Innovation and Business Development Manager – UK – ROK Smart Clinical Trials Programme

University of Liverpool; Liverpool; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 42,000; Full time

Job summary

University of Liverpool invites applications for a role within the Civic Health Innovation Labs (CHIL) and TherEx programme. You will manage UK-side delivery, liaise with NIHR, KHIDI and partners in Korea, and help translate pilot evidence into scalable smart clinical trial capabilities.

The post requires a degree or equivalent experience, proven experience in international partnerships, and strong project and stakeholder management across time zones. Occasional international travel is expected.

Qualifications

• Degree or equivalent relevant professional experience.
• Experience in international business development and partnership or programme management.
• Experience managing complex, multi-partner, multi-funder programmes.
• Experience supporting technologies through product development in healthcare or life sciences.
• Strong stakeholder management across academia, clinical, industry and funding bodies.
• Excellent interpersonal and cross-cultural communication skills.
• Ability to work independently across time zones.

Responsibilities

• Take day-to-day responsibility for the UK-side management and delivery of the programme.
• Act as the primary operational link between the University of Liverpool, NIHR, KHIDI and Korean delivery partners.
• Work with the project team to meet deliverables and milestones.
• Build commercial and partnership pathways to translate pilot evidence into scalable smart trial capability.
• Work with the team and travel internationally to Korea as needed.
• Be prepared to undertake periodic international travel and occasional out-of-hours work.

Skills

International business development

Partnership management

Programme management

Stakeholder management

Cross-cultural communication

Risk management

Time zone coordination

Education

Degree or equivalent experience

Job description

Hours of work: Full-time - 35 hours per week

Tenure: Fixed term until April 2028

Hybrid working: 2 days/week on Campus or minimum requirement of 40% on Campus, with 60% considered desirable where possible

The University of Liverpool, through the Centre for Experimental Therapeutics (TherEx), supported by the Civic Health Innovation Labs (CHIL)'s Civic HealthTech Innovation Zone (CHI-Zone) programme, is the UK lead on a bilateral UK-Republic of Korea programme to co-develop decentralised, smart clinical trial methodologies for complex patient populations, with a particular focus on older adults with multimorbidity and risk of functional decline. The programme is funded jointly through the NIHR Awards Management System and the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI), via the ROK-UK Smart Application Development Award.

You will take day-to-day responsibility for the UK-side management and delivery of the programme, acting as the primary operational link between the University of Liverpool, NIHR, KHIDI and Korean delivery partners, including Seoul National University Bundang Hospital and Zeroweb Co., Ltd. You will work with the project team to meet deliverables, while building the commercial and partnership pathways needed to translate pilot evidence into sustainable, scalable smart trial capability.

The role is based within the Civic Health Innovation Labs space at Liverpool Science Park, working closely with the programme's Chief Investigator and senior academic leads within TherEx. The post-holder should be prepared to undertake periodic international travel to the Republic of Korea (Seoul and Busan), and to work occasional hours outside of the standard working day to accommodate meetings across UK and Korean time zones.

You should have a degree or equivalent relevant professional experience, together with experience of international business development, partnership or programme management, ideally spanning UK and Asia-Pacific markets. You should have experience of managing complex, multi-partner, multi-funder research or innovation programmes, of supporting technologies through the product development lifecycle within healthcare or life sciences, and of stakeholder management across academic, clinical, industry and government or funding-body audiences. Excellent interpersonal and cross-cultural communication skills, strong programme and risk management skills, and the ability to work independently across time zones are essential.

Experience of digital health, medical device or Software as a Medical Device regulatory pathways, of working with Korean or other Asia-Pacific partners, of decentralised or smart trial methodologies, and working proficiency in Korean in addition to fluent English, would be advantageous.

The post is available until 30th April 2028, with potential extension subject to funding.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

We are committed to enhancing a workforce as diverse as our community and particularly encourage applicants who are of minoritised genders and ethnic backgrounds, living with a disability, and/or are members of the LGBTQIA+ community.

£39,906 to £42,254 per annum