Program Manager

ITRI - Program Manager

About ITRI

India's Translational Research Initiative (ITRI) is a section 8 company, working towards strengthening the pathway from scientific discovery to real-world application by addressing long-standing gaps in India's lab-to-market ecosystem. It supports research institutions in building the infrastructure, capabilities, and partnerships needed to advance high-quality translational work. By enabling stronger industry linkages, shared facilities, and clearer development pathways, ITRI aims to help India's scientific strengths translate into technologies that contribute meaningfully to economic growth and societal well-being.

ITRI is creating and augmenting Translational Research Centres (TRCs) within leading academic institutions across the country. These centres are enabling technology advancement, prototyping, testing, and early deployment—providing the critical infrastructure that scientists, start-ups, and industry partners need to advance promising innovations. The TRCs are working across a broad set of high-impact technology areas, including life sciences and health, energy and sustainability, advanced materials, and engineering and computational technologies such as AI for science and next-generation manufacturing.

About the Role

A core part of the role will be shaping and enabling Translational Research Centres (TRCs) across priority technology areas. You will work with academia, industry, and funders to identify opportunities, design centres, mobilise resources, and support their launch and early operations.

Your role sits at the intersection of strategy and execution — owning TRCs end-to-end, from opportunity discovery and diligence through operating model design, partnerships, funding pathways, and launch, and then carrying responsibility for their governance, performance, and long-term success. A significant share of your time will be spent working alongside TRC leadership post-launch — strengthening governance structures, nurturing industry and funder partnerships, tracking outcomes against milestones, and stepping in to resolve execution bottlenecks — to ensure each centre delivers on its translational mandate. Alongside this, you will lend occasional support to ITRI's wider strategy, policy, and ecosystem work.

This is a high-autonomy role requiring strong judgment, execution ability, and a deep interest in technology and innovation systems.

Key Responsibilities

TRC development, launch, and ongoing success

• Identify high-potential TRC opportunities with researchers and ecosystem partners
• Translate early ideas into clear concepts, value propositions, and business cases
• Lead techno-commercial and ecosystem diligence on shortlisted opportunities
• Shape partnerships, governance, and funding structures with institutions, industry, and funders
• Stand up newly launched TRCs — mobilising founding teams, setting up systems and processes, and guiding early operations through the critical first 12–18 months
• Track TRC performance against technical, commercial, and impact milestones; surface risks early and work with centre leadership to unblock critical issues
• Deepen and sustain industry, start-up, and funder engagement with live TRCs — translating early partnerships into sustained collaborations, follow-on funding, and pipeline of translational projects
• Act as the connective tissue between TRCs and ITRI — ensuring centres remain aligned with the ITRI's mandate and have the institutional support needed to succeed at scale

Learnings and insights

• Capture cross-TRC learnings on operating models, partnerships, and funding approaches.
• Develop playbooks and frameworks to guide future TRC design
• Support the evolution of ITRI's broader innovation platform

Support to ITRI's strategy and policy work

• Contribute to internal strategy projects on R&D, translational research, and innovation ecosystems, as and when required
• Provide research inputs on technology value chains, ecosystem gaps, and institutional models to support ITRI's strategy and policy efforts
• Support the development of strategy notes, policy briefs, ecosystem analyses, and stakeholder convenings — drawing on insights from TRC engagements where relevant

Who We Are Looking For

We are looking for technology-curious business professionals interested in building India's innovation ecosystem.

Typical profiles may include:

• 6–8 years of experience in consulting, corporate strategy, investing, innovation programs, or technology ecosystems
• Strong exposure to technology, R&D, or innovation-led sectors
• Experience developing strategy projects, business cases, or multi-stakeholder initiatives
• Undergraduate degree in engineering, science, or technology (preferred but not mandatory)
• MBA from a Tier-1 institution or equivalent experience is a plus

Regardless of background, we value:

• Ability to translate unstructured ideas into actionable initiatives
• Strong analytical and strategic thinking
• Comfort engaging scientists, industry leaders, funders, and policymakers
• High ownership, execution drive, and entrepreneurial mindset

Location

Remote (India-based) with periodic travel involved