Partner, UK Partnerships & Programs

The Role

• Lead UK Residency & FRO pipeline: Own the execution of our UK Residency program. Identify and source breakthrough research concepts from across British universities and institutes, recruit stellar founding teams, shepherd them through the Residency, and launch new FROs in partnership with ARIA and other funders.
• Manage UK Office and Hiring: Help our team continue to build the operational foundations Convergent needs in the UK, supporting recruitment of new team members and ensuring our UK entity can support a growing FRO portfolio.
• Grow UK government and funding relationships: Deepen our partnership with ARIA while building relationships with UKRI, Innovate UK, DSIT, and other agencies funding high‑risk research. Position Convergent as the trusted operating partner for ambitious public‑good science across the UK funding landscape.
• Represent Convergent in UK policy and science circles: Be Convergent’s face in London, Cambridge, and beyond. Speak at conferences, engage with policymakers, build relationships with university leadership and research directors, and ensure the FRO model is understood and valued by the UK science establishment.
• Provide board governance: Serve as voting board member on multiple UK‑based FROs, bringing strategic oversight, removing blockers, ensuring milestones align with both scientific ambition and funder requirements, and helping founders navigate the unique challenges of the UK research landscape.
• Shape Convergent’s UK/Europe strategy: Work with Convergent leadership to refine our UK expansion roadmap, identify which partnerships and programs align with our mission, and ensure we scale our UK/Europe presence without losing what makes us effective.

Ideal Person for This Role

You have operated in both the startup world and the UK science/policy world, and you believe research can move much, MUCH faster. You are comfortable white‑boarding with a systems biologist and navigating UKRI grant portals. You have built teams and systems from the ground up. You understand that “government‑funded” doesn’t have to mean endless meetings and no progress, and you know the UK has particular operational requirements that must be respected. You are comfortable with ambiguity and able to evolve the role as our UK presence matures.

You Might Be

• A former operator who wants to build institutions at larger scale.
• An ex‑ARIA Program Director or technical specialist who wants to work more directly with founding teams.
• A startup operator who wants to bring the innovation mindset to science.
• A recovering academic administrator who figured out how to make British science move quickly and wants to do it at scale.

Must‑Have Superpowers

• UK science ecosystem fluency: Deep understanding of British research funding (UKRI, ARIA, Innovate UK), university structures, charity/non‑profit regulations, and how to navigate UK science policy without drowning in process.
• Program management: Experience designing, running, and iterating cohort‑based programs, accelerators, residencies, or similar. You know how to create transformative experiences for participants.
• Strategic + ops chops: Can build five‑year roadmaps and also fix the thing that’s broken today.
• Board experience: Comfort with governance, fiduciary responsibility, and making tough calls. Bonus if you understand UK charity governance specifically.
• Relationship builder: Extensive network across UK research institutions, funding bodies, or policy circles. People return your emails and actually want to help you.
• Excellent judgment under uncertainty: Can pressure‑test strategy, identify red flags, and make calls with incomplete information.
• Strong written and verbal communication: Can write for Nature, UKRI grant applications, board memos, and Twitter without changing who you are.
• Empathy for scientists + healthy disrespect for academic incentives: You want to help brilliant researchers succeed, but you’re not precious about “how things are traditionally done”.
• Comfort with wearing many hats (that may all be on fire).

Bonus Points

• Experience at ARIA, UKRI, Innovate UK, or similar as program director/manager/technical specialist.
• Track record of securing large UK government grants or running programs for unconventional research models.
• Deep relationships at Cambridge, Oxford, Imperial, UCL, Edinburgh, or other top research universities.
• Experience with technology transfer or spinning out companies from UK universities.
• Previous startup experience in the UK.

£150,000 – £200,000 a year.

We’re committed to offering competitive, mission‑aligned compensation that reflects the value you’ll bring. For each role, we set a salary range using market benchmarks and internal leveling, and we place offers within that range based on relevant experience, skills, and scope. This range is applicable to hires in the Greater London/Cambridge area and will be geographically adjusted for someone outside those locations. As a nonprofit, our compensation practices are designed to align with our compensation philosophy and tax requirements.

We are an Equal Employment Opportunity employer that proudly pursues and hires a diverse workforce. We do not make hiring or employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion or religious belief, ethnic or national origin, nationality, sex, gender, gender‑identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local, state, or federal law or company policy. We strive for a healthy and safe workplace and strictly prohibit harassment of any kind.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.

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