Associate Professor Martin Bliemel is the Director of Innovation at TD School (ex Faculty of Transdisciplinary Innovation) at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). Prior to this, he served as the inaugural Director of Research (aka ADR) for TD School for 4 years. In 2024, with colleague Jochen Schweitzer, he co-instigated the Innovation & Entreprenuership Collaborative (IEC) across UTS, more formally bringing together 30 researchers from across UTS with a common interest in evidence-based innovation policy and producivitiy improvements (https://iec.uts.edu.au/). 

Martin’s research interests include startups, entrepreneurial networks, accelerators, education, research commercialisation, entrepreneurial ecosystems, and the entrepreneurial university. Martin’s research has been published in several prestigious journals including Nature Nanotechnology, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Technovation, Entrepreneurship & Regional Development, Education+Training, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, and the Entrepreneurship Research Journal where one of his articles on entrepreneurship education is ERJ’s most downloaded article. 

His work frequently informs innovation policy, such as the $23m Incubator Support Programme by the Australian Government's Department of Industry, the evaluation of the $150m Southern Cross Renewable Energy Fund by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA). He has been an expert advisor and author on several innovation policy reports for the New South Wales Innovation and Productivity Council, and has led projects for various levels of government, including Georges River Council, Greater Cities Commission, the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT Australia-Indonesia Institute), and OECD. 

In 2020, Martin had the privilege to host the UTS Impact Studios 7+1-part podcast series, which was also featured as part of an article for The Conversation titled "Who cares about university research? The answer depends on its impacts"

Martin is a recipient of the nationally competitive Office of Learning and Teaching Citation for “For preparing students studying management to become entrepreneurs by creating authentic and respectful learning experiences that immerse students in collaborative interactions with external stakeholders."

He is a member of the committee for the Australasian Consortium for Entrepreneurship Research Excellence (ACERE), was a subcommittee and Expert Advisory Group member of the NSW Innovation & Productivity Council, and was on the executive committee for the Network of Inter- and Transdisciplinary Research Organisations (NITRO Oceania).

In previous careers, he's worked with Canada's oldest Angel Network, Canada's largest startup pitch competiton, various startups, launched his own startup consultancy, engineered the tuned mass damper for Taipei 101, worked assembly line in a car manufacturing plant, and a few more mechanical engineering experiences.