Vice President for Venture Pathways and Chief Commercialization Officer

Position Overview Rice University, a leading institution for scholarly research, is seeking an entrepreneurial leader and adept administrator to serve as Vice President for Venture Pathways and Chief Commercialization Officer (CCO). The CCO will report to the Executive Vice President for Research and will activate and coordinate an enhanced commercialization ecosystem to translate university-wide discoveries and inventions into startups, licensed technologies, and mission‑aligned industry collaborations. Key Responsibilities Activate and coordinate the Office of Venture Pathways to maximize translation of research to commercial success. Expand and oversee Rice’s technology ventures and commercialization activities across the university’s foundational research and educational mission. Develop an on‑campus culture rooted in discovery and innovation, uniting faculty, post‑docs, and students in the commercialization process through robust programming and support infrastructure. Align commercialization efforts with venture creation initiatives and educational programs within Rice’s Schools and academic departments. Serve as the bridge between Rice’s research enterprise and the broader innovation ecosystem in Houston and the Gulf South region. Qualifications Strong strategic partnership skills with research faculty, combining entrepreneurial DNA with extensive technology commercialization experience. Demonstrated ability to envision and execute commercialization strategies at a national or institutional level. Experience leveraging world‑class engineering and science research communities to advance and grow an innovation portfolio. Experience in fostering faculty and student participation in venture funding and technology licensing. Rice University is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to diversity at all levels, and considers qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, genetic information, disability, or protected veteran status. Rice University is committed to ensuring Equal Employment Opportunity and the full inclusion of all qualified persons in the workplace. This commitment includes providing reasonable accommodations to persons with disabilities. For applicants with disabilities who require a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process, please contact Rice University’s Disability Resource Center at View phone number on click.appcast.io or View email address on click.appcast.io for support. #J-18808-Ljbffr BioSpace