Senior Associate, Innovation Programmes & Commercialisation

The GEAR by Kajima Pte Ltd; Singapore; On-site; SGD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

The GEAR by Kajima Pte Ltd in Singapore seeks a Senior Associate, Innovation Programmes & Commercialisation to drive opportunity development and cross‑sector collaboration. You will scout industry opportunities, assess technologies, and shape deployment pathways from pilot to scale, working with startups, research groups, industry partners, and Kajima business units.

The role requires strong commercial acumen, project management experience, and the ability to engage senior stakeholders across

Qualifications

• Degree in engineering, built environment, business, innovation management, or related field.
• Experience in project management, preferably involving pilots, innovation projects, or multi-stakeholder initiatives.
• Ability to define scopes, milestones, timelines, and governance for projects.
• Strong written and verbal communication across startups, government agencies, and corporate partners.

Responsibilities

• Understand market needs, trends, and startup activity, and map these to Kajima capabilities.
• Perform due diligence on technologies and assess commercial viability.
• Define commercialisation models and structure partnerships for deployment and licensing.

Skills

Stakeholder management

Commercial acumen

Market research

Project coordination

Networking

Education

Degree in engineering / built environment / business / innovation management

Job description

We are seeking a full-time Senior Associate, Innovation Programmes & Commercialisation to join The GEAR by Kajima team in Singapore.

This role will focus on navigating industry opportunities for the deployment of Kajima and startup technologies. The successful candidate will work across the construction and built environment sector to identify where selected technologies can be meaningfully applied,while also helping to develop The GEAR’s wider innovation ecosystem by identifying relevant startups, research groups, technology partners,contractors, developers, consultants, asset owners, government agencies, Kajima business units, and other external partners needed to create credible pathwaysto adoption.

This role plays a vital part in driving opportunity development, conducting market research and competitor analysis,performing due diligence on innovative technologies and intellectual property,and supporting project management to bring Kajima’s innovations to market.

A key part of the role will be to understand project requirements, adoption barriers, procurement pathways, regulatory considerations, site conditions, and stakeholder responsibilities thatinfluence whether technologies can move from pilot to practical use.

Post the initial technology pilot phase, the role will define next-stage deployment opportunities and help convert successful pilots into scaled implementation, follow-on projects, or longer-term commercial partnerships. This includes structuring the partnerships required for deployment, such as collaboration agreements, data-sharing considerations, commercial terms, operating responsibilities, and governance arrangements between startups, Kajima business units, and external partners.The role will help ensure that deployment pathways are commercially sound,operationally feasible, and appropriately governed.

The role will also manage partnerships with universities, startups, accelerators, venture builders, industry platforms, and other ecosystem stakeholders to create collaboration opportunities that strengthen technologies’ value proposition. This may include identifying promising startups and technology partners, mapping ecosystem capabilities,identifying areas for further R&D, coordinating engagement with researchers, and shaping collaboration scopes.

The ideal candidate should be commercially minded, industry-facing, and comfortable working across technical, operational,and partnership contexts. They should be able to engage senior stakeholders,understand how construction projects are delivered and translate technology potential into deployment pathways.

How will youbenefit from this role at The GEAR by Kajima?

• Gain hands-on experience shaping and delivering impactful, cutting-edge innovationprojects in emerging areas such as robotics, AI, sustainability, and built-environment technology.
• Work directly with high-potential startups and researchers developing solutions for important industry and global challenges.
• Build a strong network across government agencies, ecosystem partners, industry collaborators, startups, mentors, and technical experts.
• Develop both technical project management and commercial skills by helping translate early-stage technologies into practical projects and follow-on opportunities.
• Gain exposure to executive-level industry stakeholders and decision-makers acrossthe built environment, technology, and innovation ecosystem.
• Work from The GEAR Building, a WELL Platinum-certified and Super Low Energy green building, as well as a living test-bed for sustainability, occupant wellbeing,and new built-environment technologies.

Key Responsibilities

Opportunity Exploration

• Understand market needs, emerging trends,ecosystem gaps, and startup activity, and match these with Kajima technology capabilities or complementary technologies from startups and partners in ournetwork.
• Gather and interpret market intelligence to support strategic decision-making.
• Analyse the competitive landscapefor selected technologies, services, and IP.

Due Diligence & Project Assessment

• Perform comprehensive due diligence on technologies and service offerings to evaluate commercial viability and market readiness.
• Identify risks and success factors, adoption barriers, stakeholder responsibilities, and implementation conditions to determine whether a technology can move from pilot to practical deployment.

Commercialisation Strategy & Partnerships

• Identify, generate, and pursue new business leads, startup collaboration opportunities, and strategic partnerships acrossthe built environment and innovation ecosystem.
• Build and maintain an ecosystem pipeline ofrelevant startups for assessment, alongside technology providers, research groups, industry partners, and public-sector stakeholders that can support future pilots, collaborations, and deployment opportunities.
• Define suitable commercialisation models for projects that successfully progress beyond the pilot stage, including potential deployment, licensing, service, joint venture, or partnership-based approaches.
• Create and structure partnerships needed toexecute commercialisation pathways, aligning roles, responsibilities,commercial terms, governance, and delivery requirements across Kajima,startups, and external partners.
• Support commercialisation project deploymentas needed during early phases.

Financial & Strategic Reporting

• Support the creation of financial models and business cases to evaluate new ventures and partnerships.
• Prepare clear, actionable reports and presentations for stakeholders.

Qualifications & Experience

• Degree in engineering, built environment, business, innovation management, or a related field. Candidates with equivalent hands‑on experience in technical project delivery, startup growth, or applied innovation will also be considered.
• Experience in project management, preferably involving technical pilots, innovation projects, product trials, proof-of-concepts, or multi-stakeholder initiatives.
• Ability to shape and manage project plans, including defining scopes, milestones,timelines, deliverables, responsibilities, budgets, risks, and follow-upactions.
• Strong stakeholder management skills, with experience coordinating communicationsacross startups, government agencies, ecosystem partners, industrycollaborators, technical teams, and senior stakeholders.
• Commercial aptitude, with the ability to create strategic commercial impact through go-to-market pathways, partnerships, business opportunities, or broaderdeployment.
• Understanding of startups and early-stage technology companies, including how founders think,operate, validate solutions, and navigate constraints when entering new markets.
• Interest in emerging technologies relevant to the built environment, such as robotics,AI, automation, sustainability, construction technology, or smart building solutions.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to prepare clear project updates, discussion materials, reports, and presentations for internal and external audiences.
• Comfortable building relationships and networks across the innovation ecosystem, including startups, government agencies, accelerators, venture builders, research institutions, industry platforms, and corporate partners.
• Organised,detail-oriented, and persistent, with the ability to keep complex projects moving despite ambiguity, changing requirements, and multiple stakeholders.
• Energetic,curious, and hands‑on, with the ability to thrive in a fast-paced and dynamic environment.

SuggestedExperience

5 to 10 years for Senior Associate level; candidates with fewer years of highly relevant experience may be considered (for Associate level).

The GEAR by Kajima Pte Ltd is an equal opportunity employer. We encourage applications from candidates of all backgrounds and experiences.

Note: This job description isintended to convey information essential to understanding the scope of the position and it is not an exhaustive list of skills, efforts, duties,responsibilities, or working conditions associated with the job. Responsibilities may change based on business needs.