Business Development Director (Sales) DACH, France and Southern Europe
Position Information
Business Development Director (Sales) to be responsible for driving new business growth and expanding existing client relationships for Drug Discovery & Pre-Clinical Development services. This role manages the full sales cycle from direct prospecting and lead qualification to contract closure while ensuring high levels of client satisfaction. The Sales Director works closely with Operations, Proposals and Marketing, to deliver tailored solutions that meet the needs of pharmaceutical and biotech clients.
Region: DACH, France and Southern Europe
Key Responsibilities
Sales Growth
Work with the VP of Sales to drive the overall commercial strategy within the territory.
Establish Evotec as the partner of choice within the territory
Maintain high visibility in the territory, spending ~40-50% of time client facing.
Focus on new client acquisition, identifying new business opportunities with biotech and pharmaceutical companies.
Manage the entire sales pipeline, including in territory prospecting, follow-up, client meetings, proposals, contract negotiation and closure.
Meet or exceed assigned sales targets and quarterly KPIs.
Maintain a robust and accurate pipeline within the CRM system.
Client Relationship Management
Develop long-term relationships with key decision-makers in client organizations.
Conduct capability presentations, introductory calls/meetings, and needs-assessment meetings.
Serve as the primary point of contact during the pre-award phase and ensure a seamless hand-off to Project Management post-award.
Manage selected accounts to encourage repeat business and identify cross-sell or upsell opportunities.
Market Insight & Industry Engagement
Maintain awareness of CRO industry trends, competitive landscape, regulatory changes, and client R&D priorities.
Represent the organization at trade shows, conferences, events, and client site visits.
Provide market feedback to internal teams to support service/product development, commercial strategy, and pipeline planning.
Qualifications & Experience
Essential
Bachelor’s degree in life sciences, business, or related field.
5+ years of sales experience, ideally within a CRO, CDMO, biotech service provider, or pre-clinical research environment.
Proven track record of meeting or exceeding revenue targets.
Broad understanding of the discovery and pre-clinical development process.
Excellent communication, negotiation, and presentation skills.
Willingness to travel extensively (40%+).
Desired
Established network within the biotech and/or pharmaceutical sectors.
Experience selling complex scientific or technical services.
Candidate to be in Germany.
Key Competencies
Strong commercial and analytical skills
Relationship building and client engagement
Resilient, results-driven and self-motivated
Excellent organization and time management skills
Ability to work independently and collaboratively
FR : Dans le cadre de sa politique Diversité, Evotec étudie, à compétences égales, toutes les candidatures dont celles des personnes en situation de handicap.
ENG : In the frame of our Diversity policy, Evotec considers, with equal competences, all applications including people with disabilities.