Job DescriptionReporting to the Assistant Vice President for Corporate Research and Contracting, the Director of Business Development, AI and Life Sciences will be responsible for identifying, developing, and advancing new corporate research partnerships with companies in artificial intelligence, data science, biopharma, digital health, and related life sciences sectors. This role will build meaningful and sustainable relationships with industry partners that lead to increased investment in Boston University research, aligned with corporate priorities and University strengths. The Director will work closely with faculty researchers, Technology Development, schools and colleges, and corporate partners to translate BUs research capabilities into strategic partnership opportunities. The position will focus on prospecting and relationship development, understanding industry research priorities, matching company needs with faculty expertise, supporting the development of sponsored research opportunities, and helping move prospective collaborations from initial engagement through agreement execution. The office of Corporate Research and Contracting is a fast-paced, collaborative environment where creativity, flexibility, responsiveness, and teamwork are essential. In this role, the Director will help bring BU research out of the lab and into partnership with companies working to solve important scientific, technological, and societal challenges.
Required Skills- Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree preferred.
- Minimum of 5 years of relevant experience in business development, corporate partnerships, research administration, technology transfer, sponsored research, life sciences, artificial intelligence, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, digital health, data science, or a related field.
- Demonstrated ability to develop and manage relationships with companies, faculty, senior leaders, researchers, and cross-functional teams.
- Experience working with corporate-sponsored research programs, academic-industry partnerships, technology commercialization, research collaborations, alliance management, or related partnership models.
- Knowledge of one or more relevant sectors, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, data science, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, therapeutics, diagnostics, digital health, computational biology, or life sciences research.
- Familiarity with research agreements, intellectual property considerations, technology transfer, sponsored programs, and/or university-industry collaboration models.
- Entrepreneurial, strategic, and dynamic individual with a commitment to advancing scientific research and building high-impact partnerships.
- Proven ability to gain credibility and trust across multiple layers of sophisticated organizations, including universities, corporations, faculty, executives, legal and contracting teams, and research administrators.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills, including the ability to translate complex research capabilities into compelling partnership opportunities for industry audiences.
- Strong interpersonal, listening, organizational, and project management skills.
- Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced, mission-driven environment.
- Demonstrated integrity, sound judgment, creativity, persistence, and commitment to teamwork.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Doctoral degree in a relevant field.
- Performed business development for an AI and/or life sciences company
- Experience in university corporate relations, industry-sponsored research, alliance management, business development, or innovation partnerships.
- Experience developing research partnerships involving interdisciplinary teams across engineering, computing, medicine, public health, biology, chemistry, neuroscience, business, or related disciplines.
