IP Specialist – IP Intelligence Team (IPIN)

What you will do

In imec’s IPIN competence team, you turn patent intelligence into actionable strategic insights that guide some of the world’s most advanced technology research. By combining deep patent information expertise with analytical thinking and a strong advisory mindset, you help researchers, patent portfolio managers, and business stakeholders make informed decisions on IP protection, risk, and opportunities. The role offers strong scope for someone who can quickly connect with our Leuven-based IP and R&D environment and bring familiarity with IP practices into the discussion.
Your work goes beyond executing searches: you connect patent insights with R&D priorities and IP portfolio development, working closely with sector IP leadership, patent portfolio managers, and other stakeholders to ensure patent intelligence creates value where it matters most.

In this role, you will

• Clarify patent intelligence needs with patent portfolio managers and R&D stakeholders, translating them into focused search scopes.
• Develop advanced search strategies for patentability, landscape analysis, technology and competitor monitoring, and risk identification.
• Turn patent data, technology trends, and competitor activity into clear insights that support IP and R&D decisions.
• Create structured reports, recommendations, and visual summaries tailored to technical and business stakeholders.
• Strengthen imec’s patent intelligence approach by improving methods, tools, workflows, and best practices together with the IPIN team.
• Share expertise across the IP community and collaborate with external partners and tool vendors to ensure high-quality outputs.

What we do for you

We offer you the opportunity to join one of the world’s premier research centers in nanotechnology at its headquarters in Leuven, Belgium. You will work at the intersection of deep-tech innovation and IP strategy, with exposure to cutting-edge technologies, global collaborations, and the opportunity to grow towards broader strategic IP advisory impact. With your talent, passion, and expertise, you’ll help make the impossible possible and shape the technology that will define tomorrow’s society.

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and proud of our open, multicultural, and informal working environment. Guided by the imec values of passion, excellence, connectedness, and integrity, we support your growth through tangible actions, including imec.academy, our corporate university for technical and personal development.

We value your contribution and offer a market-appropriate salary with many fringe benefits.

Who you are

• You have a background in physics, electronics, electrical engineering, or a related engineering discipline, preferably at MSc or PhD level.
• Given the urgency of this vacancy, we are looking for someone who can start at short notice.
• You bring 5–7 years of relevant experience in patent searching, patent data analysis, and professional patent databases and tools, ideally with exposure to IP practices.
• You are familiar with IP tools and data environments such as Orbit, PatSnap, Power BI, SharePoint, or similar platforms.
• You are able to become productive quickly in a collaborative, stakeholder-driven environment; prior experience in or close familiarity with the IP landscape is considered a plus.
• You translate technical and patent information into structured insights for different audiences.
• You have experience with patent landscape analysis and/or analytical reporting; experience in IP strategy and knowledge of patent principles is an asset.
• Certification as a Qualified Patent Information Professional (QPIP), or equivalent training in patent information and IP analysis, is a strong plus.
• You take ownership, enjoy solving complex questions, and can manage assignments from intake to delivery.
• You communicate clearly, collaborate easily, and enjoy sharing knowledge.
• You are curious about technology and innovation, and motivated by the role intellectual property plays in protecting and strengthening them.
  
  

IMEC and its affiliates will not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than directly from a candidate. IMEC will consider unsolicited referrals and/or resumes submitted by vendors such as search firms, staffing agencies, professional recruiters, fee-based referral services and recruiting agencies (hereafter “Agency”) to have been referred by the Agency free of charge. IMEC will not pay a fee to any Agency that does not have a prior written agreement with IMEC, validated by its HR department, in place regarding a specific job opening and allowing to submit resumes.