Business Development Manager/Director - Oligo
About The Position
Hongene is hiring a Business Development Manager / Director to grow its U.S. customer base for its oligonucleotide CDMO business. The role is part of the Commercial Strategy team and reports to the VP Technical Operations & Commercial Strategy. It is primarily an individual-contributor role. At the Manager level, the position develops and manages opportunities with support from senior commercial and technical colleagues. At the Director level, it leads more complex opportunities, develops strategic accounts, contributes to commercial planning, and may mentor colleagues. The final title may be Manager, Senior Manager, Associate Director, or Director, depending on experience, commercial results, and scope. The role involves identifying and qualifying prospects, building biotech and pharmaceutical customer relationships, and progressing opportunities from initial discussions through proposals, negotiations, and contract awards. The position works closely with scientific and technical colleagues and cross-functional teams to shape customer solutions, assess project fit, prepare proposals and quotations, and support awarded-project handoffs. It also maintains CRM and forecasting information, tracks market developments, and contributes to commercial and market intelligence. The position is based in Boston, Massachusetts, and requires willingness to travel up to 25% of working time, including occasional international travel to China for customer audits and internal coordination.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in chemistry, biochemistry, molecular biology, chemical engineering, or a related scientific discipline; an advanced degree is a plus but not required.
- Relevant experience in business development, technical sales, account management, or customer-facing CDMO or life science roles: Manager, 3+ years; Senior Manager, 5+ years; Associate Director, 7+ years; Director, 8+ years.
- Manager-level ability to develop customer relationships and qualify and advance opportunities with support.
- Senior Manager-level ability to independently manage assigned accounts and opportunities through proposals and negotiations, with demonstrated commercial results.
- Associate Director-level demonstrated success winning business and leading complex opportunities across multiple stakeholders.
- Director-level sustained record of independently winning CDMO business, growing strategic accounts, and delivering commercial results, with ability to contribute to broader market and account strategy.
- Working knowledge of chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC) and regulatory milestones relevant to oligonucleotide development, including IND-enabling activities, IND submissions, clinical development, and NDA submissions; ability to translate milestones into customer outsourcing needs, project scope, and timelines, working with CMC and regulatory specialists as needed.
- Strong communication, presentation, relationship-building, and organizational skills.
- Proactive approach to prospecting and consistent follow-through.
- Ability to collaborate across functions, cultures, and time zones.
- Proficiency in CRM and cloud-based collaboration tools.
- Ability and willingness to travel up to 25% of working time, primarily for customer visits, relationship development, conferences, and site audits, including occasional international travel to China.
Nice To Haves
- Direct experience in oligonucleotide CDMO business development or technical sales.
- Established network in the U.S. biotech and pharmaceutical sectors.
- Familiarity with oligonucleotide synthesis and manufacturing, including phosphoramidite chemistry or ligation-based approaches, and relevant CMC, GMP, and scale-up considerations.
- Experience with early-stage biotech customers, development and manufacturing service agreements, or strategic partnerships.
- Advanced degree in a relevant scientific discipline.
Responsibilities
- Identify and develop new U.S. oligonucleotide CDMO opportunities through targeted outreach, referrals, industry events, and follow-up on inbound inquiries.
- Qualify prospects by understanding their development stage, funding status, technical requirements, timelines, decision process, and commercial potential.
- Build biotech and pharmaceutical customer relationships, develop account plans, and progress qualified opportunities toward pipeline, contract award, and revenue goals.
- Represent Hongene at relevant conferences and customer meetings, track follow-up actions, and convert engagement into qualified opportunities.
- Communicate Hongene's oligonucleotide CDMO capabilities, including GMP manufacturing, chemoenzymatic ligation, and integrated raw material supply, with support from technical specialists as needed.
- Coordinate with Sales, CMC, R&D, Project Management, Quality, and manufacturing teams in the U.S. and China to assess project fit and prepare proposals, scopes of work, and quotations aligned with customer development milestones.
- Engage early-stage biotech customers on development plans and CMC milestones, involving technical and regulatory colleagues to define suitable services and realistic project timelines.
- Support or lead commercial negotiations according to experience and assigned authority; coordinate pricing and contract terms with internal stakeholders and obtain required approvals.
- Coordinate customer technical discussions, site visits, and audits, and support clear handoffs of awarded projects to the execution team.
- Maintain accurate and timely CRM records, including opportunity stage, estimated value, expected timing, next steps, and key risks; provide regular pipeline updates and forecasts.
- Track funding rounds, licensing deals, M&A, clinical and regulatory milestones, product approvals, and relevant patent developments in the oligonucleotide market; translate findings into target accounts, outreach priorities, and commercial opportunities.
- Work with Marketing and technical colleagues on customer materials, competitor positioning, and industry events.
- At more senior levels, contribute to commercial planning and mentor colleagues as appropriate.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
