Director of Industry Engagement & Economic Impact

When applying you will be required to attach the following electronic documents:

1) A resume/CV; and

2) A cover letter indicating how your qualifications and experience have prepared you for this position.

Starting salary will be commensurate with skills, education, and experience.

For additional information please contact: Konnie Handschuch or Sara Begley at [email protected] or [email protected]

The Division of Research and Innovation is seeking a Director of Industry Engagement & Economic Impact. This is a full-time (1.00 FTE), 12-month, professional faculty position.

Key Responsibilities:

• Support implementation and continuous improvement of an enterprise CRM system and associated data infrastructure for industry engagement.
• Develop institutional metrics, reporting frameworks, and dashboards that measure economic engagement and support the Prosperity Widely Shared strategic plan.
• Design and manage the university’s industry engagement “front door,” including partner intake, navigation, referral pathways, and service standards.
• Build institutional capacity by supporting faculty and staff through training, coaching, and development of best practices for external engagement.
• Partner with colleges, research centers, and administrative units to coordinate economic engagement activities and strengthen cross-campus collaboration.
• Develop business intelligence and actionable insights that inform strategic decision-making and demonstrate institutional economic impact.
• Steward select strategic industry relationships and support university-wide engagement initiatives as organizational systems mature.

The Director of Industry Engagement & Economic Impact serves as a strategic leader within Oregon State University's Economic Development and Industry Relations (EDIR) organization, reporting directly to the Associate Vice President for Economic Development and Industry Relations. As a key contributor to the university's strategic plan, Prosperity Widely Shared (PWS), this position advances the Economic Engagement & Impact Domain by helping design, implement, and scale the systems, processes, partnerships, and infrastructure that enable Oregon State to maximize its economic impact across Oregon and beyond.

In this role, the Director leads the development of foundational capabilities that strengthen the university's approach to industry engagement and economic development. Key responsibilities include establishing and optimizing economic engagement systems such as customer relationship management (CRM) platforms, institutional metrics and reporting frameworks, business intelligence capabilities, faculty development initiatives, and partner intake and engagement processes. By building and integrating these core functions, the Director ensures that Oregon State can effectively coordinate and support industry engagement activities at an institutional scale.

As these capabilities mature, the Director increasingly serves as a steward of strategic industry relationships and university-wide engagement efforts. Working collaboratively across colleges, research units, administrative divisions, and external stakeholders, the Director helps transform distributed activities into a cohesive institutional strategy. The position acts as a connector and collaborative problem-solver, aligning people, resources, and opportunities to foster meaningful partnerships that accelerate innovation, support workforce development, and drive economic growth.

The Director is a builder of systems and a champion of service excellence, creating accessible pathways for startups, established industry partners, government agencies, economic development organizations, and global enterprises to engage with Oregon State's talent, expertise, and research capabilities. Through the development of actionable insights, strategic training opportunities, and scalable engagement models, the Director enhances the university's ability to operate at the speed of business and strengthens its role as a catalyst for equitable and widely shared prosperity.

As Oregon State advances its ambitious vision for economic transformation, the Director plays a critical role in increasing the visibility, accessibility, and impact of the university's innovation ecosystem. This position requires a highly collaborative and strategic leader who can navigate complexity, build consensus, and create sustainable structures that enable cross-sector collaboration and expand Oregon State's influence as a premier partner for industry and economic development.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in business administration, public administration, economic development, higher education administration, organizational leadership, communications, or a related field.
• Six to eight years of progressively responsible professional experience in one or more of the following areas: economic development, industry engagement, strategic partnerships, program management, business development, research administration, innovation and entrepreneurship, higher education administration, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience developing, implementing, and managing cross-functional programs, systems, processes, or initiatives that involve multiple stakeholders and organizational units.
• Experience building and maintaining collaborative relationships with internal and external partners, including academic, industry, government, nonprofit, or community organizations.
• Demonstrated ability to analyze data, synthesize information from multiple sources, and develop recommendations that support strategic decision-making and organizational objectives.
• Experience managing complex projects with multiple priorities, competing deadlines, and diverse stakeholder interests.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of audiences through written, verbal, presentation, and facilitation skills.
• Experience working in a collaborative, matrixed, or decentralized organizational environment requiring influence, coordination, and consensus-building across organizational boundaries.
• Demonstrated success working effectively with individuals and organizations from a wide variety of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives.

This position is designated as a critical or security-sensitive position; therefore, the incumbent must successfully complete a criminal history check and be determined to be position qualified as per University Standard: 05-010 et seq. Incumbents are required to self-report convictions and those in youth programs may have additional criminal history checks every 24 months.

This position requires driving a university vehicle or a personal vehicle on behalf of the university; therefore, the incumbent must successfully complete a motor vehicle history check, possess and maintain a current, valid driver's license in their state of residence, be determined to be position qualified and self-report convictions as per University Policy 05-030.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's degree or higher in business administration, public administration, economic development, higher education administration, organizational leadership, or a related field.
• Experience within a research-intensive university, economic development organization, government agency, industry association, or innovation ecosystem.
• Experience implementing or managing customer relationship management (CRM) systems, business intelligence platforms, data analytics, reporting frameworks, or enterprise-wide process improvement initiatives.
• Knowledge of university research, technology transfer, workforce development, industry-sponsored research, innovation, entrepreneurship, or economic engagement activities.
• Experience developing performance metrics, dashboards, impact measurement frameworks, or strategic reporting systems.
• Experience convening and facilitating cross-sector partnerships involving higher education, industry, government, and community stakeholders.
• Experience supporting organizational change management, strategic planning, or large-scale institutional initiatives.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability, protected veteran, and other protected status.

OSU will conduct a review of the National Sex Offender Public website prior to hire.
OSU is a fair chance employer committed to inclusive hiring. We encourage applications from candidates who bring a wide range of lived experience including involvement with the justice system. If this position has “critical or security-sensitive” responsibilities and/or driving duties and you are selected as a finalist, your initial job offer will be contingent upon the results of a job-related pre-employment check (such as a background check, motor vehicle history check, sexual misconduct reference check, etc.). Background check results do not automatically disqualify a candidate. Take a look at our Background Checks website including the for candidates section for more details. If you have questions or concerns about the pre-employment check, please contact OSU’s Employee and Labor Relations team at [email protected].