications. It is therefore advisable that you submit your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

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