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National Research Foundation

Head/ Deputy Head/ Assistant Head, Innovation & Enterprise

National Research Foundation

Permanent/ContractClosed

What the role is

The National Research Foundation (NRF) is a department within the Prime Minister's Office, and we set the national direction for Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) by developing policies, plans and strategies; funding strategic initiatives that strengthen our scientific and technological capabilities, grow our RIE talent base, and achieve economic and national impact; and fostering RIE collaboration in Singapore and internationally.

What you will be working on

The candidate will play a key role in shaping the I&E landscape, and planning for the next five-year RIE2030 plan. The strategic work will help guide the I&E policies and address challenges identified in the RIE ecosystem, to ensure Singapore is well-positioned for the future. Responsibilities: • Facilitate the commercialisation of NRF research outcomes and bring innovative technologies closer to the relevant markets; • Build a data-centric and qualitative understanding of the R&D and innovation landscape of key industry sectors; • Work with Economic Agencies to develop sector-specific strategies to build sectoral leadership and grow a critical mass of companies with strong Innovation Mandate in Singapore, including emerging sectors that drive the next bound of growth for our economy; • Work closely with key stakeholders in the ecosystem, including universities, research institutes, start-ups, venture funds, companies and government agencies, to implement schemes effectively and to identify any gaps that require intervention in our I&E ecosystem; • Manage various Innovation and Enterprise (I&E) Funding Initiatives administered by NRF; and • Secretariat to the Innovation and Enterprise (I&E) Exco to drive national level I&E strategies that enable us to: (i) capture economic value from our R&D investments, (ii) grow new transformative Deep Tech clusters with the potential to enable large economic growth.

What we are looking for

• Background in science, engineering, economics or public policy; • 3-5 years of relevant working experience preferably working on tech policy or driving innovation in a technology startup or company; • Strong analytical abilities with a broad sense of perspective; • Excellent written and verbal communication skills; and • Ability to collaborate well with others.

About National Research Foundation

The National Research Foundation (NRF) was set up on 1 January 2006 as a department under the Prime Minister's Office. It was set up to perform the following: a) To provide secretariat support to the Research, Innovation and Enterprise Council (RIEC), chaired by the Senior Minister; b) To coordinate the research of different agencies within the larger national framework in order to provide a coherent strategic overview and direction; c) To develop policies and plans to implement the five strategic thrusts for the national R&D agenda; and d) To implement national research, innovation and enterprise strategies approved by the RIEC, and to allocate funding to programmes that meet NRF's strategic objectives.

About your application process

If you do not hear from us within 4 weeks of the job ad closing date, we seek your understanding that it is likely that we are not moving forward with your application for this role. We thank you for your interest and would like to assure you that this does not affect your other job applications with the Public Service. We encourage you to explore and apply for other roles within National Research Foundation or the wider Public Service.