Portfolio Manager, Roberts Innovation Fund

Position Focus :

The Roberts Innovation Fund Portfolio Manager will play a crucial role in supporting the management and growth of the portfolio associated with the Roberts Innovation Fund, a lab-to-market faculty accelerator program designed for the Yale School of Engineering and Applied Science.

Reporting directly to the Director of the Roberts Innovation Fund, the Portfolio Manager will be responsible for assisting in the evaluation, monitoring, and optimization of awards made across a diverse range of projects positioned to advance from lab to market .

In addition, the Portfolio Manager will play a key part in the implementation and logistical support for new programs and innovation resources that are developed for Yale Engineering such as a Mentor-in-Residence Program and an Innovation Fellows Program.

This role offers an exciting opportunity for a motivated individual to gain hands-on experience in investment management, risk capital, innovation programming and entrepreneurship within a dynamic academic environment.

Essential Duties

Assists with managing the process leading to the creation and cultivation of a portfolio of commercial development projects identified and financially supported by the Fund.

Plays a key role in ensuring projects remain within budget, scope, and schedule requirements. Develops tactical plans, including planning and scheduling to efficiently support teams through project.

Gathers and analyzes information to prepare status reports. Ensures that assignment and scheduling of work follows internal policies and procedures as well as regulatory requirements.

Evaluates current procedures and recommends changes to improve the efficiency of planning and scheduling of projects. Coordinates with the financial teams to track and record expenditures.

Supports the request for proposal (RFP) process with the fund director. Collaborates with the business development team, the faculty innovation team and principal investigators to support development plans, document specific objectives for awarded projects Supports the fund director and principal investigators to prepare the presentation of final presentations for the t Advisory Board Supports contract development for outsourced and / or collaborative arrangements.

Monitors timelines and financial resources to ensure alignment with funded project’s goals and objectives . Tracks and communicates barriers to technical progress of funded projects in order to minimize and / or eliminate risks Provides regular communications with key Accelerator stakeholders, including university administration, faculty, Accelerator advisory committee and other external audiences.

Works with team in Yale Ventures, on the commercialization of selected projects as new ventures and / or licensing if possible.

Other fund related duties as assigned.

Required Education and Experience

Bachelor’s Degree in business or fund focused technology and 4 years of relevant experience or an equivalent combination of education and demonstrated experience.

Required Skill / Ability 1 :

Strong analytical skills with the ability to evaluate complex business models and emerging technologies.

Required Skill / Ability 2 :

Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to articulate award theses and present findings.

Required Skill / Ability 3 :

Highly organized with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and meet tight deadlines.

Required Skill / Ability 4 :

A passion for entrepreneurship, innovation, and technology transfer from academia to the commercial market.

Required Skill / Ability 5 :

Proficiency in Excel, PowerPoint and Salesforce.

Preferred Education, Experience and Skills :

Demonstrated experience in Venture, Startups and / or Corporate Innovation. Interest and demonstrated experience in Computational Areas (AI, Blockchain, Cryptography) and / or Deep Tech.

Material Science, Sensor, Water treatment, Quantum, Climate Tech, etc)

Drug Screen

Health Screening

Background Check Requirements

All candidates for employment will be subject to pre-employment background screening for this position, which may include motor vehicle, DOT certification, drug testing and credit checks based on the position description and job requirements.

All offers are contingent upon the successful completion of the background check. For additional information on the background check requirements and process visit "Learn about background checks" under the Applicant Support Resources section of Careers on the It's Your Yale website.

COVID-19 Vaccine Requirement

The University maintains policies pertaining to COVID-19. All faculty, staff, students, and trainees are required to comply with these policies, which may be found here :

Posting Disclaimer

The intent of this job description is to provide a representative summary of the essential functions that will be required of the position and should not be construed as a declaration of specific duties and responsibilities of the particular position.

Employees will be assigned specific job-related duties through their hiring departments.