Vice President for Research and Innovation

The University of Minnesota

Minneapolis, Minnesota

The University of Minnesota (“the University”)—a prestigious, comprehensive, public, land-grant research university—seeks a strategic, collaborative, and dynamic leader to serve as its next Vice President for Research and Innovation (VPRI). The VPRI will join the University at an exciting moment in time and will help shape its next chapter. Under the leadership of the University’s president, Dr. Rebecca Cunningham, the University recently introduced Elevate Extraordinary 2030, its strategic roadmap. Research and innovation is a vital component of the roadmap as the University deepens its commitment to research, scholarship, and creative activity and further expand its impact locally, nationally, and globally.

The University receives over $1.4 billion in research funding annually. The National Science Foundation ranks the University 12th among U.S. public research universities, and US News and World Report ranks it 23rd among Top Public Schools nationally. The Times Higher Education Sustainability Impact Ranking places the University fifth nationally and in the top 10 percent globally. The University of Minnesota ranked first among U.S. public universities in the Times Higher Education Interdisciplinary Science Ranking. The University serves the state of Minnesota in multiple areas: its five campuses enroll 68,000 undergraduate and graduate students; its more than 600,000 alumni (62 percent of whom live in Minnesota) contribute to the state’s economy; its healthcare enterprise serves over 1.3 million patients annually in hospitals and clinics across the state; and its extension programs provide solutions, practical education, and training for all Minnesotans. The University of Minnesota is home to 4,926 faculty and over 23,000 non-academic staff. Among its faculty, the University currently boasts 26 Nobel Prize recipients, members of the National Academies, and recipients of prestigious awards such as Guggenheim and MacArthur Fellowships, among others.

Reporting directly to the President, the VPRI serves as the University’s chief research officer across the system. The University of Minnesota seeks a VPRI with tested strategic leadership and vision to elevate an already robust research enterprise and drive it to its next level of impact. The VPRI supports the University community and its mission by fostering a culture of quality, high-impact, multidisciplinary research and scholarship; setting a broad, ethical, and inclusive vision for the research enterprise; aligning the Research and Innovation Office around a shared vision; promoting faculty and student scholarship; allocating resources strategically; and expanding funding relationships with industry, foundation, institutional, and government (state and federal) partners. They will address critical operational challenges to maintain the superior research infrastructure necessary for seamlessly supporting the high volume of cutting-edge grant-active faculty, including professional development for research support staff, modernizing the infrastructure for grant submission, financial management, and human and animal subjects and safety, streamlining compliance systems, and developing relevant policies and procedures.

The successful candidate will have a strong record of securing external funding for their own research program and will be qualified for a faculty appointment at the rank of full professor with tenure. They will be an energetic champion of the University’s values and mission, an excellent communicator with different constituencies, and an experienced University administrator, to effectively manage the vast research enterprise across the University’s campuses.

COMPENSATION AND LOCATION

The Vice President for Research and Innovation is a 100-percent time, 12-month, professional and administrative (P&A) appointment based in Minneapolis. Salary is commensurate with education and experience, with an anticipated salary range of $475,000 - $515,000.

The University of Minnesota offers excellent benefits. Please visit the Office of Human Resources website for more information regarding benefit eligibility.

APPLICATIONS, INQUIRIES, AND NOMINATIONS

Screening of complete applications will begin immediately and continue until the completion of the search process. Applications (including CV and cover letter), inquiries, and nominations should be submitted in confidence to Rebecca Kennedy, Dan Rodas, Keith Mason, Stephen Kalogeras, and Cortnee Bollard via the Isaacson, Miller website: https://www.imsearch.com/open-searches/university-minnesota/vice-president-research-and-innovation

University of Minnesota Equal Opportunity Statement: The University of Minnesota shall provide equal access to and opportunity in its programs, facilities, and employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, age, marital status, familial status, disability, public assistance status, membership or activity in a local commission created for the purpose of dealing with discrimination, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.