Position: Director of Business Development

Location: Remote – based anywhere within the UK

Travel: Up to 50% required across the European region

Overview

A leading contract research organization is seeking a strategic and results-oriented Director of Business Development to lead client acquisition and commercial growth efforts across Europe. This role offers an exciting opportunity to drive value in a dynamic and science-led organization delivering end-to-end discovery services to the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors.

This is a senior, high-impact role ideal for an individual with a strong commercial background in drug discovery services and a deep understanding of the small molecule R&D ecosystem.

Key Responsibilities

• Own and execute the commercial strategy to grow market share and long-term revenue from both new and established clients.
• Identify and nurture strategic partnerships within the pharmaceutical, biotech, and investor-backed life sciences space.
• Serve as the face of the business to prospective and current clients, articulating complex scientific capabilities in a consultative and solution-driven manner.
• Engage in direct client-facing activities, from initial engagement and needs assessment to final contract negotiation and closure.
• Partner closely with internal teams – including scientific leadership, marketing, and operational delivery – to align client objectives with organizational capabilities.
• Generate and manage a strong pipeline of qualified opportunities that meet commercial goals and timelines.
• Perform targeted market intelligence activities to identify emerging trends, competitor movements, and whitespace opportunities.
• Attend key industry events and conferences to represent the business, build visibility, and identify commercial opportunities.
• Drive proposal development processes, ensuring commercial terms align with strategic growth objectives.
• Track activity and outcomes using internal CRM systems, providing regular reporting on pipeline progress and forecasts.

Ideal Candidate Profile

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in life sciences, business, or a related field.
• Minimum of 6 years of experience in business development, preferably within the small molecule drug discovery or CRO sector.
• Demonstrated success in securing and managing multimillion-euro contracts across European territories.
• Deep understanding of the drug discovery lifecycle and ability to position scientific services within complex client workflows.
• Strong network within the pharma and biotech space, with particular relevance to discovery-stage partnerships.
• Skilled in consultative selling, with an ability to identify client pain points and translate these into actionable, commercially viable solutions.
• Strategic mindset with a high level of commercial acumen and a hands-on approach to client engagement.
• Comfortable operating in a fast-paced, matrixed environment with multiple internal and external stakeholders.
• Outstanding interpersonal and communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Able to work independently while collaborating effectively with cross-functional teams.

This role is a unique opportunity to join a high-growth, innovation-driven organization making significant contributions to therapeutic research. If you’re motivated by strategic selling, scientific collaboration, and long-term relationship building, we’d welcome a conversation.