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The Intellectual Property Office has launched a recruitment campaign for a chief executive to deliver a technology and data-focused transformation programme. 

The agency is offering an annual salary of £100,000 and £105,000 but said “more may be available for an exceptional candidate”. 

Key responsibilities of the post will include “providing strong visible leadership to shape IP policy”, as well as ensuring that the office’s work support the UK Innovation Strategy published last year the ICO’s parent organisation: the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

The new CEO will also helm a transformation scheme dedicated to “providing the next generation of services to customers, and unlocking the power of the data the office holds”.

This summer the organisation announced that it had cleared its backlog of patent cases for the first time in 15 years. It also unveiled ambitions to increasingly deliver its services completely digitally – which it believes will help avoid similar build-ups in the future.

The successful applicant will replace former chief Tim Moss, who left the organisation last month after five years in the post to join the Welsh Government as chief operating officer. 

The chief exec will serve as the IPO’s accounting officer, and will also hold the roles of comptroller general of patents and registrar of trademarks and designs. The postholder will be responsible for overseeing an annual turnover of £164m and more than 1,700 staff, most of which are based in Newport. 

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The chosen candidate will be asked to stay in the role for three years minimum “to enable them to deliver on the agreed key business outcomes”.

In a foreword in the job application pack, Jo Shanmugalingam, director general for science, innovation and growth at BEIS, said the next chief exec will take over at a “hugely exciting time” for the IPO, as it delivers on the governments innovation strategy, but also a "challenging one", due to "unprecedented" demand.

The IPO said earlier this summer it had experienced two of the busiest years in its history with Covid-19 and Brexit causing “considerable challenges” on top of record numbers of applications and amendment requests. 

The chief exec “will need to have the energy and experience” to balance the IPO’s ambitions with this increased demand, while making the organisation more efficient, Shanmugalingam said. 

She said the IPO is “looking for someone who can provide strong visible leadership; drive a robust, inclusive end user-focused culture; and represent the IPO on the international stage”.  

Shanmugalingam added that she is committed to ensuring the IPO "looks far and wide for the best talent", encouraging applicants from diverse backgrounds to apply.  

The role is based in Newport but will include "significant" domestic and international travel. 

Applications are open until 11.55pm on 3 October.