Research Business Development Lead, Defence & Sovereignty

University-of-Albert; Edmonton; Hybrid; CAD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

University of Alberta in Edmonton is seeking a Research Business Development Lead, Defence and Sovereignty, to drive strategic engagement with industry and accelerate funded research initiatives.

The role bridges academia and large defence contractors, advancing initiatives such as DEFENDS, PC-RDII, and AI-EDP, translating complex industrial challenges into compelling proposals and securing matching grants while supporting graduate training and regional impact.

Job description

This competition is open to all applicants however; internal applicants will be given priority consideration based on minimum qualifications, or a combination of experience, skills, and abilities before external applicants are considered.

This position has an end date of March 14, 2029.

Location - This role is hybrid with a mix of remote and in-person. Work primarily takes place at North Campus, Edmonton.

The Research Business Development Lead, Defence and Sovereignty drives the strategic expansion of industry-engaged applied research, ecosystem development, and net-new sponsored research funding within the defence sector for the Faculty of Engineering. Reporting to the Associate Dean (Infrastructure and Centers) and under the daily tactical guidance of the Director, Research Business Development, this role serves as an agile, highly sophisticated interface bridging academia, medium-to-large enterprises, and multinational defence prime contractors. The Lead advances three high-priority initiatives—the Dual Use Ecosystem for Future Engineering, National Defence, and Sovereignty (DEFENDS) ecosystem, PrairiesCan’s Regional Defence Innovation Initiative (PC-RDII), and the Alberta Innovates Uncrewed Systems Ecosystem Development Program (AI-EDP)—while accelerating industrial engagement for aligned Research Centers, primarily the Center for Applied Research in Defence and Dual-Use Technologies (CARDD-Tech). By transforming complex industrial technical challenges into high-value academic research proposals across key technology domains (including aerospace, tactical defence, sovereign computing, cybersecurity, and advanced manufacturing), the Lead is directly accountable for generating projects by securing industry cash that can be leveraged through matching grants, while enhancing graduate student training and regional economic impact.