Job Description

Date Posted: 10/25/2023
Req ID:34647
Faculty/Division: Faculty of Arts & Science
Department: Acceleration Consortium
Campus: St. George (Downtown Toronto)

Description:

The Acceleration Consortium (AC) at the University of Toronto (U of T) is leading a transformative shift in scientific discovery that will accelerate technology development and commercialization. The AC is a global community of academia, industry, and government that leverages the power of artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, materials sciences, and high-throughput chemistry to create self-driving laboratories (SDLs), also called materials acceleration platforms (MAPs). These autonomous labs rapidly design materials and molecules needed for a sustainable, healthy, and resilient future, with applications ranging from renewable energy and consumer electronics to drugs.

The Acceleration Consortium received a $200M Canadian First Research Excellence Grant for seven years to develop self-driving labs for chemistry and materials, the largest ever grant to a Canadian University. This grant will give the Acceleration Consortium seven years of funding to execute its vision.

The AC Staff Scientist for Economics, Entrepreneurship, and Management will advance our understanding of the commercialization of AI-driven autonomous discovery and materials science entrepreneurship. The position will work closely with faculty and staff at the Creative Destruction Lab to build and analyze a unique data set on science and entrepreneurship.

The Staff Scientists involved in the AC are highly skilled and experienced researchers who will work independently to build a better understanding of the commercialization of science.

Candidates that have experience in several or as many of the areas below will be prioritized:

• Entrepreneurial strategy
• University-based entrepreneurship programs
• Quasi-experimental econometrics
• Innovation policy
• Commercialization of science

The components and duties of the work include:

1. Research on the commercialization of science

Working with the AC and CDL community, including faculty and partners, to publish research in economics and management journals on the commercialization of university-based science. Much of this will be independent work to develop research programs that leverage the AC\xe2\x80\x99s SDLs and supports the research objectives of AC and CDL faculty. Tasks include:

• Developing plans to support research collaborations and estimating financial resources required for programs and/or projects.
• Promoting AC\xe2\x80\x99s research capacity, including delivering presentations at conferences.
• Collaborating on preparing and submitting research proposals to granting agencies and progress reporting.
• Preparing manuscripts for submission to peer review publications/journals and stewarding them through the process.

Other

• Supervising research staff to build and analyze a comprehensive data set on scientific entrepreneurship.
• Support research-focused events such as Annual Symposium, Creative Destruction Lab AI, and SDL initiatives

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Education

Ph.D. in Economics, Management, or related discipline

Experience

• Five (5) years experience in economics/management/entrepreneurship scholarship with demonstrated academic and research excellence
• Experience in entrepreneurial strategy, University-based entrepreneurship programs, Quasi-experimental econometrics, innovation policy, and or commercialization of science
• Experience working with industry partners and on industry lead research and development projects. Experience working with academic and industry-based entrepreneurs
• Experience presenting research at academic conferences

Skills

• Strong in communicating effectively and efficiently in oral and written English
• Ability to work collegially with working with team members and collaborators
• Ability to work independently

Other

• Must have a strong publication record
• Demonstrated success in writing and preparing manuscripts, presentations, reports, briefs, and scientific abstracts and manuscripts for peer-reviewed journals

Closing Date: 12/31/2023, 11:59PM ET
Employee Group: Research Associate
Appointment Type: Grant - Continuing
Schedule: Full-Time
Pay Scale Group & Hiring Zone: $60,304.00 - $150,000(salary will be assessed based on skills and experience)
Job Category: Research Administration & Teaching

University of Toronto