Community and Platform Lead

About Us

​Conception X discovers and backs Europe's most ambitious researchers, turning them into deeptech founders. Since 2018, the organisation has supported more than 700 PhDs, postdocs and early-career researchers from 92 universities to launch over 200 science companies that have raised £200+ million in investment and grants. Their £1 billion portfolio includes Rahko, Solve Intelligence, Humanloop and Infinitopes.

Responsibilities

To succeed at this role, you must have a deep interest in and curiosity about science and technology, and have a genuine passion for people. Your interpersonal skills will be in the spotlight. You will demonstrate your ability to confidently lead and hold the attention of a diverse group: PhD founders, early-career researchers, investors, industry leaders.

You will be the connective tissue of our ecosystem. You will build authentic relationships across our network, represent Conception X on campuses and at events, and lead outreach at universities and research institutions across the UK and Europe.

Maturity and emotional intelligence are essential. You will navigate complex relationships across academia, venture, and industry, and will often be a trusted point of contact for founders at pivotal moments on their founder path.

This role is based in London, and will require a willingness to travel.

The Role

Community Building & Engagement — 50%

• Actively tend to and build the broader Conception X community. Nurture relationships across PhD founders, early-career researchers, academics, investors, and industry partners. Identify opportunities to bring the network together in new ways.
• Own alumni engagement as a distinct priority; keep science founders from past cohorts active and involved, and bring them back as mentors, speakers, and advocates. Foster peer connections across cohorts, and deliver value back to alumni through meaningful introductions that support their onward journey.
• Facilitate introductions and match founders to the right investors, experts, and industry partners at the right time. Be proactive; spot opportunities early, and make connections happen quickly.
• Lead cohort community initiatives, including meetups, knowledge-sharing sessions, and wider ecosystem events. Work closely with the Programme Manager, who owns the programme calendar and delivery.
• Manage and moderate our online community channels, including Slack. Gather insights from interactions, and share these with the programme team to inform and improve the experience.
• Play a key role in Demo Day and showcase events, coordinating the community and stakeholder experience alongside the Programme Manager.
• Work closely with the Head of Portfolio on cohort and alumni engagement, ensuring founders and graduates remain connected, supported, and active within the community.
• Keep a working view of what our cohort teams and alumni are doing. Maintain community health metrics and CRM data, using both to shape engagement strategy, inform decisions, and report on community outcomes.

Talent Pipeline & Outreach — 30%

• Lead in-person and online recruitment outreach. Serve as the primary on-the-ground presence for Conception X at events, universities, and research institutions across the UK and Europe.
• Proactively identify and cultivate high-potential PhD founders and early-career researchers, building trusted relationships well ahead of recruitment windows. Deliver information sessions, presentations, and events at PhD fairs and academic conferences to maximise pipeline quality and visibility.
• Build relationships with contacts at universities and research institutions, including careers services, research offices, academic champions, and student societies. Coordinate closely with the University Partnerships function and the Chief Strategy Officer, who leads on strategic partnerships.
• Track outreach effectiveness by institution, event, and channel, using data to refine the approach to each cycle.

Platform Support — 20%

• Proactively match cohort teams and alumni with the right resource at the moment they need it, including but not limited to compute, cloud, legal and banking. Hold a detailed working knowledge of what Conception X can offer.
• Curate and activate our mentor and expert network in close coordination with the Programme Manager. 
• Identify gaps in what we can offer our founders. Help secure the resources they need, from cloud and compute credits through to tooling and services.
• Coordinate with the Marketing team on campaigns and outreach collateral to drive programme awareness and grow the applicant pipeline.
• Provide on-the-day support for programme events, online and in-person.
• Occasionally undertake tasks outside the immediate scope of this role, in a spirit of flexibility and support for the wider team.

What We’re Looking For

Experience

• 4+ years’ work experience in community management, ecosystem building, or a closely adjacent role; ideally within a startup, innovation, or science and technology environment.
• Demonstrable experience building and sustaining a community, with evidence of engagement and retention outcomes.
• Experience planning and delivering outreach events or campaigns, including in-person visits to campuses, institutions, or conferences.
• An understanding of the university and research ecosystem; you don’t need to have come from academia, but must possess the credibility to navigate it and engage its people.
• Experience managing or activating a network of senior stakeholders, such as mentors, experts, investors, or industry partners.
• Willingness to travel seasonally across the UK and Europe for campus visits and events.

Skills & Personal Qualities

• Deep fascination with science and technology, and the ability to grasp what deeptech founders are building.
• Strong interpersonal skills: you can engage credibly with technical founders, researchers, and academics.
• Strong relationship-building skills: warm, curious, and able to build trust quickly across a diverse range of people.
• A track record of making introductions that lead to meaningful outcomes, connecting founders, investors, and experts in ways that create real value.
• A natural networker who invests in relationships over the long term, not just when there is an immediate need.
• Maturity and emotional intelligence, trusted by people at pivotal moments and able to handle sensitive relationships with care and discretion.
• A belief in Conception X’s mission, representing it with conviction.
• Proactive, organised, and self-directed, able to manage multiple workstreams in a lean team without losing the personal touch that makes community work.

Benefits & Perks

• Salary of £45 - 50K (dependent on experience)
• Hybrid working hours
• 27 days’ holiday plus all bank holidays
• Private health insurance on completion of probation
• Friendly, open and transparent culture
• A passionate organisation with proven traction on its scaling journey
• Opportunity to sit in on Conception X Deeptech Entrepreneurial Training Sessions

Closing Date for Applications

11th September 2026.

Interview Process

• Initial Intro Call (15 - 20 mins) - WC 24/08/26
• 1st Stage Interview (60 mins) - WC 01/09/26
• 2nd Stage Practical Interview (60 mins) - WC 07/09/26
• 3rd Stage Final Interview (45 mins) - WC 14/09/26
• References

All interviews except the initial intro call will be conducted In-Person.