ChipTech industry programme director

About this job

The ChipTech industry plays a crucial role in the global economy. The Netherlands has a strong position in this industry. With leading companies such as ASML, NXP and VDL ETG pushing the boundaries of technology, the Netherlands is firmly on the map. Twente has developed both nationally and internationally as a major hub for chiptech production and innovation. Here you will find strategic suppliers for ASML’s production equipment and a strong cluster of companies active in analogue chip design, photonics, microfluidics and MEMS. The University of Twente, Saxion University of Applied Sciences, ROC van Twente and several business schools play a crucial role in supporting these companies through research and training existing and new talent.

Twente’s position nationally

The ChipTech market will grow explosively in the coming years and with it the demand for talent. The national strengthening plan for microchip talent has been set up to support this growth, with a special focus on the ASML value chain. Twente plays a crucial role in this and is tasked with training additional talent by 2030 to ensure the growth of ASML and its suppliers in the region.

As programme director, you will be responsible for the realisation of the Twente part of this plan. Your mission is to further develop and position this broad cluster of chip technology companies in the region within the national context of Chip NL. This is the national innovation agenda for chip technology, aimed at maintaining and strengthening the Netherlands’ international competitive position in the semiconductor industry.

Twente Board’s ambition is to create and grow new companies in the ChipTech sector to enable the development and production of the next generation of chips.

The regional context

As programme director, you will act in a regional context with a number of investment priorities. The region will:

• Educate and train more talent: for this industry in cooperation with University of Twente, Saxion University of Applied Sciences and ROC van Twente;
• Lifelong development: create an offer that meets the needs of the business community, in cooperation with educational institutions and business schools;
• Realising the Semiconductor Learning Centre: a partnership between industry, educational institutions and business schools in Twente, focusing on education and research programmes. This centre will serve as a regional and national showcase for the sector;
• Further develop the national ChipTech ecosystem: in cooperation with regions Brainport Eindhoven, Delft, Groningen and Arnhem/Nijmegen. This includes setting up the national Chips Competence Centre funded from the European Chip Act;
• Develop research programmes: to integrate technologies to develop and produce next-generation chip designs and link these programmes to ongoing, affiliated research programmes within the National Growth Fund;
• Realise a production site: to enable small/medium-scale production of heterogeneous systems for (SME) companies.
• Responsibilities
• Role and tasks Programme director

The programme director oversees the total playing field, links Twente ambitions to national and international cooperation partners and acts as the ambassador for Twente towards relevant stakeholders at regional, national and international level.

The main tasks are:

• Managing and accounting for Twente’s contribution to the national microchip talent reinforcement plan to train more talent for the ASML value chain (duration 2025 to 2031);
• Position and develop Twente’s contribution to the national chip technology roadmap Chip NL and the Chip NL Competence Centre;
• Realise sustainable connections between regional and national chip technology companies, educational and knowledge institutions and (semi)governmental bodies in the region;
• Strengthening Twente’s position in the (inter)national semiconductor industry;
• Attracting funding streams from national and European funds to realise the ambitions;
• Maintain intensive contact with national and European policymakers, media and other relevant stakeholders;
• Act as spokesperson and ambassador for the semiconductor industry in Twente and act as the primary point of contact for the industry, knowledge and educational institutions and (semi-)government in the region.
• Besides the Programme Director, the regional team consists of experts from the various regional partner organisations and industry. These programme managers report substantively to the Programme Director, while retaining line responsibility within their organisation.

Required competences

For this position, we are looking for a strategic inspirer who brings entrepreneurs, scientists, education and government together based on their needs, but also does and has a ‘hands on’ mentality. The ideal Programme Director has:

• The ability to develop and implement long-term strategies;
• The talent to influence stakeholders nationally and internationally, both in the private and public sectors;
• Proven experience in leading and motivating teams in a complex multi-stakeholder environment with a results-oriented attitude;
• Strong and effective communication and networking skills;
• Knowledge of the tech industry and a keen eye for identifying and integrating technology trends;
• Understanding of funding instruments and flows and ability to implement them effectively, in line with ambitions.

It is a full-time position (consultation is possible on this).

Further information

Interested? Express your interest in this position by emailing your motivation and accompanying CV to Charles Nijssen, programme manager Twente Board Development, (c.nijssen@twenteboard.nl) no later than 13 January 2025. If you would first like to know more about the position, please contact Charles at +31 631917384.