Founders at the University of Cambridge
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Director of Operations and Development

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West Cambridge | From £80,000| Full-time | Hybrid Working

 

What if your next role helped shape the future of deep tech? What if your to-do list included launching the next generation of world-changing ventures — and making sure they ran like clockwork?

This is your chance to do just that. Join the vibrant Founders at the University of Cambridge team at Cambridge Enterprise and help the next generation of world-changing entrepreneurs take flight.

Why you'll love this role

You’ll be at the centre of something big. As Director of Operations and Development for Founders at the University of Cambridge, you’ll support early-stage founders take their ideas and research

It’s a hands-on, high-impact role where no two days look the same. One moment you’re helping fine-tune the delivery execution of our incubator and accelerator programmes, the next you’re putting together a proposal for a partnership or building the back-end infrastructure that’ll help us scale. You’ll steer the operational side of our mission — and have the autonomy and tools to make it happen.

You’ll be joining a flagship initiative at the heart of Europe’s leading research and innovation cluster. We’re part of the University’s commercialisation arm, Cambridge Enterprise, and eighteen months in, we’ve already seen our portfolio of early-stage ventures raise over £14M. But we’re just getting started — and this is your chance to shape what comes next.

You’ll grow with us too. With support, stretch and a brilliant network behind you, you’ll sharpen your leadership, build your ecosystem profile and have a real, measurable impact on society and the economy.

What we’re looking for

We don’t expect you to tick every box, but you’re likely to have:

  • Strong operational leadership experience in early-stage ventures, accelerators or partnerships
  • Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams and juggle multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment and working closely with a department head
  • A knack for building systems and workflows that scale (think tools and CRMS such as Airtable, Notion, mailchimp, wordpress, etc)
  • Experience designing or running accelerator or incubation programmes
  • A good grasp of legal, financial and governance processes (e.g. SAFEs, IP, contracts, cap tables)
    Excellent programme and stakeholder management skills
  • An analytical mindset — you’re confident with data, dashboards and impact reporting
  • Strong founder empathy — and a genuine interest in building ventures that matter
  • The confidence to represent the platform externally and contribute to strategic thinking
  • A collaborative, adaptable, get-it-done approach

 

Nice to have:

  • Experience in deep tech, venture capital, or legal operations
  • Familiarity with university commercialisation or research institutions
  • A strong UK or European start-up ecosystem network
  • Experience with fundraising, grants, or donor communications

About us

Founders at the University of Cambridge is a strategic initiative delivered by Cambridge Enterprise, the University’s innovation arm. We support University-linked founders in building companies that tackle global challenges — connecting them with alumni, mentors, funding and deep tech expertise to help them build stronger, faster-scaling startups.

Cambridge Enterprise helps innovators from the University of Cambridge turn brilliant ideas into commercial success stories that benefit society, the economy and the University itself.

Apply now

We’re based at the Hauser Forum on the West Cambridge site — and we’d love you in the office at least 3 days a week (more if you prefer). Our benefits package is impressive and we invest greatly in our team’s happiness, wellbeing and growth. With 30 days of annual leave, a generous University pension, health and lifestyle benefits and a modern office at West Cambridge, you’ll thrive in this vibrant academic and innovation community.

 

Closing date: 15 August 2025