ABOUT THE ROLE
This role is both strategic and operational.
About the role
The Technical Lead will provide technical and strategic leadership for the Health Innovation Hub at Amref International University (AMIU). The role will drive the development, implementation, incubation, validation, commercialization, and scaling of innovative solutions to priority health challenges.
The Technical Lead, Health Innovation Hub will provide technical and strategic leadership in the design, development, implementation, and scaling of health innovation initiatives at Amref International University.
The role holder will lead the development of an enabling health innovation ecosystem that connects students, faculty, researchers, healthcare practitioners, entrepreneurs, industry, government, investors, development partners, and other ecosystem actors to identify and address priority health challenges.
The Technical Lead will provide technical guidance on innovation programmes, challenge-based innovation, ideation, prototyping, incubation, acceleration, technology adoption, commercialization, and scaling of health innovations. The role will also support the integration of innovation and entrepreneurship across academic programmes and strengthen pathways for students and innovators to translate ideas and research into viable health solutions.
At the strategic level, the role holder will identify emerging opportunities, develop strategic partnerships, mobilize resources, support innovation funding opportunities, and position the Health Innovation Hub as a credible platform for health innovation, entrepreneurship, research translation, and ecosystem development.
Overall, the role holder will be a technical expert, innovation ecosystem builder, problem solver, mentor, and strategic partner capable of translating emerging health challenges and opportunities into practical, scalable, and sustainable innovation initiatives.
Key Responsibilities
1. Innovation Leadership
• Lead the development, implementation, and continuous review of the Health Innovation Hub strategy and annual operational plans.
• Develop and implement innovation programmes aligned with AMIU's strategic priorities and the broader Amref Health Africa agenda.
• Identify emerging health challenges, technologies, trends, and opportunities that can inform the Hub's innovation portfolio.
• Provide technical leadership in health innovation, entrepreneurship, technology adoption, and innovation ecosystem development.
• Develop frameworks, guidelines, tools, and processes for managing health innovation initiatives.
• Provide strategic intelligence and technical recommendations to Institute and University leadership on health innovation opportunities.
• Support the integration of innovation, entrepreneurship, design thinking, and problem solving approaches across relevant academic and professional education programmes.
• Establish mechanisms for tracking the performance, outcomes, impact, and sustainability of innovation initiatives.
2. Innovation Programme Management
• Design and coordinate innovation programmes, challenges, hackathons, innovation competitions, boot camps, accelerator programmes, and other innovation activities.
• Lead the identification and prioritization of health problems that can be addressed through innovative solutions.
• Facilitate ideation, design thinking, prototyping, testing, validation, and refinement of health innovations.
• Establish structured pathways for moving innovations from idea to prototype, validation, implementation, commercialization, and scale.
• Provide technical support to innovators, students, researchers, faculty, entrepreneurs, and start-ups participating in Hub programmes.
• Develop innovation toolkits, curricula, training materials, mentorship approaches, and technical resources.
• Coordinate technical review and assessment of innovations to determine their feasibility, relevance, scalability, sustainability, and potential impact.
• Support innovators to develop business models, value propositions, implementation plans, and investment-ready propositions.
• Facilitate linkages between promising innovations and
3. Partnerships and Ecosystem Development
• Build partnerships with universities, government, healthcare organizations, industry, investors, innovators, and development partners.
• Represent the Hub at innovation and health-sector forums.
• Develop partnerships that strengthen the Hub's sustainability and impact.
4. Research Translation and Commercialization
• Support translation of research and innovations into practical health solutions.
• Facilitate commercialization, technology transfer, intellectual property, and scaling pathways.
• Connect innovators with users, investors and implementation partners.
5. Capacity Building
• Develop and deliver training in innovation, entrepreneurship, design thinking and problem-solving.
• Mentor students, researchers, entrepreneurs and innovators.
• Support integration of innovation and entrepreneurship into relevant AMIU programmes.
6. Resource Mobilization
• Identify grants, investment and partnership opportunities.
• Support development of proposals and concept notes.
• Develop sustainable business and revenue models for the Hub.
7. Monitoring, Evaluation and Impact
• Track innovation programmes and their outcomes.
• Measure innovation, partnership, commercialization and health impact.
• Prepare technical and impact reports and document lessons learned.
8. Communication and Visibility
• Promote the Hub, its innovations, partnerships and achievements.
• Coordinate innovation showcases, pitch events, exhibitions and knowledge products.
• Strengthen AMIU's visibility within the African health innovation ecosystem.
Qualifications and Experience
• A Bachelors’ degree in Business, Engineering, Health Sciences, Public Health, Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Technology, Business, IT, or a related field.
• At least 7 years' relevant experience in health innovation, entrepreneurship, technology, research translation, programme management, or ecosystem development.
• Demonstrated experience in innovation programmes, partnerships, mentorship and resource mobilization.
Core Competencies
• Health innovation and ecosystem development
• Design thinking and entrepreneurship
• Programme and project management
• Research translation and commercialization
• Partnership development
• Resource mobilization
• Mentorship and facilitation
• Strategic thinking and problem-solving
• Monitoring, evaluation and learning
• Strong communication and stakeholder management
Key Performance Areas
Success will be measured through:
• Innovation programmes implemented
• Innovators and students supported.
• Innovations progressing from idea to validation and scale.
• Strategic partnerships developed.
• Resources mobilized.
• Innovations adopted, commercialized or scaled.
• Research translated into practical solutions.
• Sustainability and impact of the Health Innovation Hub.
Your application should include a cover letter detailing why you are the best fit for this position and your CV with relevant skills and experience. The closing date will be 10th November 2026.
All Amref International University open vacancies are published on our website under the Vacancies page and on our official social media pages. Kindly note that official emails from AmIU will arrive from an @amref.ac.ke or @amref.org address.
Amref International University is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults and expects all staff to share this commitment. Amref International University is dedicated to diversity and is an equal-opportunity employer with a non-smoking environment policy.