Servitization and Service Innovation Lead – KTP Associate (1155-26)
Aston UniversityBirmingham, West Midlands
Overview
This is a university role with Aston University based in Birmingham. The advertised salary is £35,000 to £37,000 per annum. Applications close on 6 November 2026. GovJobs has indexed this vacancy from its official source — use the apply button to view the full advert and apply directly.
Job description
This position offers a unique opportunity for a highly motivated individual to work at the interface of academia and industry in a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) Associate role that will deliver transformational impact. You will lead and deliver a service innovation programme within a fast-growing British SME manufacturer, helping to drive innovation and business growth in a company with strong values centred on teamwork, innovation, and excellence.
The project is fundamentally focused on servitization; supporting an engineering company transition from providing equipment through traditional capital expenditure (CapEx) systems towards a service-led, lifecycle-oriented business model. You will lead the co-design and implementation of a product-service system within the company, developing service-led concepts and offerings that create value for customers over the lifecycle of their operations.
This role is designed to enable the transition of a company towards a service-led business model, developing new forms of value creation and strengthening long-term customer relationships. You will play a key role in establishing the foundations for ongoing servitization, embedding new capabilities, and supporting the sustainable growth of the business beyond the duration of the KTP.
A minimum of a 2:1 BSc degree in Engineering or Management, or a related discipline.
Essential skills, experience and attributes required include:
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
- Ability to work across technical and commercial domains
- Experience of adapting theories and/or tools to commercial practice
- Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills with the ability to engage across multiple levels of an organisation
- Strong project management capability, able to manage complex projects, coordinate roles, and work independently, as well as part of the team.
- Commercially aware and able to link innovation to business value
- Organised, adaptable and able to work effectively in an interdisciplinary collaborative environment
A postgraduate qualification (or equivalent experience) in a relevant field, such as Engineering Management, Service Design, Operations, Innovation, or Marketing.
- Knowledge or experience of servitization, product-service systems, or business model innovation.
- Experience of working in manufacturing or industrial settings.
- Experience in customer research, data analysis, or development of commercially informed strategies.
- Service design and product-service system development
- Servitization strategy development
- Commercial and go-to-market activities
- Customer and stakeholder engagement
- Knowledge transfer and embedding
- Academic contribution to conference papers/ journal publications
See the job description for full details of the responsibilities associated with this role.
- Up to £4,000 for personal and professional development for the duration of the project
- Annual leave (25 days p/a)
- Professional support and mentorship
- Mental Health and wellbeing support: https://www.aston.ac.uk/staff-public/hr/Benefits-and-Rewards/health-wellbeing
- A flexible blend of on-site and remote working arrangements can be negotiated in case of positive ongoing performance.
This role opens up exciting career opportunities in new business development and servitization. Over 60% of our KTP associates are offered employment by their host companies at the end of the KTP.
This is a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP). It is essential you understand how KTP works and the vital role you will play if you secure this position. To learn more please visit: www.aston.ac.uk/ktp
The Company: A Birmingham-based, industry-leading manufacturer, specialised in engineering and producing material handling equipment.
Aston University: You will work in a project team consisting of Dr Reza Marvi, Dr Geoff Parkes, Dr Daniel Andrews from Aston University and the Senior Management Team of the Company, with the support of a Knowledge Transfer Adviser from Innovate UK.
Location: The successful candidate will be based in central Birmingham, West Midlands, with regular access to Aston University facilities. Occasional travel to client sites across the UK will be required. The successful candidate must reside within a reasonable commuting distance of the work base.
For informal enquiries about this role please contact Dr Reza Marvi, e-mail: r.marvi@aston.ac.uk
If you think this isn’t the right opportunity for you, please explore other KTP vacancies across the country: https://www.ktp-uk.org/jobs/
This role is likely to qualify for endorsement under the Endorsed Funder route of the Global Talent visa. This visa is for talented or promising individuals in academia or research in fields such as science, engineering, medicine, social sciences, or humanities.
See the Home Office guidance: https://www.gov.uk/global-talent
It is an Innovate UK requirement that candidates hold a visa or immigration permission to cover the full duration of the contract. The successful candidate is therefore expected to apply for a visa as necessary in line with their contract duration.
Closing Date: 06 Nov 2026
Unit: Teaching & Research
Salary: £35,000 to £37,000 per annum
with an additional budget for the duration of the project for professional and personal development
How this role compares
We hold 40 university vacancies in West Midlands that publish a salary, and their median advertised starting figure is £38,784. This role pays less than about 65% of them.
There are 609 university roles open across the UK on GovJobs right now, 49 of them in West Midlands.
You have 16 days left to apply. University adverts we hold typically run for around 21 days, so this is about the usual amount of time.
Aston University has 16 other vacancies open on GovJobs, with a breakdown of what they pay and the kinds of roles they recruit for.
These figures are calculated from the vacancies GovJobs currently holds, not from official pay statistics. They are a guide to the market, not a valuation of this post.
How to apply
GovJobs does not take applications or send your details to the employer. Use the apply button to open the official Stonefish Aston advert, then check the employer's instructions, attachments, person specification and closing time before applying.
This listing was last checked on 21 Oct 2026, 04:45. If the official advert has changed or closed, report it and we will review the listing.
Why this listing is on GovJobs
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The source for this role is Stonefish Aston. Applications stay on the official employer or source website, not on GovJobs.