Innovation Manager

Newcastle University; Newcastle upon Tyne; On-site; GBP 37,000 - 39,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Excellent benefits

Generous holiday allowance

Pension schemes

Health and wellbeing initiatives

Job summary

Newcastle University is seeking two ambitious Innovation Managers to join Newcastle Innovations and help deliver its business, innovation, partnership and place ambitions. You will support the development and delivery of innovation programmes and funding opportunities, working with Senior Innovation Managers to create measurable economic and societal impact.

Key responsibilities include embedding open innovation, building a pipeline of opportunities, and coordinating across faculties and

Qualifications

• Experience in innovation management within higher education or a related environment.
• Knowledge of open innovation approaches and stakeholder engagement.
• Experience leading major funding bids and managing partnerships.

Responsibilities

• Support the development and delivery of innovation and engagement projects aligned to university priorities.
• Embed open innovation approaches across faculties, services and external partnerships.
• Build and maintain a pipeline of innovation opportunities, funding bids and strategic projects.
• Conduct horizon scanning to identify funding opportunities and trends.
• Support academics and partners in developing innovation-focused funding applications.
• Improve systems and delivery mechanisms across Newcastle Innovations.

Skills

Innovation management

Business development

Knowledge exchange

Partnership development

Funding bids

Stakeholder engagement

Communication

Strategic thinking

Job description

Salary: £36,636 to £38,784 with progression to £46,049 per annum

Closing Date: 4 October 2026

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits . We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

From Newcastle. For the world.

Help shape the next generation of innovation

At Newcastle University, we are redefining what it means to be a world‑class civic university. Through our Next Generation Newcastle transformation, we are making a generational commitment to shape a better future—delivering research, education and innovation that creates real-world impact locally and globally. This is a moment of exciting change. We are strengthening our focus on partnerships, place and innovation to unlock the full value of our research and talent—working with business, government and communities to tackle the challenges that matter most. As part of this, we have transformed our Knowledge Exchange function and created Newcastle Innovations —bringing together expertise in commercialisation, partnerships and engagement into a more integrated, ambitious and outward-facing model. We are building a dynamic innovation ecosystem that accelerates the journey from discovery to impact, connecting our strengths in health, energy, data and creative practice with real-world needs and opportunities.

Innovation Manager

We are seeking to appoint two ambitious and collaborative Innovation Managers to join Newcastle Innovations and play a key role in helping the University deliver its business, innovation, partnership and place ambitions. Working closely with Senior Innovation Managers, you will support the development and delivery of innovation programmes, partnerships and funding opportunities that create meaningful economic and societal impact.

Working Closely With Senior Innovation Managers, You Will

• Support the development and delivery of innovation and engagement projects aligned to university priorities
• Embed open innovation approaches and collaborative working practices across faculties, professional services teams and external partnerships
• Build and maintain a pipeline of high-quality innovation opportunities, funding bids and strategic projects
• Conduct horizon scanning and intelligence gathering to identify emerging funding opportunities, stakeholder needs and innovation trends
• Support academics and partners in the development of innovation-focused funding applications and collaborative initiatives
• Work across Newcastle Innovations to improve systems, processes and delivery mechanisms that accelerate innovation and engagement activities
• Contribute to the development of innovation roadmaps, partnership opportunities and place-based initiatives that deliver measurable impact
• Help capture, measure and communicate the outcomes and impact of innovation activities

About You

You will bring:

• Experience in innovation management, business development, knowledge exchange or partnership development within higher education or a related environment
• Knowledge of open innovation approaches, stakeholder engagement and collaborative project delivery
• Experience of supporting strategic projects, partnerships or funding activities
• Experience of leading major funding bids
• Understanding of the UK innovation ecosystem, funding landscape and university-industry collaboration models
• Strong communication, influencing and relationship-building skills
• The ability to work across organisational boundaries, identify opportunities and help turn ideas into impactful projects
• A proactive, adaptable and collaborative approach, with a passion for delivering innovation that benefits society

Why join us?

You Will Be Part Of a University That Is

• A trusted civic partner with global reach
• Committed to turning research into real-world impact
• Investing in a bold, integrated approach to innovation
• Focused on delivering economic, social and environmental benefit

Together, we are building the next generation of innovation—connecting people, ideas and opportunities to shape a better future

For any further details contact Rachel Brown [e-mail]

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect. As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society. We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent. We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a Gold Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality. We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC. We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe.