Co-Director of the Centre for Sectoral Economic Performance and Chair OR Professor of Practice in Technology Sectoral Analysis

Founded in 1907, Imperial is one of the world’s great universities, renowned for ground-breaking research, an outstanding tradition of translation of research for societal and economic good, a highly talented community of staff, students and alumni, and international reach. Our mission is to achieve enduring excellence in research and education in science, engineering, medicine, and business, for the benefit of society.  

Imperial is one of the world’s top-performing universities and was rated best for research by the UKRI’s Research England. 

We are seeking to appoint an experienced Chair OR Professor of Practice, (further role dependant details available), in Technology Sectoral Analysis.  The successful Chair or Professor of Practice will be based in the Dyson School of Design Engineering, will be affiliated with the Faculty of Engineering and will also serve as the Co-Director of the Centre for Sectoral Economic Performance (CSEP), alongside an already appointed Chair and Co-Director based in Imperial College Business School. The Centre is a collaboration between Imperial College’s Business School and the Faculty of Engineering and is supported by the Imperial Policy Forum.

The new Centre was launched in late 2023 and has been funded by nearly £29m over a 10-year period in philanthropic support from the Gatsby Charitable Foundation, founded by Lord Sainsbury. The mission of the Centre is ambitious in seeking to build a national resource to help ensure that the UK’s high-value science and technology-based industries are globally competitive in the 21^st century.

The Centre will bring together the UK’s top engineers, scientists business school academics, and policymakers, with the UK’s science and technology-based industries to co-design globally competitive strategies focusing on the UK’s existing and emerging high-value industries across engineering, life sciences, and data science.

The two Co-Directors will share overall responsibility for delivering the Centre’s goals and objectives. The ideal candidate is an experienced and influential industry leader, also with a strong record of working collaboratively between Industry and academia or as an academic. The Co-Director will also be jointly responsible for the overall running of the Centre. They will lead on the development of the Centre’s Strategy to guide the delivery of new themes and projects, engage in research translation activities, and monitor the Centre activities to ensure compliance with its governance processes. They will directly report to the Deans of the Faculty of Engineering and Imperial College Business School, to the University President, and to the Centre’s Strategic Advisory Board.

Applications are sought from globally outstanding candidates with significant experience of leadership in, or working alongside, industry, ideally across several technology sectors and in both the UK and internationally.  We are particularly interested in candidates with a world-leading track record of accomplishment in developing strategies and policies that address both company-level, national and international competitiveness, as well as a demonstrable ability to advise on and influence governmental policy.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to lead a Centre that will deepen knowledge in value generation, innovation, and productivity, as well as develop recommendations for action by industry, government, and academia. 

How to Apply & Further Information

Anderson Quigley is acting as an advisor to Imperial. Further information about the opportunity is available Imperial College London - Chair OR a Professor of Practice AND Co-Director of the Centre for Sectoral Economic Performance | AQ (andersonquigley.com) and should you wish to discuss further details about the role in strict confidence, please contact:

Alicja Janowska on +44 (0)7743 927 783 or alicja.janowska@andersonquigley.com.   

or Kiersten Avery on +44 (0)7510 384 735 or Kiersten.Avery@andersonquigley.com.   

We will also be happy to discuss which role you plan to apply to:

• AQ2725 – Professorial Chair and Co-Director of CSEP
• AQ2726 – Professor of Practice and Co-Director of CSEP

There will be only one appointment.

The closing date for applications is noon 16 September 2024

We are committed to equality of opportunity, to eliminating discrimination and to creating an inclusive working environment for all. We therefore encourage candidates to apply irrespective of age, disability, marriage or civil partnership status, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion and belief, gender reassignment, sex, or sexual orientation. We are an Athena SWAN Silver Award winner, a Disability Confident Leader and a Stonewall Diversity Champion.