Director, Business Director

The Director, Business Development will play a central leadership role in shaping CNX Therapeutics’ long‑term growth strategy through oversight of pipeline development, in‑licensing activities, and strategic external partnerships. Operating as a senior member of the Corporate Development function, the Director will lead the identification, evaluation, and execution of high‑value business development opportunities that support CNX’s corporate objectives across Europe and beyond. This role carries significant strategic and commercial ownership, with responsibility for steering cross‑functional decision‑making, informing investment priorities, advising the Leadership Team, and representing CNX Therapeutics externally at the highest levels.

Core Tasks & Responsibilities

• Strategic Leadership & Portfolio Direction: Lead CNX Therapeutics’ overall in‑licensing and partnership strategy, ensuring alignment with corporate growth priorities. Drive strategic portfolio planning through rigorous market, competitive, and portfolio assessment in partnership with Strategic planning and portfolio. Provide senior leadership input into long‑range planning, investment decisions, and corporate development roadmaps. Advise the Corporate Development team, Leadership Team, and Board‑level stakeholders on strategic opportunities.
• Origination & Pipeline: Maintain an active view of the European specialty pharma licensing market—available assets, active divestiture programmes, and emerging partnership opportunities. Build and manage proactively an active pipeline of in‑licensing opportunities—branded products, reformulations, line extensions, and late‑stage development assets across Europe and relevant global regions. Identify and approach potential licensors directly: large pharma tail asset programmes, mid‑size specialty companies, and emerging European biotech. Build strong executive‑level relationships with pharmaceutical companies, developers, CMOs, dossier developers, brokers and industry partners.
• Deal Ownership and Cross‑Functional Leadership: Act as deal lead for BD transactions, guiding stakeholders from opportunity sourcing through execution. Lead diligence commercial assessment: market sizing, competitive dynamics, pricing/reimbursement landscape, regulatory pathway, and lifecycle potential. Collaborate with Transaction Excellence and Finance for business cases, financial modelling, and risk‑opportunity assessments. Chair cross‑functional workstreams (Regulatory, Medical, Supply Chain, Finance, Commercial) to ensure alignment on BD opportunities in tandem with Transaction Excellence. Serve as a senior decision‑maker in due‑diligence processes, guiding commercial assessment, regulatory strategy, pricing, and market access considerations. Lead the development and negotiation of Heads of Terms and commercial contracts. Provide governance oversight for new asset integration and contribute to launch and lifecycle planning.
• Commercial and Distribution Partnerships: Originate and negotiate co‑promotion, co‑marketing, and commercial partnership agreements with regional specialty pharma operators across Europe. Identify and contract distribution partners in markets where direct infrastructure is not justified. Manage ongoing licensing and partnership relationships—milestones, performance, amendments, renewals.
• Out‑Licensing and Asset Monetization: Identify portfolio products suitable for out‑licensing in markets outside the CNX direct commercial footprint. Manage out‑licensing processes end‑to‑end—counterparty identification, terms negotiation, and execution in alignment with CNX End‑to‑End Corporate Development Processes (E2E). Structure out‑licensing terms to protect core market interests and preserve re‑acquisition optionality. Support M&A team in case of major strategic out‑licensing project.
• External Representation & Corporate Influence: Represent CNX Therapeutics as a senior corporate ambassador with partners, investors, and potential acquisition targets. Promote CNX as the go‑to partner across the European Generics and Generics‑Plus market. Influence external stakeholders to enhance CNX’s competitive and partnership position. Model CNX Values and uphold the highest standards of ethics, governance, and compliance. Champion ESG‑aligned decision‑making across business development activities.

What Success Looks Like:

• Active in‑licensing pipeline of 15–20 qualified product opportunities at any point in time.
• 3–5 licensing or partnership agreements signed annually.
• Growing proportion of deal flow sourced through direct outreach rather than intermediated channels.
• Out‑licensing generating incremental revenue in non‑core geographies within 18 months.

Required skills & experience

Essential: Extensive experience in the pharmaceutical industry. Significant business development leadership experience. Deep knowledge of the European Generics and/or Generics‑Plus market. Proven experience in product pipeline development and commercial evaluation. Strong regulatory, pricing, reimbursement, and market access understanding across EU markets. Expertise in contract negotiation and deal structuring. Advanced financial modelling capabilities. Proficiency with market analysis tools. Fluent in English.

Desirable: Educated within Business or Life Sciences. Pharmacy or medical qualification. Experience evaluating differentiated product opportunities. Additional European languages. Experience within Private Equity environments.