David Gillham appointed interim Commercial Director
Thursday, 08 November 2018
David Gillham has taken up the role of the University’s interim Commercial Director, in addition to his responsibilities at Thames Valley Science Park. He will be reporting to Chief Financial Officer, Samantha Foley.
The Commercial Director is a new role with the responsibility to deliver a commercial strategy that helps the University enhance its income from non-academic activities. The role will also identify key opportunities and partnerships to develop a stronger commercial mindset across the institution while continuing to uphold our principles of research excellence and impact.
The Commercial Function, which the Commercial Director will also lead, includes teams that support the University Research and Knowledge Exchange strategies.
Announcing the appointment, Samantha Foley said, “David will be well-known to many colleagues at the University given his previous experience with Research and Enterprise Services, and is well-placed to help us develop our Commercial Strategy in the coming months”.
David Gillham has been the University since 2006, working as the Director for Research and Enterprise Services before taking over as the Director of the Thames Valley Science Park in August 2014. He worked in Applied Biosciences sector in commercial and research development roles for over 20 years and has board level experience with a number of early-stage companies.
He said, “I am delighted to be taking up this role and look forward to applying my broader experience to bring benefit to the University”.
The process to recruit a permanent Commercial Director will commence before Christmas with a view to having the chosen candidate is in the post around Easter next year.