Coulter Managing Director

A cover letter is required for consideration for this position and should be attached as the first page of your resume. The cover letter should address your specific interest in the position and outline skills and experience that directly relate to this position.

At Michigan Engineering, we develop the talent and technologies that move society forward and serve our state and national interests. Through discovery and innovation, we create the foundational knowledge and practical technologies to solve not only today's most pressing challenges, but also power industries and change lives. Our programs and community are designed to promote personal well-being and achievement-enabling everyone to unlock their potential and contribute with confidence.

The Department of Biomedical Engineering (BME) is a joint academic department with reporting lines to the College of Engineering and the Medical School. The dual-school environment includes a growing faculty roster within both schools, a large and increasing collaborative research portfolio, multi-building research facilities, innovative instructional programs at all academic levels, and a focus on research translation and entrepreneurship. BME is pursuing strategic goals to establish enhanced connections within and beyond both schools.

By launching shared facility cores to enable faculty success in research and providing an educational experience for undergraduate students through Ph.D. candidates, BME strives to best prepare graduates for the multitude of career options at the interface of engineering, life sciences, and medicine.

The Mission of the Coulter Translational Research Partnership is to translate early-stage biomedical innovations from faculty at the College of Engineering (CoE) and the University of Michigan Medical School (UMMS) towards commercialization and patient impact. This position, the Coulter Managing Director (CMD), is housed within the Department of Biomedical Engineering (BME), a joint department of the CoE and UMMS, and reports to the Department Chair of BME.

The Coulter program works to identify technologies and projects with high commercial potential that may not move forward without translational funding and commercialization support to further their development. This position works closely with Innovation Partnerships (Office of Technology Transfer), which manages the University's intellectual property portfolio from initial protection, marketing and licensing to existing companies as well as new startup companies.

Significant goals for this position include working to identify promising translational projects, working with project teams and other partners to develop strategies for translating technologies, working with the Coulter Oversight Committee to select projects for funding, managing projects for progress, and facilitating the movement of promising technologies to the clinic and working with Innovation Partnerships on licensing such technologies.

1. Outreach, Partnerships, and Ecosystem Development

• Outreach/partnership building with Engineering and Clinician faculty, department chairs, other U-M translational programs, and Innovation Partnerships to identify viable project leads for Coulter funding.
• Develop and implement strategies to foster collaborations with the University of Michigan Law, Business, Medical and Dental Schools.
• Maintain a working knowledge of other translational and gap funding programs both within the university and in the local community that can assist with the advancement of Coulter funded projects.
• Serve as a resource for the BME Industry Liaison and BME educational programs to facilitate relationships between industry and the BME Department.

2. Project Development and Translational Support

• Assist faculty with project proposal preparation and their execution, including milestone optimization, revision and completion, relative to translational goals.
• Coordinate internal and external commercialization resources including prototype development, access to testing facilities, and external business consulting firms.

3. Commercialization, Intellectual Property, and Industry Engagement

• Build and maintain strong working relationships with the University of Michigan's Innovation Partnerships to advance project intellectual property, pre-license and license negotiation activities.
• Build relationships with medical device industry leaders and business development executives, venture capitalists, and…