About
As a curious and versatile professional, Nikola has amassed over 14 years of experience bridging the gap between research and industry. With a background in technology transfer, research enablement, business support, and innovation management, Nikola has consistently delivered significant growth and impact to the organizations he has worked with. This includes successfully implementing externally funded projects, new products, pricing strategies, and successful inbound campaigns. Throughout his career, Nikola has taken on various roles that have showcased his expertise and leadership. Notably, he has worked as a startup mentor and served as a member of numerous startup event juries. He has also acted as a key account manager for the SME Instrument in the Horizon 2020 program. His skills as an EU project evaluator, PoC program manager, and project manager have contributed to successfully implementing projects worth over 34 million EUR. During his tenure at the University of Split, Nikola held the Head of the Science and Innovation Department position. In this role, he spearheaded key initiatives such as leading the Technology Transfer Office, Projects Office, Science Office, and R&D Office activities. Through his efforts, he emphasized establishing innovation ecosystems and directly supported entrepreneurial and innovative researchers and companies. One of his notable achievements includes successfully building and establishing a high-tech business incubator fully owned by the University. Nikola has over a decade of experience in this field and is passionate about knowledge and technology transfer. He has previously served as the project manager of Technology Transfer in the Croatian Adriatic Region project, where he skillfully developed a team of seven professionals and 20 innovation scouts. As one of his accomplishments, Nikola conceived and designed the first Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) policy at the University of Split. As an ambassador of the European IP Helpdesk and a Horizon IP Scan Expert, Nikola advises Croatian and EU companies on protecting and managing their collaborative creations. In recent developments, Nikola has transitioned to Head of Growth at Daytona.io. Simultaneously, he contributes as a Teaching Assistant for the Complex Network Analysis course at the Faculty of Science, University of Split, and has recently served as an external expert for the World Bank. Broadly interested in several research areas, such as Large Language Models, Complex Network Analysis, Sustainability in SMEs, and Digital Transformation, Nikola actively pursues his curiosity and passion for continued learning through his PhD at the Unviersity of Split.