Licensing Associate

MSU Jobs•Starkville, MS

About The Position

The Licensing Associate is responsible for the physical and life sciences portfolio at MSU. Daily activities include meeting with researchers to establish and maintain relationships and keep abreast of their projects, reviewing invention disclosures, researching and making recommendations for IP protection, and working with potential licensees to move MSU’s innovations out of the lab and into the public space. The position reports to the Assistant Director of OTM. Salary Grade : 16 Please see Staff Compensation Structure or Skilled Crafts and Service Maintenance Compensation Schedule for salary ranges. For salary grade UC, these positions are "Unclassified" and salary ranges are determined by the hiring department. Mississippi State University is a public research, land-grant university with a mission to provide access and opportunity to all sectors of Mississippi’s population, as well as other states and countries, and to offer excellent programs of teaching, research, and service. As the largest research university in Mississippi, MSU expends over $300 million dollars on research, placing it in the top 100 of R1 research institutions across the nation. MSU’s Office of Technology Management leads intellectual property (IP) activities, providing centralized services including proposal /award review, invention disclosure intake, IP reporting to appropriate Federal, State, and private sponsors, and negotiating, drafting, and executing contracts for IP licensing, to meet internal policies and external regulations. MSU’s Office of Technology Management works closely with all research units of the University and reports to the Office of Research and Economic Development.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in science, engineering or technical field and two years of experience directly related to the duties and responsibilities specified.
Demonstrated ability to work effectively as a team member.
Demonstrated ability to understand and communicate technical information.

Nice To Haves

Master's or PhD in relevant physical or natural science or Juris Doctorate with relevant undergraduate studies.
Prior experience in a research lab or intellectual property office
Excellent verbal and written communication skills
Ability to build and foster inter/intra-organizational relationships.
Ability to network and build teams to solve problems and innovate.
Willingness and ability to learn new skills and technologies.
Excellent organizational and time management skills.

Responsibilities

Manage a portfolio of intellectual property cases and be primarily responsible for patenting, marketing, and licensing intellectual property.
Maintain, monitor and renegotiate existing agreements within the portfolio to ensure commercialization, compliance and payment.
Assist in the commercialization of university intellectual property by identifying and evaluating new inventions, developing commercialization strategies, actively marketing technologies, and supporting the negotiation and execution of licenses and other agreements related to technology transfer, following the intellectual property policies and procedures of Mississippi State University.
Initiate and manage collaborative relationships with and between inventors, commercial partners, patent attorneys, and other technology commercialization personnel to create effective and cohesive patent, marketing, and licensing strategies.
Maintain a database of key contacts and relevant commercialization information to facilitate strategic introductions, outreach, and relationship-building with internal and external stakeholders.
Recruit MSU researchers to participate in federal and innovation-driven funding programs such as SBIR, STTR, I-Corps, and similar opportunities that support the advancement of research toward commercialization.
Promote opportunities for collaboration and the licensing of MSU technologies to external entities.
Explore and implement innovative strategies to enhance the successful transfer of MSU technologies to the commercial marketplace; assist in identifying and marketing MSU technologies externally.
Conduct outreach and education activities with faculty, staff, and industry partners to raise awareness of the Office of Technology Management and its services, processes, and opportunities.
Occasional travel is required to attend conferences and other professional development activities, engage with collaborators, and participate in external events related to commercialization efforts.
Perform other duties as assigned.