Business Opportunities in Biotech: Innovation Associate to leverage cell-free synthetic biology

ended

The main objective of BOB is to hire and integrate a highly-committed candidate to build up an innovation strategy at c-LEcta to valorize its unique technology platform by developing an innovation project according to the company strategy to become a food ingredient producer. The envisaged innovation will help to solve the industrial problem of natural product synthesis, which is today hampered by yield limits, inefficiencies in chemical synthesis, or side-effects. The functional potential of numerous natural products can only be fully exploited if the commercial production at low cost is possible. Synthetic biology is expected to achieve a break-through for increased or cheaper production. c-LEcta has conceptualized a unique technology platform, already demonstrated the concept’s feasibility, and is targeting new molecules for further growth. However, the innovation team currently lacks of a candidate that comprises excellent technology knowledge in industrial biotechnology and/or food science and innovation management or business administration skills for assessing market values at an early development stage. The German job market is currently marked by a lack of expert personnel, and c-LEcta is experiencing difficulties in receiving high-quality responses to such a position, as it is not visible enough to job-seekers. This will be overcome by a targeted international publication of the vacancy on EURAXESS and beyond. After acquisition of a suitable candidate according to the defined profile, the specific objectives of BOB are: 1) to train the Associate according to a dedicated initiation and advanced training plan (according to the specific needs of the candidate); 2) to identify and assess new target products; and 3) to turn this assessment into an innovation idea and a strategy, deriving at least 1 innovation project. Finally, the Innovation Associate is expected to stay with the company and to strengthen the Innovation and Business development team.