Director, Head of Global Procurement in Cambridge

Bicycle Therapeutics is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing a novel class of medicines, referred to as Bicycle® molecules, for diseases that are underserved by existing therapeutics. Bicycle molecules are fully synthetic short peptides constrained with small molecule scaffolds to form two loops that stabilize their structural geometry. This constraint facilitates target binding with high affinity and selectivity, making Bicycle® molecules attractive candidates for drug development.

The company is evaluating nuzafatide pevedotin (formerly BT5528), a Bicycle® Drug Conjugate (BDC®) targeting EphA2; a pipeline of Bicycle® Radioconjugates (BRCs) and imaging agents; zelenectide pevedotin (formerly BT8009), a BDC® targeting Nectin-4; and, through various partnerships, the use of Bicycle® technology to develop therapies to treat diseases in a range of therapeutic areas. Bicycle Therapeutics is headquartered in Cambridge, UK, with many key functions and members of its leadership team located in Lexington, Massachusetts, USA.

Culture is key and all Bicycle employees actively embrace and role model our company values: We are Adventurous, Dedicated to our Mission, and One Team.

WORKING CLASSIFICATION: At Bicycle, we benefit from a hybrid style working arrangement, allowing our employees where possible the opportunity to collaborate and engage with their coworkers in person while also benefiting from the flexibility of remote working. A typical hybrid arrangement for this role is 3 days onsite per week at our Cambridge, UK office, with the remainder of your working week remote.

With our plans for continued pipeline advancement and organizational scale, we are seeking a Director, Head of Global Procurement. Sitting within the Finance department and reporting to the CFO, this leader will be highly visible and play a critical role in standardizing and leading our global procurement processes, driving cost efficiency, and managing organizational spend with a specific and immediate focus on Clinical Research Organization (CRO) costs, clinical trial spend, and other external R&D costs.

By establishing best-in-class processes and building strong partnerships with key functions like Clinical Operations, R&D, Finance, Legal and IT, you will drive significant value, cost-efficiency, and supply security, directly enabling our continued growth and pipeline advancement.

The ideal candidate will be a passionate, strategic, and experienced procurement leader who can take charge of our global spend, implement best-in-class procurement practices, and collaborate closely with Clinical Operations, R&D, CMC, Legal, IT, and Finance. This successful candidate will drive supply/service security, cost-efficiency, and supplier compliance, ensuring that Bicycle’s external investments are optimized to support our growth.

• Strategic Sourcing: Lead and execute end to end global procurement strategies and processes across the company, prioritizing high-value areas such as clinical development, CMC, specialty labs, and R&D service providers. Partner with various teams to design and execute RFP/RFI processes for outsourced work. Evaluate system requirements to streamline operations for growth and scale. Implement risk assessment and mitigation initiatives, including dual-sourcing or multi-sourcing strategies where appropriate. Establish, formalize, and lead a comprehensive key vendor management and supplier relationship management framework to drive accountability and high performance across the supply base. Design, manage, and continuously improve the supplier evaluation and management process, ensuring operational, quality, and financial performance metrics are met.
• Contract Negotiation & Management: Lead contract negotiations, including Master Service Agreements (MSAs), Statements of Work (SOWs), and change orders, in close collaboration with Legal and the relevant subject matter experts and external parties. Partner closely with Legal and internal subject matter experts to review, red-line, and finalize contract terms to ensure optimal commercial structures, competitive pricing, clear deliverables, and favorable risk-mitigation terms.
• Spend Analysis, Budgeting & Governance: Design and implement global procurement policies and procedures to ensure compliance and that purchasing is aligned with strategic priorities and budgets. Establish and monitor report on key performance indicators (KPIs), supplier scorecards, to identify areas for cost optimization and efficiency. Work in close coordination with Finance to support annual budgeting, forecasting, and the tracking of procurement-driven savings. Monitor industry trends, supplier market dynamics, and regulatory impacts to proactively advise internal leadership on sourcing strategies.
• Change Management & Process Integration: Lead change management initiatives to ensure the smooth adoption of any new global procurement processes, tracking systems, and policies across the organization. Foster a collaborative culture of strategic spend accountability, working in close partnership with cross functional teams. You will lead, coach, and mentor your team, investing in their professional growth and fostering a culture of high performance and psychological safety. You will set clear goals and strategic priorities for your team, ensuring their work is directly aligned with departmental and organisational objectives. You will champion the Bicycle Values in all that you do, acting as a role model and embedding a culture of collaboration, accountability, and innovation within your team.

WHO ARE YOU: SKILLS & COMPETENCIES

• Vendor Governance & Performance: Advanced capability to establish robust oversight frameworks, driving continuous vendor improvement through rigorous service level agreements (SLAs), key performance indicators (KPIs), and proactive relationship management.
• Negotiation & Collaboration: Advanced ability to collaborate, influence, and negotiate complex business terms with senior leaders and external executives.
• Analytical Thinking: Exceptional analytical skills, with a strong ability to interpret complex spend data, model total cost of ownership (TCO), and build presentations for senior management.
• Project Management: Strong project management skills, including the ability to prioritize and execute multiple initiatives simultaneously in a fast-paced environment. Experience with system implementations and integration of AI into processes is a plus.
• Communication: Outstanding written and verbal communication skills, with the capability to convey sourcing strategies and financial impacts clearly to diverse audiences.
• Tools: Proficient with Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, and Word, as well as experience with contract management and procurement systems.

Knowledge

• Core Expertise: As a leading expert in biopharmaceutical procurement, you will influence the technical and strategic direction of our sourcing activities. You will lead major programs, advance our procurement capabilities, and translate functional strategy into impactful initiatives.
• Data & Insight: You interpret complex and often ambiguous commercial and operational information to resolve critical issues, drive innovation in our sourcing strategies, and shape departmental priorities.

Stakeholder Influence & Collaboration

• You engage extensively with senior leadership and external stakeholders, influencing organisational priorities and strategic decisions. You are recognised internally as a trusted advisor on procurement and supplier management. Demonstrated success in building collaborative, trust-based relationships with key internal business partners and external vendor leadership to align commercial objectives.

Clinical Financial Acumen: Deep understanding of clinical trial and drug development cost structures, including unit-cost drivers in CRO and CDMO contracts. Ability to model budgets and financial scenarios to back up negotiation positions.

Job Complexity

• Task & Project Delivery: You lead significant departmental initiatives, exercising judgment to solve ambiguous and unstructured problems. Your work requires conceptual thinking and the evaluation of multiple factors to shape solutions.
• Problem-Solving: You lead the resolution of significant and complex procurement challenges where existing approaches may not apply, developing new frameworks and policies that guide work across the organisation.
• Strategic Impact: You shape solutions to complex departmental challenges affecting multiple functions, ensuring that major procurement initiatives deliver their intended financial and operational outcomes.
• Autonomy: You operate with significant autonomy and authority, making final decisions on the implementation of sourcing strategies and operational effectiveness within your scope.
• Decision-Making: You make major decisions affecting procurement programs, departmental priorities, and resource allocation, operating with significant autonomy to determine trade-offs.
• Leadership & Mentorship: You provide authoritative guidance on complex strategic matters, mentoring senior professionals and leaders and fostering collaboration across functions.

Values & Behaviours

• One Team: You create alignment across multiple functions, actively challenging yourself to broaden your perspective while translating corporate objectives into a clear functional procurement strategy.
• Adventurous: You champion the adoption of transformative ideas and encourage a culture of innovation within your function, balancing bold thinking with strategic risk management.
• Dedicated to our Mission: You hold yourself and your function accountable for delivering on Bicycle’s mission, inspiring broad teams by connecting procurement outcomes to our ultimate purpose of serving patients.

Travel Requirements: Willingness to travel (locally and internationally) to develop, promote, and maintain strategic supplier relationships (up to 20%).

Qualifications Experience & Education

• Education: A relevant degree and/or deep expertise at the relevant level. A professional procurement certification (e.g., MCIPS, CPSM) or an advanced degree (e.g., MBA) is desirable.
• Experience: Demonstrated deep expertise in strategic sourcing and procurement, gained through significant experience in a global biopharmaceutical or biotechnology environment.
• CRO Expertise: Proven track record of successfully negotiating and managing high-value, complex contracts, particularly with Clinical Research Organisations (CROs) and other clinical development vendors.
• Systems Knowledge: Experience in designing, implementing, or optimizing procurement systems, e-sourcing tools, and ERP integrations, supplier relationship management frameworks to support organizational growth and efficiency.

Additional Information

• Pension 12% employer contribution
• Private Medical Insurance (PMI) (including optical and dental cover)
• Health Cash Plan
• Group Life Assurance (4x basic salary)
• Group Income Protection
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Gym membership (subsidized by Company if on campus, subsidized by PMI if joined elsewhere)
• Time off (28 days annual leave in addition to bank holidays & the option to buy up to 5 additional days annually)
• Competitive reward including annual company bonus
• Enhanced parental leave policies
• Flexible working environment
• State-of-the-art campus environment with on campus restaurant and Montessori nursery
• Eligibility for an option grant to subscribe to shares in Bicycle Therapeutics plc.

Bicycle Therapeutics is committed to building a diverse workforce that is representative of the communities we serve. We recognize that diverse and inclusive teams build a stronger and more innovative company. Therefore, all qualified applicants will be considered for employment, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability status, marital status, or veteran status.