Associate Director for Research Development

About the Role

The Associate Director for Research Development will collaborate to strengthen Purdue Engineering’s research enterprise by developing and pursuing large-scale funding strategies for complex, cross-disciplinary projects. This role focuses on an entrepreneurial, problem-solving approach to explore, launch, and sustain strategic research initiatives with broad societal impact.

Reporting to the Assistant Dean/CRDO, the Associate Director supports strategic planning and develops large-scale ($10M+) funding proposals aligned with Purdue Engineering’s priorities in research, workforce and talent development, and research communications. The role aims to expand and enhance Purdue Engineering’s center-scale research enterprise, enabling more competitive large-scale research proposals.

Examples of initiatives include NSF Engineering Research Centers, DOE Energy Frontier Research Centers, NSF MRSEC, NSF Regional Innovation Engines, DOE Genesis Mission, DOD center-scale competitions, and federal appropriations requests. The role also involves leveraging AI-enabled tools for opportunity identification, landscape analysis, and proposal preparation.

Responsibilities

• Provide administrative support and leadership on strategic planning, large-scale grant proposals, and other initiatives to sustain a process-oriented, communicative, and efficient research development team.
• Build a learning community encouraging ambitious, multidisciplinary research; facilitate brainstorming meetings; draft complex grant proposal content; forge inter- and intra-institutional partnerships; and facilitate proposal reviews (e.g., red team reviews).
• Launch and sustain strategic planning and proposal support programs to incentivize researchers to pursue large-scale funding opportunities and enhance University-wide engagement with CoE research infrastructure.
• Identify and disseminate upcoming strategic funding opportunities targeted to CoE faculty, utilizing AI tools where relevant.
• Assist faculty in all aspects of strategic proposal development, writing, editing, and preparation, including drafting and editing non-technical proposal material (e.g., Management Plans, Communications & Outreach Plans, Broader Impacts Plans, Technology Transfer Plans, Education and Workforce Development Plans, and Project Management Plans).
• Ensure exhaustive and rigorous compliance with all RFP requirements; edit technical and non-technical research proposal content.
• Develop proposal templates and boilerplate language for CoE researchers in collaboration with the proposal support team in the Office of Research.
• Identify and distill large, multidisciplinary funding opportunities from federal and non-federal sources, maintaining an AI-assisted opportunity pipeline capturing sponsor, program, funding level, deadline, and phase structure.
• Ensure faculty and research leadership are aware of extramural funding opportunities and facilitate information flow to internal audiences (faculty, committees, leadership, and staff).
• Lead internal communications strategy, including newsletters, email, website, and content development for faculty.
• Collaborate with the Associate Director of Strategic Research Initiatives, Assoc. Dean for Research, relevant CoE staff, OOR, and other university offices to facilitate complex grantsmanship best practices, mentorship, and training.
• Develop strategies to align funding opportunities with CoE faculty research interests and university-wide strategic priorities.
• Launch and manage programs engaging and incentivizing CoE faculty to pursue large-scale funding opportunities through tailored training.
• Liaise with extramural sponsors and program officers; provide strategic planning, communications, and operational support to match researchers with strategic opportunities.
• Embark on strategic, unforeseen, and opportunistic special projects advancing CoE’s research community visibility, nimbleness, and funding potential (e.g., partnership formation, strategic planning committees, new program design).
• Troubleshoot, participate in crisis management, and manage expectations of leadership and external partners.
• Serve as a confidential sounding board to the Asst. Dean/CRDO, Assoc. Dean for Research, and ORI team to test ideas and provide critical feedback.
• Occasional travel may be required for special projects.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree.
• Four (4) years of research development, grant writing, or federal proposal development experience.
• An equivalent combination of education and relevant experience will be considered.

Skills

• Motivated by a team-centric culture with a focus on building enduring administrative structures.
• Comfort in an entrepreneurial, risk-taking, and “start-up” environment.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate effectively with stakeholders, including executive leadership, government employees, vendors, and external partners.
• Demonstrated ability to develop written content for internal and external audiences, adapting narrative styles for promotional, instructional, and analytical purposes.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
• Working familiarity with the federal funding landscape and ability to engage credibly with faculty on technical content (specific research methods proficiency not required, but eagerness to learn is essential).
• Demonstrated interest in applying AI tools to research development work, including opportunity identification, summarization, and drafting support.
• Excellent communication (verbal and written) and interpersonal skills.
• Outstanding organizational and project management skills.
• High level of discretion, good judgment, initiative, integrity, trustworthiness, diplomacy, respect, and team collaboration.
• Flexibility, collegiality, and eagerness to move projects forward in a start-up and risk-taking environment.
• Ability to multitask and respond professionally in challenging situations.

Preferred Qualifications

• Advanced degree (Master’s).
• Experience supporting center-scale or multi-institutional proposals ($5M+) to federal agency sponsors.
• Familiarity with NSF, DOE, DOD, NIH, and federal agency center-level programs.

About Us

The College of Engineering at Purdue University is among the best and largest engineering schools globally, with nearly 16,000 engineering students and over 500 tenure-track faculty. This role offers the opportunity to impact one of the world’s most influential universities.

For more information, visit College of Engineering, Purdue University.

Benefits

For details on Purdue’s benefits, visit Purdue’s benefits summary.