Strategic Development Manager - Compute System Scaling

Business Development - Leuven | Just now

About the role

As Strategic Development Manager you will play a pivotal role at the intersection of innovation management and public R&D funding. In this role, you will help shape and connect public funding to imec’s internal innovation pipeline, ensuring alignment between strategic priorities, funding opportunities, and high-impact innovation initiatives, while enabling the transformation of ideas into funded projects and scalable innovation programs.

What you will do

Internal Innovation Portfolio Management

• Identify high-potential, disruptive innovation ideas and coach cross-functional teams through a structured assessment process, fostering win-win outcomes across imec teams.
• Drive internal innovation initiatives from early ideation through valorization, while building strong relationships across the R&D community, business teams, and scientific leadership to generate support for innovative research projects.
• Monitor the progress of innovation projects, manage critical milestones, organize regular reporting to key stakeholders, and resolve or escalate issues related to technical, business, or operational challenges.
• Enable effective decision-making for innovation projects by ensuring transparent stage-gated governance, stakeholder alignment, well-organized decision meetings, and clear communication of outcomes.

Public Funding & External Program Leadership

• Initiate and support funded projects throughout the entire lifecycle, including consortium building, proposal development, submission, and evaluation analysis. Following project approval, provide ongoing support to the technical teams during project execution.
• Monitor and influence funding policy developments through participation in workshops, conferences, and stakeholder meetings, ensuring imec’s research priorities are well represented in work programs.
• Develop and maintain high-level expertise within a designated imec research domain, with accountability for securing and sustaining funding for that area.
• Ensure compliance with imec’s business processes, Quality Management Systems, and other regulations.

What we do for you

We offer you the opportunity to join one of the world’s premier research centers in nanotechnology at its headquarters in Leuven, Belgium. With your talent, passion and expertise, you’ll become part of a team that makes the impossible possible. Together, we shape the technology that will determine the society of tomorrow.

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and proud of our open, multicultural, and informal working environment with ample possibilities to take initiative and show responsibility. We commit to supporting and guiding you in this process; not only with words but also with tangible actions. Through imec.academy, 'our corporate university', we actively invest in your development to further your technical and personal growth.

We are aware that your valuable contribution makes imec a top player in its field. Your energy and commitment are therefore appreciated by means of a market appropriate salary with many fringe benefits.

Who you are

• Master’s or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Physics, or a related field, combined with strong expertise in advanced logic, memory, and compute technologies across the semiconductor ecosystem.
• Proven experience driving innovation, leading research programs, and technology development in deep tech, industrial R&D, or funded research environments.
• Technology enthusiast with an entrepreneurial mindset and a passion for translating cutting-edge technologies into real-world impact.
• Familiarity with public funding ecosystems, funding programs, and relevant policy networks is highly valued.
• Productive and results-oriented, with a strong sense of ownership and ability to work independently.
• Excellent English communication skills.
• Willingness to travel as needed.

IMEC and its affiliates will not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than directly from a candidate. IMEC will consider unsolicited referrals and/or resumes submitted by vendors such as search firms, staffing agencies, professional recruiters, fee-based referral services and recruiting agencies (hereafter “Agency”) to have been referred by the Agency free of charge. IMEC will not pay a fee to any Agency that does not have a prior written agreement with IMEC, validated by its HR department, in place regarding a specific job opening and allowing to submit resumes.