Senior Venture Development Specialist

Salary/Position Classification

• $70,100 Annual, Exempt
• 40 hours per week
• This position will work onsite at UND Grand Forks, ND campus

Purpose of Position

This position is a critical component of the Center for Innovation’s commercialization coaching program staff with a focus on university spin outs, startups and translation of UND intellectual property (University research activity) into tangible, market ready solutions. This position will have a leadership in guiding the development and growth of market ready solutions grounded in university intellectual properties, ensuring they have access to appropriate learning, mentorship, and startup support.
A successful candidate for this position has two key responsibilities: First, is to work as a lead project manager for the Innovation Moonshot accelerator experience. As part of this responsibility, this position will need to understand the implementation startup accelerator training and mentorship for faculty and university innovators using recognized best practice principles. This position will also be responsible for building and fostering a network of mentors and coordinate a formalized mentorship strategy to support the Innovation Moonshot Accelerator. Second, is to identify, foster and develop a founders network to support the Innovation Moonshot accelerator experience to enable startup and spin out activities. To ensure a strong pipeline of potential UND intellectual property for the Innovation Moonshot Accelerator, this position will have designated college assignments and will be required to work collaboratively with other CFI staff to identify prospective participants for coaching from their designated college assignments.
This position requires occasional evening and weekend work and travel.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Lead the development and delivery of commercialization and venture development programs that advance university innovations from discovery to market-ready ventures
  • Coordinate and manage all logistical and operational aspects of a university-focused venture development accelerator program;
  • Continually assess and maintain the curriculum, tools and resources and demonstrate alignment with current best practice;
  • Recruit, evaluate and advise participants engaged in the venture development program;
  • Guide teams through key commercialization activities, including customer discovery, market assessment, business model development, value proposition refinement, and go to market planning.
  • Identify participants and continually work with CFI colleagues to cultivate a strong pipeline of participants from college specific engagement and outreach activities.
  • Design and administer surveys as well as other metric-capturing tools to capture and analyze accelerator program outcomes.
• Serve as the primary advisor and institutional liaison for Dakota Venture Group and the CFI Foundation Innovation Fund, providing mentorship, oversight, and experiential learning opportunities that develop student investment professionals while advancing entrepreneurial ventures through investment and portfolio support.
  • Serve as the primary point of contact between Dakota Venture Group, the CFI Foundation, entrepreneurs, investors, alumni, donors, and other stakeholders involved in Innovation Fund activities.
  • Mentor and guide student investment team members through venture capital, angel investing, and fund management frameworks, fostering experiential learning and professional development.
  • Advise students on investment sourcing, screening, due diligence, investment analysis, and recommendation development for potential fund investments. The fund is intended to provide experiential learning opportunities in consulting, private equity, and angel investing while managing investments in early-stage ventures.
  • Support students in conducting company evaluations, market analysis, financial assessments, risk analysis, and investment committee presentations consistent with established fund processes. Fund activities include sourcing, screening, due diligence, negotiation, execution, and monitoring of investments.
  • Guide students in monitoring portfolio company performance, maintaining stakeholder relationships, and preparing quarterly and annual portfolio reports.
  • Assist students in developing fundraising strategies and donor engagement activities that support the long-term sustainability and growth of the Innovation Fund. The agreement contemplates efforts to seek additional capital through donations to support the fund.
  • Ensure fund activities, reporting, records management, and investment processes align with Foundation policies and established governance requirements.
  • Track and report student participation, experiential learning outcomes, investment activity, fundraising results, and portfolio performance metrics for continuous program improvement.
• Identify, foster and Develop and manage mentorship, founder support, and venture development resources that accelerate university innovations from discovery to market-ready solutions.
  • Identify mentors for critical and emerging industry sectors in North Dakota and coordinate a formalized mentorship strategy and program for selected accelerator companies;
  • Assist in the onboarding of mentors, speakers and startup companies engaged with the accelerator program;
  • Facilitate communication between mentors, partners, accelerator participants, etc.
  • Identify and engage mentors with expertise in priority and emerging industry sectors and coordinate a structured mentorship program for innovators and startups.
  • Recruit, onboard, and support mentors, speakers, founders, and subject matter experts participating in venture development programs.
  • Facilitate communication and collaboration among founders, mentors, industry partners, investors, and accelerator participants.
  • Build and maintain a network of founders, alumni entrepreneurs, mentors, service providers, and ecosystem partners to support venture growth and commercialization outcomes.
  • Develop and curate founder resources, playbooks, tools, and educational programming related to startup formation, commercialization, customer discovery, business planning, and venture growth.
  • Connect founders and venture teams with appropriate technical, legal, regulatory, and business development resources to address commercialization challenges and opportunities.
    • Prepare founders for investment and partnership opportunities through pitch coaching, presentation development, due diligence preparation, and investor readiness assessments.
    • Coordinate pitch events, showcases, investor forums, and networking opportunities that connect founders with potential customers, mentors, partners, and capital providers.
    • Track mentor engagement, founder participation, funding outcomes, and network growth metrics to evaluate program effectiveness and identify opportunities for continuous improvement.

Required Competencies

• Superior problem-solving skills
• Project management skills
• Excellent writing, interpersonal and verbal communication skills
• Strong leadership skills
• Demonstrated quantitative and analytical skills
• Ability to cultivate, build and maintain strong working relationships with individuals or organizations with a broad range of perspectives and backgrounds.
• Strong interpersonal and written communication skills.
• Proficiency in word processing, spreadsheets, databases and other basic business software.
• Demonstrated ability to exercise initiative, flexibility and independent judgement.
• Demonstrated passion for entrepreneurship, startups, and venture investment.
• Ability to quickly get ‘up to speed’ on new or unfamiliar business models, industries, etc.
• Comfort working in ambiguous work environments.
• Motivated work ethic in a culture of independent, professional activity in fast-paced, deadline driven climate.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively in a team-based environment.

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business, entrepreneurship, engineering, economics, aerospace, education, medical or life sciences
• 5 years of direct related work experience.
• Experience with technology transfer that led to the or commercialization of university research.
• Experience guiding students in real-world projects, decision-making processes, or professional practice experiences that connect academic learning to practical application.
• Requires occasional evening and weekend work and travel.
• Successful completion of a Criminal History Background Check

In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the US and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire. This position does not support visa sponsorship for continued employment.

Preferred Qualifications

• Advanced degree in law, business, engineering, aerospace, life sciences, entrepreneurship, economic development, or medical sciences.
• Experience working in or founding a university spin-out
• Experience recruiting, managing and on-boarding mentors or volunteers supporting a project, cause or organization.
• Experience raising venture capital or working in an equity capital environment
• Experience working with local, state and federal government entities.

To Apply

Submit a resume and cover letter detailing how you meet each requirement and any preferred qualifications.

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