TC Manager Biotech Booster Program

Job Description

As Thematic Cluster Manager (TCM) for Industrial Production, you are the linchpin in the Dutch ecosystem for industrial biotechnology. You will provide guidance to an expert team of business and impact developers, build a national network of academic and industrial partners, and be ultimately responsible for accelerating scientific breakthroughs into market-ready, high-impact applications. Based at TU Delft, you will shape the national strategy and ensure that the most promising biotech ideas grow into successful start-ups and investable propositions. You will be part of the team of Delft Enterprises, the tech transfer office of TU Delft.

Biotech Booster Program

The goal of the Biotech Booster program is to increase the return on the valorization of scientific research and to strengthen the Dutch biotech ecosystem. Within Biotech Booster, researchers and entrepreneurs work together to build investable propositions, combining knowledge and expertise from both perspectives. This process is supported by a tailor-made approach, aiming to guide ideas in a way that maximizes their economic and societal impact. Once an idea is robust enough, we support the team in finding partners and funding for further growth as a start-up or as part of an existing company.

TU Delft serves as the national anchor point for industrial biotech. As TC you will lead the Thematic Cluster (TC) for Industrial Production, which supports projects from various universities and universities of applied sciences. In this role you also join the TC managers meeting with the other 4 Clusters led by 4 other universities together with the management of the Biotech Booster central organisation to support the national program. For more information, also regarding the other clusters, please visit the website biotechbooster.nl.

Job Description - What will you be doing as a Thematic Cluster Manager?

 Your role is a combination of coordination of processes, providing professional guidance to colleagues, strategy, and ecosystem development. You are the driving force behind the success of your cluster.

Coordination and Management of the TC Office:

• You will coordinate the work of the team of six Business and Impact developers and provide them with guidance on content.
• You are responsible for monitoring and coordinating the project pipeline and portfolio of the cluster, steering towards results and impact.
• You will ensure strategic alignment with the overarching mission of Biotech Booster and the other thematic clusters.
• You are ultimately responsible for the activity and financial reports to the funding bodies.

Development of the Thematic Cluster as a National Ecosystem:

• You will further develop and realise the goal-action plan for the Industrial Production cluster, in line with the national Biotech Booster objectives. Also you will report regularly to the Ministry of OCW on the performance of the Thematic Cluster.
• You will build and maintain a robust (inter)national network of academic experts, industrial partners, investors, and other relevant stakeholders.
• You will be a visible ambassador for Biotech Booster and ensure the positioning and visibility of the cluster in the Netherlands and abroad.

Coordinating of Subsidy Rounds and Project Development:

• You will coordinate and lead the project evaluation and selection process within your cluster, ensuring transparent and effective decision-making.
• You will facilitate and support the business developers in complex business development trajectories and stakeholder management at the project level.
• You will monitor the progress of projects, identify trends and bottlenecks, and report on these to the program management.

Job requirements

• Academic level of working and thinking, with at least an MSc degree in a field relevant to industrial biotechnology, or equivalent work experience.
• At least 5-7 years of relevant work experience in a strategic, connecting role, for example in business development, valorisation or R&D management within the biotech sector.
• Experience in providing substantive guidance and support to a team of professionals.
• In-depth knowledge of and a strong, relevant network within the (industrial) biotechnology sector in the Netherlands and the EU.
• You are a strategic thinker, a connector and a networker who can translate a vision into concrete actions and results.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in both Dutch and English.

TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

University Corporate Office - Innovation & Impact Centre

You will join the Innovation & Impact Centre (I&IC), which is responsible for valorisation - the university's third core task alongside education and research. We are committed to ensure that the knowledge and technology we develop at TU Delft benefits society. The work at I&IC is diverse and ranges from advising on research funding to setting up large public-private partnerships. We are also engaged in the development of the TU Delft Campus as an innovation ecosystem. We encourage entrepreneurship, (inter)national cooperation and strategic planning in the field of innovation.

Depending on your profile, you will work in the field of research funding (both NL and EU), intellectual property, public affairs, corporate innovations, campus development, projects or innovation affairs. The I&IC is located at the heart of the TU Delft Campus, the vibrant innovation ecosystem that houses almost 300 companies, knowledge institutions, field labs, (pre-)incubators, restaurants and cafés in addition to the university. An inspiring place where you surround yourself daily with students, researchers, entrepreneurs and other innovative minds; all driven by the same mission: impact for a better society.

Conditions of employment 

• Duration of contract is 1 jaar. Temporary external finance
• A job of 32-40 hours per week. 
• A salary based on Scale 12 of the CAO for Dutch Universities with a salary between €5705 - €7297 gross per month based on a fulltime contract (38 hours), plus 8% holiday allowance and an end-of-year bonus of 8.3%.  
• An excellent pension scheme via the ABP. 
• The possibility to compile an individual employment package every year. 
• Discount with health insurers on supplemental packages. 
• Flexible working week. 
• Every year, 232 leave hours (at 38 hours). You can also sell or buy additional leave hours via the individual choice budget. 
• Plenty of opportunities for education, training and courses. 
• Partially paid parental leave 
• Attention for working healthy and energetically with the vitality program. 

Additional information

For more information about this vacancy and the application procedure, please contact Ronald Gelderblom, director Delft Enterprises, via r.gelderblom@tudelft.nl     

Application procedure

Are you interested in this vacancy? Please apply no later than 21 October 2025 via the application button and upload the following documents:

• CV
• Motivational letter

You can address your application to Ronald Gelderblom, directeur Delft Enterprises.

Please note:

• You can apply online. We will not process applications sent by email and/or post. 
• As part of knowledge security, TU Delft conducts a risk assessment during the recruitment of personnel. We do this, among other things, to prevent the unwanted transfer of sensitive knowledge and technology. The assessment is based on information provided by the candidates themselves, such as their motivation letter and CV, and takes place at the final stages of the selection process. When the outcome of the assessment is negative, the candidate will be informed. The processing of personal data in the context of the risk assessment is carried out on the legal basis of the GDPR: performing a public task in the public interest. You can find more information about this assessment on our website about knowledge security.
• Please do not contact us for unsolicited services.