Commercial Director

Techleap is a Dutch ecosystem builder creating ideal conditions for start-ups and scale-ups. Their communities allow entrepreneurs to connect, share, and learn from each other. The Commercial Director will build this momentum, support professionalization and commercialization of the BOLD and DLiT communities, and develop a holistic community-focused approach to deep tech.

About Techleap

Start-ups and scale-ups create tomorrow’s jobs and drive progress in vital areas such as energy transition, cyber security, and healthcare. The Netherlands is a European innovation hotspot and Techleap is an Amsterdam-based non-profit organization determined to keep it that way. In 2019, they launched as a catalyst towards entrepreneurship. Together with public and private stakeholders, Techleap built a well-connected, inclusive, and self-empowered Dutch tech ecosystem that boosts growth in investments, talent, and jobs.

Techleap supports founders and tech ventures by solving their most pressing challenges: hiring talent, raising capital, and expanding internationally. A main focus is to establish a curated community called BOLD. It’s where more than four hundred founders and CxOs connect, openly share challenges, and find solutions together. Another key focus is to help the government design tech-friendly policies, such as the taxation of equity remuneration. Additionally, Techleap runs programs, hosts events, provides access to resources and international networks, and shares expertise.

“The Dutch tech start-up ecosystem has come a long way, but acceleration is still needed to become one of the global frontrunners. To achieve that goal, we will double down on growing our founder communities, deep tech programs, data capabilities, collaboration with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, and community building.” – Constantijn van Oranje, Special Envoy for Techleap

Techleap has been a publicly funded organization since its launch. But recently, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy extended Techleap’s mandate at half the budget with a request to raise additional public and private funding. In response, the Techleap has launched a campaign to bring people and capital together to continue its invaluable work. This has heightened their strategy around impact, funding, and collaboration with stakeholders. The team also created a transformation plan to prepare the spin-off of certain activities, increase focus on deep tech, and strengthen commercial and entrepreneurial capabilities to maximize their contributions to the Dutch start-up and scale-up ecosystem.

Vacancy: Commercial Director

The Commercial Director will oversee Techleap’s rollout of its commercial strategy and value propositions that are powered by its communities and programs. The Director will ensure a consistent and tech sector-worthy approach across all activities and support the communities and programs, which are in different stages of maturity. The Commercial Director will also foster the growth of the communities and attract sponsors and mentors who have earned their stripes as entrepreneurs and are willing to give back.

“As one of the drivers of our transformation towards a more commercial and entrepreneurial organization, the Commercial Director plays a vital role in the success of our platform. I’m looking forward to working with them on strengthening the BOLD and DLiT propositions and building a community tailored to deep tech.” – Constantijn van Oranje, Special Envoy for Techleap

The Commercial Director will govern the BOLD and DLiT communities and build a more integrated offering around Techleap’s deep tech programs. BOLD is a founder-led, curated ecosystem that accelerates the growth of the Dutch tech sector by providing entrepreneurs with valuable connections and insights on areas they want to address.

And DLiT is an acronym for Diverse Leaders in Tech. This community fosters diversity and inclusivity. It is specifically tailored to underrepresented groups in the ecosystem and helps to push diversity, provide expertise, and build connections in Dutch tech start-ups and scale-ups. Additionally, the Director and their team will support the development of programs and a new stage-and-technology segmented community that focuses on deep tech.

With the changes in Techleap’s funding, the mission for this role will be to strengthen the overall value propositions and help Techleap to commercialize. They will help find a solution for the organization to financially sustain itself independently. To enhance the commercialization potential of the communities, the Director will support its teams in developing elements that fit the current and future offering, bring up-to-date insights to help guide the team, ensure focus and effective prioritization, and frequently connect with community members and strategic partners.

This exciting role has a unique opportunity to build strong relationships throughout the Dutch deep tech space. The Commercial Director will join Techleap’s Leadership Team, and guide the organization through its upcoming transformation while actively building its communities and programs.

Interested?

Techleap is working with Top of Minds to fill this vacancy.
To express your interest, please contact Marlies Hoogvliet at marlies.hoogvliet@topofminds.com