Market Research Analyst, Nicholas School of the Environment

Duke University:Duke University was created in 1924 through an indenture of trust by James Buchanan Duke. Today, Duke is regarded as one of America’s leading research universities. Located in Durham, North Carolina, Duke is positioned in the heart of the Research Triangle, which is ranked annually as one of the best places in the country to work and live. Duke has more than 15,000 students who study and conduct research in its 10 undergraduate, graduate and professional schools. With about 40,000 employees, Duke is the third largest private employer in North Carolina, and it now has international programs in more than 150 countries.Market Research AnalystThe Market Research Analyst is a full-time employee with responsibility for overseeing and implementing the Nicholas School of the Environment lab-to-market program. This includes working with, informing, and educating students and faculty on the lab-to-market process, helping faculty to implement the lab-to-market process in their areas of research and engaging industry partners and potential investors in the process. It will be necessary to work with both internal and external support organizations to ensure proper processes, operational systems, and overall continuity of the lab-to-market roadmap, the submission of intellectual property disclosures, the funding and development of prototypes and the startup of new companies as needed within the Nicholas School lab-to-market process. The Market Research Analyst will interface with various Nicholas School departments, the Duke Office of Research Services (ORS), the Duke Office of Technology Commercialization (OTC) and the Duke Office for Research & Innovation (ORI), as well external prototyping and other community ecosystem partner organizations. The director will build and maintain close relationships with the venture capital community, industry and potential launching customers.Responsibilities• Work directly with interested NSOE faculty to develop a plan for transitioning their research into commercial applications. Review faculty ideas for technology commercialization. Communicate and advise on possible pathways for commercialization both within NSOE and externally. Assist in carrying out key actions to move the technology through the lab-to-market roadmap.• Lead teams conducting research to determine the probability of success for products and services based on NSOE technology. Evaluate ideas using the “Venture Opportunity Analysis” methodology. Make recommendations for further action and assist teams in carrying out those actions as needed• Develop competitor analysis for NSOE commercialization activities and the lab-to-market program itself. Carry out direct and indirect market research to help position the lab-to-market program as a leader amongst other university programs. Develop communications strategy to ensure consistent leadership positioning relative to other university tech-to-market programs. 10%• Identifies and communicates with domain experts to establish product development success criteria. Identifies industry experts (e.g., product managers, innovation managers, product engineers, consultants, etc.) and presents technical innovations to gain feedback on potential product design pathways and commercialization pathways and business models for product designs based on faculty technology.• Lead the effective execution of the NSOE lab-to-market program and the judicious deployment of capital available for lab-to-market and NSOE spin-out activities. Supports technology transition from research up to product development (conceptualization → technology validation → market validation → prototyping) making recommendations for investment throughout the development process based on resources available (e.g., Hubbard Fund and donor funding working closely with NSOE Office of Donor and Alumni Development; but also grant funding working with various organizations within Duke). Supports the development of faculty proposals to gain funding.• Develop and implement product development plans for NSOE technologies as needed. Create product specifications documents (e.g., initial target specification summaries, product requirements documents, etc., depending on maturity of NSOE technology) and identify resources and activities required to develop first prototypes to demonstrate minimum viable product (MVP) with the technology.• Support grant writing, taking a leadership role in commercialization sections of grants.Lead proposal development related to commercialization (e.g., ARPAE T2M, STTR, Foundations, Prizes, and industry contracts).• Develop and implement business plans for company spinouts. Work with faculty and students as needed to prepare key components of a business plan (product description, market analysis, team description, go-to-market plan, operational plan, etc.) to gain further grant agency funding (e.g., ARPAE T2M, NSF SEED fund, NSF TIP, NSF iCorp, etc.) or, if justified, investor funding (Prelude, GigaScale, Congruent, SJF, etc.).• Be key point of contact at NSOE for NSOE spinouts. Be the central contact person for external parties who are interested in NSOE technology, facilitating meetings with NSOE faculty to engage with industry experts, market experts, potential customers, potential investors, agency program managers.• Travel for conferences and showcases, with a commitment to spending at least 15% of your time on the road to represent our brand and products. Lead efforts to showcase NSOE technology in national and international events that are designed to showcase our lab-to-market program and our emerging product technologies (e.g., Prototypes for Humanity, ARPA-E Summit, Distributech, GreenBiz, Verge, Duke Centennial Event, etc.).Preferred Skill Set• Technical Expertise: Hold a degree in Computer Science, Information Science, or a related technical field, providing a solid foundation for understanding complex product development.• Product Development & Marketing: Experience in consulting or high-paced startups to support every phase of product development, from ideation to market launch. Offer strategic advice on designing, promoting, and packaging products and services that align with consumer preferences, ensuring a customer-centric approach that drives engagement and adoption.• Project Management: Work experience in a fast-paced environment, planning, managing and executing tasks with a focus on impactful outcomes.• Market Research & Competitive Analysis: Proven ability to conduct in-depth market research and competitive analysis to guide our early-stage products, ensuring they’re positioned for success.• Data Analytics: Apply strong data analytics skills to manage complex data sets, uncovering insights that inform strategic decisions.• Client & Investor Engagement: Demonstrate exceptional communication and presentation skills to confidently engage with senior internal and external clients and potential investors, developing and articulating the value of new technology innovations.• Cross-functional collaboration: Work closely with researchers, postdocs, professors, and technical/business experts to bridge the gap between technical and marketing teams. Demonstrated ability to translate cutting-edge research into product specifications, value-added features and benefits for external consumption• Proposal & Research Paper Writing: Demonstrated success in writing proposals and supporting leading faculty in development of research papers to secure funding, support product development initiatives, and contribute to thought leadership in the industry.• Energy & Marine Sciences Knowledge: Working knowledge of energy markets and the marine sciences domain to support industry-specific product insights and development.Preferred Qualifications• Advanced Degree: A Master’s degree in Technology Management or Product Development.• Experience: Minimum 3-5 years consulting, product development experience with a major firm. Minimum 1-2 years experience in a leading academic or education environment.• Teaching & Training Experience: Previous experience working with faculty and researchers and educating/mentoring students.• Self-starter: Proven self-starter with a passion to be a hands-on expert.Minimum QualificationsEducationBachelors degree in statistics, business or related field is required. Masters degree preferred.ExperienceA minimum of three years experience in statistical modeling/analysis is or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience. required. Experience must include providing written and oral presentations of results. Work experience in higher education a plus.Duke is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing employment opportunity without regard to an individual's age, color, disability, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status.Duke aspires to create a community built on collaboration, innovation, creativity, and belonging. Our collective success depends on the robust exchange of ideas—an exchange that is best when the rich diversity of our perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences flourishes. To achieve this exchange, it is essential that all members of the community feel secure and welcome, that the contributions of all individuals are respected, and that all voices are heard. All members of our community have a responsibility to uphold these values.Essential Physical Job Functions: Certain jobs at Duke University and Duke University Health System may include essentialjob functions that require specific physical and/or mental abilities. Additional information and provision for requests for reasonable accommodation will be provided by each hiring department.