Joint Director - Incubation

Joint Director - Incubation

Andhra Pradesh Innovation Society, Mangalagiri

Location: Mangalagiri, Andhra Pradesh Type: Full-time | Senior Management Reports to: Chief Executive Officer, APIS

About APIS

The Andhra Pradesh Innovation Society (APIS) is the Government of Andhra Pradeshs nodal agency for driving innovation, entrepreneurship, and startup growth across the state. Established under the ITE&C Department, APIS leads the implementation of the Andhra Pradesh Innovation & Startup Policy (4.0) 2024-2029, which envisions creating 20,000 startups and 1 lakh jobs in five years. APIS strengthens the statewide ecosystem by working with startups, academia, industry, incubators, and government departments, and by operating flagship initiatives such as the Ratan Tata Innovation Hub (RTIH) and its Spoke Centres. Through policy support, incentives, infrastructure, and capacity-building programmes, APIS acts as the States central platform to enable a vibrant, inclusive, and innovation-driven economy.

Role Overview

The Joint Director of Incubation will play a central leadership role in building, managing, and scaling RTIHs incubation and entrepreneurship programmes across the Hub-and-Spoke network. Reporting directly to the CEO, the Joint Director will be responsible for translating the Andhra Pradesh Innovation & Startup Policy (4.0) into high-impact incubation initiatives, ensuring seamless alignment between strategy and on-ground execution. This role will lead the design and delivery of incubation pipelines, startup selection processes, mentorship and acceleration programmes, and investor linkages.

The Joint Director will work closely with Spoke CEOs, functional heads, APIS, and ecosystem partners to standardise incubation operations, drive performance across all centres, and ensure that RTIH becomes the state's flagship platform for nurturing high-quality startups. The role demands a combination of ecosystem understanding, operational excellence, stakeholder management, and the ability to convert policy direction into measurable outcomes.

Key Responsibilities

A. Policy Implementation & Statewide Incubation Governance

1. Lead implementation of all incubation-related components of the Andhra Pradesh Innovation & Startup Policy (4.0), acting as APISs primary authority for incubation policy matters.
2. Provide policy guidance, frameworks, and directives to RTIH, university incubators, and government-supported incubation centres statewide.
3. Review, approve, and monitor incubation models, SOPs, and program designs proposed by RTIH and other incubators.
4. Ensure statewide alignment with the Hub-and-Spoke incubation architecture anchored by RTIH.
5. Coordinate with other departments (Industries & Commerce, Education, Skill Development, MSME, Tribal Welfare, Women & Child Development) on integrated incubation initiatives.

B. Monitoring & Evaluation (MEC), Incentives & Compliance

1. Serve as the key APIS lead for the Monitoring & Evaluation Committee (MEC) for incubation-related assessments under the Startup Policy.
2. Oversee validation and eligibility processes for all incubation-linked incentives (e.g., prototyping grants, seed support, startup incentives requiring incubator endorsements).
3. Review RTIHs program reports and startup validation documents before MEC approval.
4. Ensure compliance with operational guidelines (G.O.Ms. No.3 & G.O.Ms. No.9) across all incubators.
5. Drive statewide adoption of the AP Startup One Portal for startup onboarding, incubator accreditation, incentive workflows, and performance monitoring.

C. Oversight of RTIHs Incubation Delivery

1. Supervise and review the performance of the Head Incubation (RTIH), ensuring that RTIHs Hub and 5 Spokes meet state-mandated incubation KPIs.
2. Conduct quarterly and annual reviews of RTIHs incubation performance, including startup selection quality, program outcomes, and impact metrics.
3. Approve RTIH incubation frameworks and ensure they align with policy direction and statewide goals.
4. Identify gaps in RTIH delivery and recommend corrective actions, capacity-building interventions, or program redesign.

D. Statewide Coordination with Incubators, Academia & Institutions

1. Work with universities, engineering colleges, research centres, and skill institutions to strengthen grassroots incubation capacity.
2. Establish and disseminate statewide standards for incubator accreditation, performance evaluation, and annual ratings.
3. Drive cross-incubator collaboration for sectoral missions (AI, agritech, medtech, manufacturing, robotics, clean energy, deeptech).
4. Ensure incubation centres in Tier-2 and Tier-3 regions receive programmatic support, guidance, and capacity-building assistance.

E. Innovation Challenges, Pipeline Development & Ecosystem Strengthening

1. Oversee the design and rollout of statewide innovation challenges, hackathons, and thematic startup calls under APIS.
2. Coordinate with RTIH and other incubators to convert challenge winners and participants into incubation pipelines.
3. Facilitate access to FabLabs, CoEs, prototyping labs, and testbeds across the state to support startups in product development.
4. Ensure that incubation activities feed into APISs inclusive innovation prioritieswomen entrepreneurs, rural innovators, students, deeptech founders, and social impact startups.

F. Data, Impact Measurement & Reporting

1. Establish statewide KPIs and impact measurement frameworks for incubation outcomes.
2. Review monthly and quarterly incubation dashboards submitted by RTIH and other incubators.
3. Compile state-level incubation reports for the CEO, the ITE&C Department, and the Government of Andhra Pradesh.
4. Ensure deep integration of data-driven decision-making, evidence-based policy refinement, and transparent reporting.

G. Strategic Input, Funding Readiness & Government Representation

1. Support the CEO in shaping future incubation policy frameworks, state missions, and funding programs.
2. Provide technical inputs for government files, Cabinet notes, grants, CSR collaborations, and inter-departmental proposals related to incubation.
3. Represent APIS and the Government of Andhra Pradesh at national and international innovation forums, conferences, and policy platforms.

Qualifications & Experience

1. MBA/PGDM (Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Management, or equivalent) or equivalent.
2. Minimum 7 years of experience in managing incubation, acceleration, or innovation programs.
3. Experience working with government innovation missions, TBI/Incubator governance, MEC-like evaluation mechanisms, or policy-linked incentive systems.
4. Strong understanding of startup lifecycle support, incubation models, and national startup ecosystem programs (Startup India, DST/NIDHI, MeitY/TIDE, AIM, etc.).
5. Demonstrated ability to guide institutions, evaluate incubator performance, and manage statewide or multi-institution programs.
6. Excellent communication, analytical, and stakeholder management skills across government, academia, and industry

Core Competencies

1. Strong policy orientation with the ability to translate policy into implementable frameworks.
2. Capability to supervise complex incubation networks and multi-institutional programs.
3. Expertise in evaluation, incentive governance, and compliance frameworks.
4. Data-driven leadership, documentation excellence, and dashboard/impact interpretation skills.
5. High integrity, public-sector sensitivity, and strong alignment with APIS's mission of scalable and inclusive innovation.

Compensation: Rs 13-18 lakhs per annum (CTC), based on experience and interview performance.