Business Development Director

About AcelaBio

AcelaBio is a specialist histopathology laboratory with CAP and CLIA accreditation, headquartered in San Diego, California. The company supports pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients with anatomic histopathology, immunostaining, digital image analysis, spatial transcriptomics, and biomarker endpoint services. Its team is science-led, focused on client success, and dedicated to advancing translational research through dependable and reproducible approaches.

Role overview

The Business Development Director is responsible for accelerating growth across a defined region or customer segment and for expanding AcelaBio’s market reach and partnerships. This is a highly collaborative, client-facing position that brings together commercial leadership, relationship building, and strategic planning in a dynamic environment.

You will identify new commercial opportunities, strengthen sponsor and partner relationships, shape sales strategy, and help drive initiatives that support the company’s expansion. The role involves close coordination with internal stakeholders and external clients across proposal creation, client meetings, bid defense discussions, and contract negotiations.

The right person will be commercially minded, proactive, and motivated by long-term partnership building, complex opportunity management, and contributing to the success of a specialized, innovation-driven organization.

Responsibilities

• Deliver annual sales objectives for an assigned territory while growing the client base in new markets.
• Prepare and lead client presentations, and coordinate the internal proposal process, including draft proposals, pricing estimates, and quality review of submitted documents.
• Work with the VP and Contracts team during the contract negotiation process, and take the lead on negotiations for selected accounts.
• Support business development marketing by participating in trade and scientific events and by working with Marketing and Scientific teams on brochures, website copy, and presentations.
• Contribute to sales planning and execution, including support for regional expansion and entry into new markets.
• Meet regularly with current and prospective sponsors to understand their needs, explain capabilities, and assess satisfaction.
• Coordinate with Project Operations to stay informed about project progress and milestones, provide timely updates to clients, resolve concerns, and manage expectations across the project lifecycle.
• Keep the CRM system current and accurate with leads, contacts, opportunities, and client interactions, using HubSpot or Salesforce.
• Track market trends and competitor activity, and bring client and sales insights into the development of new offerings and growth strategies.
• Work with Operations to identify and source new vendors in line with company and industry requirements.
• Help create, review, and choose vendor and partner RFPs, and lead or support vendor meetings and negotiations when needed.
• Assist Contracts with finalizing agreements and support QA with vendor qualification requirements, while monitoring vendor budgets on an ongoing basis.

Requirements

• Post-secondary education at the undergraduate level (Bachelor’s or Honours Bachelor’s) plus 5 to 8 years of relevant experience, or a college diploma plus at least 8 years of related experience.
• Availability to support clients in the EST time zone.
• A background in science or business is preferred, along with direct industry experience and an expectation of ongoing professional development.
• Strong history of B2B sales and business development within clinical research, CRO, or a closely related life sciences services environment.
• Ability to analyze market direction, evaluate competitor positioning, and turn insights into effective sales actions.
• Excellent communication skills for technical, scientific, and executive-level audiences.
• Experience preparing proposals, responding to RFPs, and negotiating contracts.
• Proven ability to build and grow a regional client base in a CRO or life sciences setting.
• Experience managing executive-level client relationships and negotiating across complex, multi-stakeholder environments.

Additional information

There is 1 position available, with the role primarily supporting East Coast coverage across North America, including Canada and the United States.

AI-assisted recruitment note

The employer may use AI tools during parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or checking responses for possible inconsistencies or verification signals. These tools support the recruitment team but do not replace human review. Final hiring decisions are made by people. Applicants seeking details on data processing may contact the employer directly.