Director of Innovation Portfolio

POSITION OVERVIEW

Reports To:

Executive Director, Polymer Industry Cluster.

Location:

Greater Akron, Ohio (Hybrid; primary office at Greater Akron Chamber; partner-site travel as needed). Status:
Salary, Exempt.

The Polymer Industry Cluster (PIC), a growing industry and technology consortium, is seeking a highly motivated, execution-oriented leader to serve as the Director, Innovation Portfolio. This role functions as PIC’s integrator—translating strategy into an actionable operating plan and ensuring disciplined delivery across federal and state awards, partner-led initiatives, and the Cluster’s end-to-end innovation pipeline. Working closely with the Executive Director/Chief Innovation Officer and coordinating with shared services provided by the Greater Akron Chamber, this role builds and runs PIC’s portfolio operating system: master plan, dashboards, reporting cadence, committee decision support, and partner performance management.

The Director also supports long-term financial sustainability by helping develop and execute earned-revenue models (membership, sponsorship, fee-for-service offerings, and innovation services connected to pilot facility access) and by strengthening integration with regional innovation nodes such as Bounce Innovation Hub and the Synthe6 accelerator.

Integrated Portfolio Management (Awards + Initiatives)

• Build and maintain the master plan across all active grants and initiatives, including milestones, dependencies, synergies, and reporting calendar.
• Develop and track portfolio KPIs (programmatic and impact metrics) and prepare monthly/quarterly performance dashboards for leadership and governance bodies.
• Identify risks early, drive mitigation plans, and escalate decisions/issues to the Executive Director as needed.

Grant Execution, Reporting, and Compliance Coordination

• Monitor progress toward federal and state objectives, milestones, and deliverables; coordinate timely collection of partner inputs for reports; support engagement with federal and state agencies and coordinate reporting requirements.
• Own subrecipient performance cadence and compliance check listing in partnership with Greater Akron Chamber finance and back-office functions.
• Support grant proposal development (scope shaping, workplans, match strategy, partner alignment) and strengthen reporting systems and templates.
• Coordinate documentation and records that support audit readiness, closeout requirements, and continuity of program knowledge.

Governance and Decision Support

• Coordinate strategic priorities across PIC committees and working groups (Leadership Committee, Backbone Organization, Technical Advisory Groups, Startup/VC nodes, and other task teams).
• Produce board and committee briefing materials jointly with the Director of Operations, including dashboards, decision memos, risks, and action tracking.

Innovation Pipeline Execution and Ecosystem Integration

• Support the operating mechanics of the innovation funnel—from idea intake to pilot campaigns, scale-up pathways, commercialization, and adoption.
• Standardize pipeline tools (intake forms, diligence checklists, stage-gate decision memos, partner check-ins, and quarterly reporting packets).
• Partner with accelerator programs (e.g., Synthe6) to strengthen startup integration into the regional pipeline; ensure corporate pull and pilot/test validation pathways are clear.
• Coordinate with PIC’s pilot facility leadership to align pipeline needs with facility readiness, utilization targets, and customer/project onboarding workflows.
• Identify opportunities for R&D collaboration, infrastructure reuse, and investment attraction that strengthen sustainability and regional impact.

Resource Development and Financial Sustainability

• With the Executive Director, support the build and execution of an earned-revenue operating plan (membership pipeline, sponsor ships, fee-for-service offerings, and innovation services).
• Contribute to design and refinement of membership models and value propositions in collaboration with the Director of Operations and shared services.
• Support development of federal and state grant proposals, matching strategies, and reporting…