Executive Dir, Venture Accelerator

Position Information

Job Title:

Executive Director, New Venture Accelerator
Posting Number: P2327F

Auburn University’s Harbert College of Business (HCOB) invites applicants for the position of Executive Director of the New Venture Accelerator (NVA). This position is non‑tenure track, non‑tenure eligible, and is envisioned to be a part‑time position. It is not required that the individual work primarily from Auburn, but a significant, regular presence in Auburn is expected to fulfill the responsibilities and achieve success.

The New Venture Accelerator, founded in 2016, is jointly managed and governed by the Harbert College of Business and the Auburn Research and Technology Foundation (ARTF). The Princeton Review recognizes Auburn University as one of the top entrepreneurship programs in the country, ranked 41st in 2025 (#1 in Alabama, #2 in the SEC, #9 in the south and #22 among all public universities).

The NVA is a central component of Auburn’s thriving entrepreneurship ecosystem supporting students, faculty, and alumni from across all 13 of Auburn’s colleges.

Auburn is seeking an executive to lead the next stage in growth, development, and impact of the NVA.

The New Venture Accelerator seeks to advance and support entrepreneurship across Auburn University, empower Auburn‑affiliated entrepreneurs and start‑up businesses, and serve as the nexus between Auburn University and the broader start‑up community.

The New Venture Accelerator supports Auburn students, faculty, alumni and community entrepreneurs in rapidly growing their early‑stage ventures through our state‑of‑the‑art facilities, mentorship, education, funding, and networking.

Building on the foundation of success, Auburn’s entrepreneurship ecosystem, the NVA will continue to support Auburn University’s land grant mission, serve as a catalyst for outside economic development, and strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem in our community and state.

Our goal is to become a Top 10 nationally ranked entrepreneurship center by evolving its programs, scope and impact across six pillars:

• Academic & Experiential Learning Programs – Leveraging the current NVA programs and in collaboration with the college’s academic curriculum, expand the NVA’s and university’s entrepreneurship education and experiential learning programs.
• Alumni Entrepreneurship Programs – Define & implement a range of programs, mentorship, and networks to support the broader Auburn community of entrepreneurs.
• World‑class Incubator Facility – In collaboration with ARTF, continue to manage and expand the NVA’s facilities to offer a wider range of facilities and capabilities.
• Expanded Sources of Start‑up Capital – Building on the initial success of the pitch competitions and Kickstart Fund, define and build out additional capital sources for Auburn entrepreneurs.
• Corporate Partnerships & Sponsor ships – Leveraging the success of Auburn’s entrepreneurship ecosystem, establish and nurture ongoing corporate relationships and sponsor ships to support the expanded set of programs and initiatives.
• Increased Commercialization – In coordination with IPX, Auburn’s technology transfer office, proactively identify, nurture and drive opportunities for commercialization of Auburn research to drive new business formation and create incremental revenue for Auburn University.

• Provide strategic leadership for the New Venture Accelerator, encompassing the full scope of its mission and activities.
• Coordinate with the HCOB dean, ARTF leadership, deans of other Auburn colleges, executive director of Auburn’s IPX, and other relevant campus leaders to grow and expand Auburn’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
• Coordinate with the Director of the Lowder Center for Entrepreneurship and HCOB entrepreneurship faculty to strengthen Auburn’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
• Serve as the public representative of the New Venture Accelerator, HCOB and Auburn University to the start‑up community, angel investors, state representatives, corporate partners, donors, stakeholders, alumni, and students.
• Coordinate with Auburn and HCOB Advancement…