Senior Open Innovation Associate

About Us

We are a strategy and innovation consultancy that helps organizations thrive in the face of change. Thorny problems are our strong suit.

We’re a team of consultants who are energized by big, messy problems. We are strategists, analysts, designers, and editors who bring agility and flexibility to projects focused on stemming chronic disease, closing the skills gap, rethinking the future of work, supporting digital transformations, using data to make smart cities safer, developing sustainable business models, and making moonshot investments.

We help companies thrive in the face of change. Our clients are “innovation mavericks” — leaders inside global corporations, nonprofits, and federal agencies who are tasked with helping their organizations adapt to the technological, economic, political, and social norms of the 21st century. We’re the strategy and innovation consultants they call when there’s no playbook for the problem they’re trying to solve.

Our open innovation practice was established in 2011. We are particularly focused on open innovation for impact, making use of incentive prize mechanisms to accelerate innovations such as artificial organs (Artificial Kidney Prize), early biothreat detection (DHS Hidden Signals Challenge), access to career and technical education (the Ed Prizes challenge series), and improving our understanding of Earth’s magnetism (NGA MagQuest).

We have an equal appreciation for strategy and execution. We offer our clients the upfront thinking that goes into careful strategy development and can become partners in execution to ensure those strategies are implemented.

We believe that career choices are not binary; you can have a challenging and rewarding career as part of a high-performing team and also live your life. Our clients appreciate that we bring the highest level of excellence to everything we do, and our team appreciates that we are extraordinarily efficient so that you aren’t expected to be online later.

Please note: for employment at Luminary Labs, you must be fully vaccinated (including booster) for COVID-19 to ensure compliance with enhanced health and safety protocols.

The Role

Luminary Labs seeks Senior Open Innovation Associates to support strategy formation and program execution for our Fortune 500, nonprofit, and government clients.

Please note that our team has embraced a hybrid model for our five-day work week, with two synchronous days in the office and three days wherever you work best. This role is based in New York City and will join our team in the office on Tuesdays and Wednesdays most weeks.

About You

You have experience managing large programs for clients, and possess an understanding of open innovation programs. You are known for managing exceptional execution while keeping projects on time and on budget. Your positive attitude and outstanding people skills are an asset. You are hungry to learn and grow while delivering results that exceed client expectations.

You care about the influence your work has on the world and have been looking for a career path that is both high performance and high impact.

People love to have you on their team. You love to be part of a team.

Role and Responsibilities

• Lead program design. Develop essential program content elements (e.g., call-to-action, criteria, incentives, timelines), craft and lead presentations (e.g., client workshops, public-facing program webinars), and execute critical events (such as boot camps and demo days).
• Program and project management. Manage all elements of the programs (which run from 6 months to 3 years), including strategy, communications, visual design, web development, outreach, judging, and events. Develop, own, and manage the overall project work plans. Coordinate with internal teams (e.g., strategy, communications, design) on workstreams to ensure high-quality execution and deliverables.
• Communications and outreach. Help develop the voice of the challenge and increase awareness by providing input into the social media strategy, authoring blog posts, and overseeing outreach to the innovator community.
• Client service. Earn respect and trust of our clients to serve as a go-to point of contact, including responding to requests, coordinating meetings, developing agendas and reports, and communicating updates and action items. Maintain empathy and perseverance to ensure successful execution of the program.
• Open innovation champion. Keep your finger on the pulse of what is going on within the open innovation landscape, expand and deepen our capabilities, and be an internal expert on open innovation.
• Connect the dots. Quickly get up to speed on new client industries, and keep your finger on the pulse of incumbents and newcomers. Identify key nodes in any given industry network, participate in industry events, stay abreast of relevant news and trends, tap into the network to drive value for our clients, and contribute to thought leadership work.
• Drive business growth. Support the development of new open innovation proposals and pitches, and deepen the value we provide to existing clients. Support company growth by participating in the ongoing recruitment of talent.

Desired Skills and Experience

• 4-5+ years experience; 2-3+ years of client services experience preferred.
• Demonstrated project/program management work and/or experience managing projects with many moving pieces; direct experience with open innovation is a plus.
• Experience finding, connecting to, and developing relationships with external stakeholders.
• Exhibit leadership qualities, knowing how to effectively bridge workflow between senior and junior team members to maximize productivity and efficiency.
• Exceptional attention to detail; quick to catch inconsistencies in deliverables and strong ability to recall key insights and decisions that impact project thinking.
• Good technological literacy and ability to quickly navigate the full functionality of tools such as Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Dropbox, and Google Docs.
• Stellar communication and presentation skills with a high EQ, demonstrating an ability to strike the right tone with clients in emails and verbal communications.
• Ability to structure thinking in an easy to follow manner.
• Are super-flexible, adaptable, realistic, practical, and agile.
• Thrive in a fast-paced and dynamic environment.

Investing in our people is a high priority. Benefits include:

• Competitive compensation and formal bonus structure
• Health benefits package (80% of premium is covered for health, dental, and vision)
• Competitive vacation package
• Paid family leave
• 401k plan with matching
• Pre-tax transit check
• Cell-phone reimbursement
• Fitness reimbursement
• Education stipend and growth opportunities
• Charitable donation matching
• Opportunities to mentor and be mentored

Does this sound like you?

Please submit your resume and cover letter. In your cover letter, show us three examples of ideas, companies, or teams that you consider to be at the forefront of innovation. Let us know your availability for employment. If available, also send us examples of your own work or thinking online (blog posts, Slideshare examples).

Candidates must be authorized to work in the U.S. No recruiting agencies, please.

The total compensation package for this role includes a base salary in the range of $125,000 to $145,000 plus a discretionary annual performance bonus. The starting salary for this role is at the lower bound of the salary range; an individual's starting salary will depend on the individual’s relevant knowledge, skills, and experience.