Program Director – IITB–Groww INV.ENT Program

About IIT Bombay Groww:

The GROWW–IIT Bombay partnership represents a landmark commitment to advancing India’s deep-tech innovation ecosystem by empowering student innovators and accelerating the translation of breakthrough ideas from academic research to real-world solutions. Through this multi-component initiative, GROWW is supporting a structured Grand Challenge, a comprehensive Proof-of-Concept (PoC) development pathway, and dedicated mentorship support to help students build validated prototypes addressing pressing societal and national priorities.

The program will be housed within the Desai Sethi School of Entrepreneurship at IIT Bombay, leveraging its dynamic ecosystem to enable students to refine early-stage concepts, develop functional prototypes, and navigate milestone-based evaluations with access to expert guidance and advanced infrastructure. By nurturing a strong pipeline of translational research projects across sectors such as healthcare, sustainability, advanced engineering, and emerging technologies, the initiative aims to bridge the longstanding gap between academic innovation and industry deployment.

This collaboration not only strengthens institutional capability for innovation and entrepreneurship but also sets a new benchmark for how philanthropy and academia can come together to drive societal impact, national competitiveness, and the rise of a new generation of technology leaders.

Job Purpose
The Program Director will provide strategic, operational, and execution leadership for the IITB–Groww INV.ENT Program, a flagship CSR-supported initiative aimed at nurturing early-stage innovation, proof-of-concept development, and entrepreneurship at IIT Bombay.
The role involves designing and managing structured innovation programs, enabling student and faculty innovators, driving industry and investor engagement, and ensuring measurable outcomes in terms of validated technologies, startups, and societal impact.

Key Responsibilities

1. Strategic Program Design & Execution:
Define the long-term vision, objectives, and growth roadmap for the IITB–Groww INV.ENT Program in alignment with IIT Bombay’s innovation ecosystem and Groww Foundation’s CSR goals.
Design structured intervention models including PoC grants, accelerator cohorts, mentoring frameworks, and innovation challenges.
Translate program objectives into annual plans, milestones, and measurable impact metrics.
2. Innovation & Proof-of-Concept for Program Management:
Manage end-to-end execution of Proof-of-Concept, innovation, and entrepreneurship programs—from call for applications and selection to grant disbursement, reviews, and closure.
Develop evaluation frameworks for technical merit, innovation potential, market relevance, and societal impact.
Support innovators in proposal development, budgeting, milestone planning, and progress reporting.
3. Startup & Entrepreneurship Enablement:
Enable early-stage startups and student/faculty-led ventures through structured mentoring, access to experts, and ecosystem linkages.
Facilitate connections with incubators, accelerators, angel networks, venture capital funds, and corporate partners.
Guide teams on product-market fit, business models, pitch development, and investment readiness.
4. Stakeholder & Partner Engagement:
Act as the primary interface with Groww Foundation, ensuring alignment, transparency, and high-quality reporting.
Build partnerships with industry, investors, alumni, government agencies, and innovation ecosystem players.
Identify co-funding, sponsorship, and collaboration opportunities to scale the program’s reach.
5. Operations & Program Governance:
Oversee program operations including budgeting, fund utilization tracking, procurement coordination, and compliance with CSR and IITB norms.
Ensure robust governance processes including review committees, advisory boards, and documentation standards.
6. Monitoring, Evaluation & Reporting:
Design and implement KPIs, dashboards, and monitoring tools to track program progress, outcomes, and impact.
Prepare periodic reports, impact assessments, and presentations for Groww Foundation, IITB leadership, and other stakeholders.
Maintain…