Are you ready to embark on the coolest job in the world? Join Corporate Value Creation as our Network & Incubator Manager and play a pivotal role in shaping the future of entrepreneurship within Wageningen University & Research. A new created role where you can make your mark with an excellent work-life balance.

About Us:
StartHub Wageningen develops as the academic incubator of Wageningen University & Research (WUR) and is the heartbeat of innovation and societal impact, empowering students and employees of Wageningen University & Research to transform their ideas into validated businesses or societal initiatives. We've cultivated a vibrant, multicultural community of entrepreneurial minds, exploring the frontiers of agro, food, living environment, biotech, medical life sciences, and AI. Together, we are working towards sustainable solutions that make a difference in society.

Your Adventure:
As our Network & Incubator Manager, you will wear multiple hats to enhance the entrepreneurial journey at StartHub Wageningen. Your responsibilities will span community development, hands-on support for startups, and network expansion.

Startup network management & development (60% of your time):

• Cultivate a collaborative environment for startups through workshops, networking events, and knowledge sharing;
• Facilitate communication between entrepreneurs, experts, and potential partners;
• Explore innovative concepts for value creation;
• Actively represent StartHub, promoting WUR startups in relevant ecosystems while stimulating collaboration;
• Generate leads through outreach, networking, and industry events;
• Design onboarding processes for new startups and spin-offs;
• Manage social media in collaboration with the CVC communications team to create narratives.

Entrepreneurial Support (40% of your time):

• Provide hands-on support to StartHub members, refining business plans and connecting them with stakeholders when necessary for the development of their idea;
• Develop tools and systems to aid entrepreneurs at every stage of their development, in close collaboration with our CVC ecosystems lead;
• Support training and education initiatives for entrepreneurs;
• Supervise the StartHub student office and assist in community events;
• Organize guidance for first-time entrepreneurs with an academic background.

We are looking for someone with a strong background in entrepreneurship support, coaching skills, and a talent for creating opportunities in collaboration with ecosystem partners.

You are:

• An excellent networker. You have the ability to build and nurture relationships key players in the startup ecosystem.
• Experience with startup and business development, from ideation to validation and growth. You are able to translate complex scientific content to impact driven propositions and narratives.

You also have:

• Strong communicator in different communication styles for student startup to national policy makers;
• You work well in a high paced environment, being able to deal with a diverse set of tasks and irregular working hours;
• Ambitious, enthusiastic, and results-driven, with strong project management skills.
• Professional proficiency in Dutch and fluency in English.

If you're ready to make an impact, connect with us and be a driving force in the startup ecosystem. Apply now and let's shape the future together!

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• sabbatical leave, study leave, and partially paid parental leave;
• working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
• the option to accrue additional compensation / holiday hours by working more, per week;
• there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
• a fixed December bonus of 8.3%;
• excellent pension scheme.

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will of course receive a good salary. Depending on your experience, we offer a competitive gross salary of between € 3.226 and € 5.090 for a full-time working week of 38 hours, in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU) (scale 10). Additionally, a contract for 0,8 FTE can be discussed.

Wageningen University & Research encourages internal advancement opportunities and mobility with an internal recruitment policy. There are plenty of options for personal initiative in a learning environment, and we provide excellent training opportunities. We are offering a unique position in an international environment with a pleasant and open working atmosphere.

You are going to work at the greenest and most innovative campus in Holland, and at a university that has been chosen as the “Best University” in the Netherlands for the 18th consecutive time.

Coming from abroad
Wageningen University & Research is the university and research centre for life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees. Our team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family.

Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. Wageningen University & Research's International Community page contains practical information about what we can do to support international employees and students coming to Wageningen. Furthermore, we can assist you with any additional advice and information about for example helping your partner to find a job, housing, or schooling.

Finally, certain categories of international staff may be eligible for a tax exemption on a part of their salary during the first five years in the Netherlands.

Wageningen University & Research

The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life”. Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment.

With its roughly 30 branches, 7,600 employees (6,700 fte) and 13,100 students and over 150,000 participants to WUR’s Life Long Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.

Read the 5 reasons why your future colleagues enjoy working at WUR and watch this video to get an idea of our green campus!

We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves, so no employment agencies please. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.