Nicholas Hammond, an innovative executive and researcher with over 15 years of demonstrated leadership in technology intellectual property development, technology transfer, licensing and commercialization, has been named associate vice president for innovation and commercialization at Indiana University.
Assuming the role Nov. 13, Hammond will lead the IU Innovation and Commercialization Office, which has university-wide responsibility for fostering connections between IU inventors and entrepreneurs with prospective collaborators, as well as facilitating the transfer of university discoveries to the market. He will be critical to growing transformative research and creativity, innovation, industry engagement and commercialization, all key priorities of the IU 2030 strategic plan.
“We are excited to have Nick lead the Innovation and Commercialization Office, overseeing IU’s efforts to bring IU faculty discoveries and innovation to market,” IU Vice President for Research Russell J. Mumper said. “Under his leadership, I am confident we will grow external R&D partnerships in order to ensure IU inventions are quickly able to positively impact Hoosier lives and our state economy.”
As senior director of the Department of Innovation and Technology Research at the American Dental Association Science and Research Institute, Hammond leads various aspects of the institute’s research and technology transfer process and significantly increased federal and privately funded grant awards. In addition to setting the research strategy of the department, he initiates collaborations with external research institutions, manages the institute’s partnership with the National Institute of Standards and Technology and manages the institute’s intellectual property portfolio.
Hammond has also served as chief operating officer at TeraImmune Inc.; associate vice president for innovation and economic development at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science; assistant director of the University System of Maryland Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology; and chief science officer of Ablitech Inc.
“I understand the power of transformative research and innovation to drive economic and societal growth,” Hammond said. “I am excited to return home to Indiana to work with my colleagues in the Innovation and Commercialization Office and across IU, and with industry partners to translate IU’s cutting-edge research into real-world impact.”
Hammond earned a Ph.D. from the University of Mississippi and a bachelor’s degree from Butler University. He has had numerous patents, publications and funded grants for his research and graduate student training programs.
