Officer

The University of Kansas is seeking an Industry Liaison Officer to enhance engagement and membership for the EARTH research consortium. The role involves developing strategies for recruiting members, maintaining relationships with stakeholders, and promoting the Center's mission related to sustainable HVACR technologies. The ideal candidate should possess strong communication skills and a passion for collaboration between academia and industry. This position is located in Lawrence, KS, and is not remote.
Position Overview

The Industry Liaison Officer (ILO) will support the strategic engagement and expansion of the EARTH research consortium. The ILO will serve as the primary conduit for external stakeholders—including industry representatives, professional organizations, and other HVACR-affiliated entities—seeking to engage with the EARTH Engineering Research Center. In this role, the ILO will work closely with the Research Project Manager, the Innovation Officer, and the Director of Education, to promote the Center’s value proposition, enhance external visibility, drive consortium membership, and ensure active sustained member participation in EARTH programs and activities.

An ideal candidate for this position is someone with strong communication and relationship-building skills, and a desire to promote meaningful collaboration between academia and the private sector in support of climate-responsive technologies and engineering workforce development.

About The EARTH Engineering Research Center

Heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and refrigeration (HVACR) are essential to modern quality of life yet remain significant contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions, due to widespread use of high-global-warming-potential (GWP) hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants. The Environmentally Applied Refrigerant Technology Hub (EARTH) is a multi-institutional, National Science Foundation-funded Engineering Research Center (NSF - ERC) developing a sustainable refrigerant lifecycle and catalyzing transformation across the HVACR sector through convergent research, industry-aligned workforce development, and a robust innovation ecosystem.

EARTH includes the University of Kansas as lead institution, five other academic partners: University of Notre Dame, University of Maryland, University of South Dakota, Lehigh University, and the University of Hawaiʻi—and more than 60 other industry, government, and academic collaborators and external stakeholders.

Job Description

65% – Membership Development and External Engagement
• Develop and implement targeted strategies to recruit and onboard new consortium members, aligned with EARTH’s strategic priorities.
• Serve as the principal point of contact for routine interactions with consortium members and prospects.
• Convey EARTH’s mission, research activities, and partnership benefits to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Collaborate with EARTH communications staff on newsletters, events, and promotional materials.
• Coordinate and manage meetings of EARTH Industry Advisory Board (IAB).
• Facilitate consortium member and other external stakeholder participation in EARTH programming.
• Maintain comprehensive contact and engagement records, including tracking and oversight of consortium membership agreement renewals.

25% – Coordination and Program Support
• Work with Research Project Manager, Innovation Officer, and Education Director to align consortium member engagement with research, innovation acceleration, and workforce development activities.
• Support Innovation Officer and Director of Education in visibility-building innovation ecosystem and workforce development strategies.
• Coordinate with Innovation Officer on meetings of EARTH Intellectual Property Advisory Board (IPAB).
• Help identify academic institution infrastructure capabilities and match with consortium member needs.
• Lead consortium member feedback and metrics collection, in support of annual program evaluation.

10% – Other Duties as Assigned
• Participate in cross-ERC ILO working groups and NSF reporting.
• Represent EARTH at relevant external events.

Position Requirements

This position is based on-site at the University of Kansas (Lawrence Campus). Regular travel to industry sites, EARTH academic partner campuses, and professional meetings is expected.

Required Qualifications
• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Business, Communications, or related field.
• Minimum three years of industry experience in stakeholder engagement or corporate relations in a technical sector.
• Strong written and interpersonal communication skills, as evidenced by application materials.
• Demonstrated organizational skills and professional engagement management, as evidenced by work history.

Preferred Qualifications
• Advanced degree in Engineering or Physical Sciences
• Previous experience with consortia, membership programs, or multi-partner collaborations, as evidenced by application materials.
• Previous experience with academic research culture, as evidenced by application materials.
• Previous experience in the HVACR or allied sectors, as evidenced by work history.
• Proficiency with CRM or other stakeholder management tools, as evidenced by application materials..

Additional Candidate Instructions

In addition to the online application, the following documents are required to be considered for this position:
• Cover letter addressing how you meet the required and preferred qualifications
• Resume
• Contact information for three professional references

Application review begins Sunday, May 25, 2025 and will continue until a qualified candidate is selected.

Contact Information to Applicants

Patricia Bergman

tricia.bergman@ku.edu

Advertised Salary Range

$110,000 - $125,000

Application Review Begins

Sunday May 25, 2025

Anticipated Start Date

Friday August 1, 2025