Business Development Manager (remote or hybrid) in Cambridge

We are looking to hire a Business Development Executive across the UK/Europe region, designed for candidates ready to transition or have already transitioned from the lab into a commercially impactful role without stepping away from science. This is a scientist-first BD role, where your technical expertise remains central to every client interaction and decision.

You will work closely with senior VP BD leaders for respective regions to:

• Contribute to the development of scientific proposals and partnership discussions.

This role is a structured pathway from bench science to commercial leadership.

• Support the regional VP of BD in identifying and cultivating new client relationships across biotech, pharma, and academic drug discovery groups.
• Co-develop and expand client relationships across biotech, pharma, and academic drug discovery groups within your assigned region.
• Leverage your network to generate leads and introductions.
• Assist in preparing and delivering compelling scientific proposals, capability overviews, and responses to RFPs and RFQs.
• Attend client meetings, site visits, and scientific conferences to represent o2h discovery in the field.
• Maintain accurate CRM records, including contacts, opportunities, proposals, follow-up actions, and pipeline status.

• Act as a key liaison between US clients and the o2h scientific delivery team in Ahmedabad, India and the UK, ensuring clear communication of project scope, timelines, and expectations.
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of BD workflows and client experience processes.

• Stay current with drug discovery trends, therapeutic area developments, and the biotech funding landscape.
• Contribute to capability presentations, case studies, scientific blog content, and conference materials.
• Participate in internal scientific and BD knowledge-sharing sessions to deepen understanding of o2h's expanding service portfolio.
• Support the BD team in preparing for client visits, due diligence meetings, and partnership discussions.

Requirements:

• PhD in Medicinal Chemistry, Chemical Biology, Biochemistry, Pharmacology, Biology, or a closely related discipline.
• Comfortable working independently and proactively in a remote, hybrid environment.
• Willingness and ability to travel regularly across the USA for client meetings and conferences.
• Post-doctoral experience or early-career industry experience in a CRO, biotech, or pharma setting.
• Existing professional network in the US biotech ecosystem (Boston/Cambridge, MA, Bay Area, San Diego, Seattle).
• Experience with project management tools, ELNs, CRM platforms, or scientific data management systems.
• Interest in or prior exposure to commercial activity — client communication, consulting, or scientific outreach.

A clear path into commercial leadership in biotech, mentorship from experienced BD leaders, hybrid flexibility with meaningful in-person engagement, and a competitive salary with performance-linked incentives.

o2h discovery is a multi-award-winning integrated drug discovery Contract Research Organisation (CRO), headquartered at The Mill SciTech Park, Cambridge, UK, with a world-class research centre in Ahmedabad, India — home to over 800+ scientists across synthetic chemistry, medicinal chemistry, analytical chemistry, in vitro biology, DMPK, ADME, PK studies, peptide synthesis, and IND-enabling capabilities.

Founded in 2005 and part of the o2h group, our DNA is centred on seeding new ideas in life science and technology — co-investing, co-creating, and co-executing with our partners. Alongside o2h Ventures (early-stage life science investment) and o2h co-work labs (Cambridge incubation hub), we offer a uniquely integrated innovation ecosystem spanning discovery, capital, and incubation. As part of our next phase of growth, we are expanding our commercial footprint across these regions, building a new generation of scientist-led business development talent to accelerate client partnerships and programme delivery globally.