BD Director, APAC

A leading global scientific services provider is seeking an accomplished Commercial Growth Leader to head business development initiatives across expanding Asia-Pacific territories. This executive role focuses on driving regional revenue, scaling key accounts, identifying untapped market potential, and mentoring a high-achieving sales and account management team.
 

Responsibilities

• Formulate and execute regional commercial blueprints aligned with global corporate objectives to capture market share.
• Direct, coach, and scale a decentralized, multi-country sales force to meet and exceed revenue benchmarks and margin goals.
• Cultivate and sustain high-value partnerships with major pharmaceutical entities, biotech startups, research institutes, and contract research organizations.
• Oversee major account management and pipeline health, leveraging advanced CRM analytics to ensure forecasting accuracy and commercial transparency.
• Collaborate with internal laboratory operations, scientific leadership, marketing teams, and international stakeholders to streamline service delivery and capitalize on market trends.
• Gather competitive intelligence, track industry shifts, and identify emerging sponsor needs to help shape the evolution of the service portfolio.
• Act as the primary regional brand ambassador at prominent industry forums, client symposiums, and networking events.
• Spearhead complex contract negotiations, licensing agreements, and long-term strategic alliances.
• Familiarity with the commercial dynamics of the Indian and Mainland Chinese markets is highly advantageous.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Life Sciences, Biochemistry, Pharmacology, or a related scientific discipline. An advanced degree (such as an MBA, MSc, or PhD) is highly desirable.
• Minimum of 10+ years of progressive commercial and sales leadership experience within the pharma, biotech, or broader preclinical service/CRO landscape.
• Demonstrated history of managing successful cross-border commercial campaigns across diverse Asian markets.
• Proven experience managing, motivating, and developing multicultural, remote sales teams.
• Exceptional strategic agility paired with strong commercial instincts.
• Verified ability to secure net-new business and aggressively scale regional accounts.
• Sophisticated stakeholder management and high-stakes negotiation capabilities.
• Natural leadership style suited for guiding cross-functional and diverse teams.
• Complete professional fluency in English. High proficiency in Mandarin is strongly preferred to support regional client communication.