Director Business Development – Europe

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in Netherlands.

📋 Description

• Provide strategic direction to Business Development Managers throughout the EU region while overseeing key client accounts.

• Lead and enhance the European Business Development team, defining priorities, performance expectations, and operational discipline.

• Contribute to the strategy, performance management, and execution of the European management team.

• Propel new business growth across Europe by identifying, qualifying, prioritizing, and converting opportunities in pharmaceutical packaging, focusing on injectables.

• Commercialize Sharp Europe’s packaging capabilities and capacity across sites in the UK, Netherlands, and Belgium.

• Develop a pipeline utilizing market intelligence, trade shows, referrals, industry relationships, and structured account targeting.

• Build and sustain senior relationships with pharmaceutical, biotech, virtual, and emerging biopharma clients.

• Represent Sharp at industry events, conferences, and trade shows.

• Lead selected strategic pursuits and customer engagements while mentoring the broader team.

• Support continuity and succession in customer ownership, including taking on selected strategic accounts.

• Collaborate with operations and cross-functional teams to ensure alignment of commitments with capability, capacity, risk, and delivery expectations.

• Assist in resolving significant customer or delivery escalations.

• Establish commercial rigor through CRM, pipeline management, forecasting, customer intelligence, and performance metrics.

• Ensure that CRM data, account plans, opportunity records, and customer intelligence are accurate and up-to-date.

• Contribute to the development of strategy, performance reviews, resource prioritization, and growth execution.

• Work alongside US commercial and operational colleagues on global customer opportunities and account ownership.

• Prepare and present commercial updates, growth plans, and performance insights to senior stakeholders, global leadership, and/or the board.

⛳️ Requirements

• Degree qualified in a business, scientific, or technical discipline, or possess equivalent relevant commercial experience.

• Extensive business development and commercial leadership experience within pharmaceutical services, contract packaging, or closely related outsourced pharma manufacturing environments.

• Strong understanding of pharmaceutical packaging formats, materials, and customer technical expectations.

• Experience or exposure to injectables is highly desirable.

• Familiarity with serialization requirements, regulated packaging expectations, and their technical implications.

• Proven success in acquiring and expanding business within large pharmaceutical companies, biotech, and virtual or emerging biopharma clients.

• Experience in leading or mentoring commercial teams, preferably within a matrixed international organization.

• Strong commercial discipline, including skills in pipeline management, forecasting, CRM, and performance reporting.

• Credibility in preparing and delivering clear, data-driven updates and recommendations to senior leadership.

• Excellent communication and presentation skills in English.

• Proficiency in additional European languages is advantageous.

• Flexible base location within Europe and a willingness to travel extensively across the region, averaging approximately 25% and more when necessary.

• Good working knowledge of GMP expectations and the operational realities of serving regulated pharmaceutical clients.

🏝️ Benefits

• Competitive salary package.

• A variety of benefits.

• Numerous opportunities for career development.

• A dynamic workplace.

• A versatile and challenging position.