Company Overview

United States International University - Africa is located in the Kasarani area, off Thika Road in the suburb of Kenya’s capital city of Nairobi. The university is an independent, not-for-profit institution serving 6512 students representing 69 nationalities. It offers 24 degree programs from undergraduate to doctoral level, all of which are accredited.

Job Summary

The ideal candidate will drive the University’s innovation agenda through the Innovation and Incubation Center (I2C), including the Design Your Future Integrated Innovation Pipeline Program (DYF-IPP). The Lead will provide guidance from ideation through validation, prototyping and incubation, and on to funding and market entry, combining pipeline programme design, hands-on venture coaching and impact tracking. By building a strong pipeline of student, staff and community-led ventures, it turns innovative ideas into projects, businesses and social enterprises that solve societal challenges, and strengthens the Center’s contribution to the entrepreneurship ecosystem. This position will report to the Director, Innovation and Incubation Center.

Employment Type

This is a three-year fixed term contract.

Key Responsibilities

Innovation Programming and Engagement

• Design, coordinate and lead innovation and startup-support activities, including workshops, ideation sessions, pitch sessions, mastermind sessions, start-up wars, innovation challenges and hackathons.
• Build an innovation culture by engaging students, staff, alumni and community innovators, and encourage creative problem-solving and out-of-the-box thinking among incubates.
• Identify promising ideas by helping innovators spot real problems and market opportunities, and track emerging trends to keep innovators competitive.
• Assess the viability of early-stage ideas and give constructive feedback to shape them into well-defined, viable solutions.

Innovation Pipeline Management

• Develop and refine the pipeline framework, with clear stages, selection criteria and milestones, guiding innovators from ideation to market entry and tailoring support to their needs.
• Prepare innovators for ideas presentation and screening.
• Manage ideas through the pipeline, from screening and validation to prototyping and incubation readiness.
• Track and evaluate the progress of each idea, adjust support where needed and advance the strongest to the next stage.

Product Development, Market Validation and Business Modelling

• Support innovators to build, test and refine products, services and business solutions, offering strategic advice on product development, business models and market strategy.
• Guide iterative prototyping and user testing so that solutions respond to real customer needs.
• Facilitate customer discovery and market testing to confirm demand for innovators’ solutions.
• Support value proposition development and business model refinement, testing assumptions for scalability and sustainability, and integrating emerging trends into the process.

Incubation, Venture Development and Coaching

• Coordinate structured incubation for selected ventures, with defined development milestones and regular progress reviews, and oversee the allocation of resources such as workspace and technology.
• Provide ongoing mentorship and facilitation, linking ventures to mentors, industry experts, investors, partners and relevant support services.
• Provide one-on-one and group coaching on ideation, product development, business modelling, pitching and venture readiness.
• Build and maintain a network of stakeholders, including universities, corporations, government bodies and venture capitalists, and facilitate collaboration between ventures and external partners to enhance innovation and scalability.

Funding Readiness and Impact Tracking

• Prepare innovators for grants, competitions, pitching opportunities and potential investment, connecting them to investors and funders.
• Support the development of pitch decks, financial projections and funding applications.
• Track and report outcomes, including ventures supported, products developed, funding secured, market entry and commercialization progress.
• Evaluate venture progress and use data and insights to improve programmes, adjust support and demonstrate impact to partners and stakeholders.

Qualifications and Experience

Bachelor’s degree in business administration, technology, or entrepreneurship, or a related field.

A minimum of 5 years of experience in innovation, incubation, acceleration and commercialization support, business advisory services, or economic development, with a focus on University or Institutional innovation and incubation centers.

A background in entrepreneurship, business development, or innovation management is preferred, along with a track record of working with startups or leading projects.

Competencies Required

• A deep understanding of the startup journey, encompassing challenges such as funding, scaling, and achieving market fit.
• Ability to inspire and manage a diverse entrepreneurial team while guiding entrepreneurs toward success.
• Strong interpersonal skills to build partnerships and connect startups with opportunities.
• Creative and analytical thinking to address the unique challenges faced by early-stage ventures.

• Design, coordinate and lead innovation and startup-support activities, including workshops, ideation sessions, pitch sessions, mastermind sessions, start-up wars, innovation challenges and hackathons.
• Build an innovation culture by engaging students, staff, alumni and community innovators, and encourage creative problem-solving and out-of-the-box thinking among incubates.
• Identify promising ideas by helping innovators spot real problems and market opportunities, and track emerging trends to keep innovators competitive.
• Assess the viability of early-stage ideas and give constructive feedback to shape them into well-defined, viable solutions.
• Develop and refine the pipeline framework, with clear stages, selection criteria and milestones, guiding innovators from ideation to market entry and tailoring support to their needs.
• Prepare innovators for ideas presentation and screening.
• Manage ideas through the pipeline, from screening and validation to prototyping and incubation readiness.
• Track and evaluate the progress of each idea, adjust support where needed and advance the strongest to the next stage.
• Support innovators to build, test and refine products, services and business solutions, offering strategic advice on product development, business models and market strategy.
• Guide iterative prototyping and user testing so that solutions respond to real customer needs.
• Facilitate customer discovery and market testing to confirm demand for innovators’ solutions.
• Support value proposition development and business model refinement, testing assumptions for scalability and sustainability, and integrating emerging trends into the process.
• Coordinate structured incubation for selected ventures, with defined development milestones and regular progress reviews, and oversee the allocation of resources such as workspace and technology.
• Provide ongoing mentorship and facilitation, linking ventures to mentors, industry experts, investors, partners and relevant support services.
• Provide one-on-one and group coaching on ideation, product development, business modelling, pitching and venture readiness.
• Build and maintain a network of stakeholders, including universities, corporations, government bodies and venture capitalists, and facilitate collaboration between ventures and external partners to enhance innovation and scalability.
• Prepare innovators for grants, competitions, pitching opportunities and potential investment, connecting them to investors and funders.
• Support the development of pitch decks, financial projections and funding applications.
• Track and report outcomes, including ventures supported, products developed, funding secured, market entry and commercialization progress.
• Evaluate venture progress and use data and insights to improve programmes, adjust support and demonstrate impact to partners and stakeholders.

• Deep understanding of the startup journey, encompassing challenges such as funding, scaling, and achieving market fit.
• Ability to inspire and manage a diverse entrepreneurial team while guiding entrepreneurs toward success.
• Strong interpersonal skills to build partnerships and connect startups with opportunities.
• Creative and analytical thinking to address the unique challenges faced by early-stage ventures.

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, technology, or entrepreneurship, or a related field.
• A minimum of 5 years of experience in innovation, incubation, acceleration and commercialization support, business advisory services, or economic development, with a focus on University or Institutional innovation and incubation centers.
• A background in entrepreneurship, business development, or innovation management is preferred, along with a track record of working with startups or leading projects.