University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW Madison) has appointed Andy Richards as the director of its Discovery to Product (D2P) commercialisation arm.
Richards became the permanent director of D2P on April 1. He previously administered the same duties as caretaker in addition to his role as chief of staff to the university’s vice-chancellor for research and graduate education, a position he started in 2015.
Richards will take charge of D2P’s operations within UW Madison’s Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate Education.
D2P responsibilities include preparing university research teams to develop their business and maintaining links between the university and affiliates such as the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (Warf) or external partners.
Prior to joining UW Madison, Richards spent six years from 2008 to 2014 as chief of staff to the president of the University of Wisconsin System before a brief tenure as a senior special assistant to the same institution’s president for strategic initiatives.
Richards worked at University of Wisconsin Milwaukee from 2004 until 2008 as the associate vice-chancellor for business and finance, and his résumé also includes a two-year stint at Wisconsin system as assistant vice-president for budget and planning.
Erik Iverson, managing director of Warf, said: “We are looking forward to continuing to collaborate with and support Andy and his staff as they carry out D2P’s critically important role in advancing UW Madison’s research, industry relationships and entrepreneurship. D2P provides an important service both on campus and in the community.”
– Image courtesy of LinkedIn
