Director Technical Sales Small Molecule CDMO

Syngene; Bengaluru; On-site; INR 3,500,000 - 5,500,000; Full time

Job summary

Syngene is seeking a Technical Sales Director for Small Molecule DP development and manufacturing services for North & South America, based in Bangalore, India. You will lead the proposal management team and drive strategic engagements with global pharma clients from first contact to closure.

The role requires a Master’s degree in life sciences (MBA/PhD advantageous), 10+ years in pharma sales or BD, and strong leadership, cross-functional collaboration and market insight.

Qualifications

• Master's degree or higher in life sciences; MBA or PhD advantageous.
• Fluency in written and spoken English.
• 10+ years direct/indirect pharma sales, BD or CDMO proposals.
• Ability to lead a team and manage cross-functional stakeholders.
• Willingness to travel internationally.

Responsibilities

• Lead the proposal management team of 4 members.
• Qualify inquiries and shape solution strategy before proposals.
• Own proposal governance for the Americas with pricing rationale and approvals.
• Collaborate with operating units and site heads.
• Support the sales process to achieve quarterly and annual KPIs.
• Ensure timely, high-quality RFP responses.
• Provide market intelligence to inform pricing and strategy.
• Attend trade and scientific conferences.
• Develop and finalize brochures and collateral with Marketing.
• Provide reports to senior management.

Skills

Team leadership

Pharma BD

Technical selling

Proposal management

Market intelligence

Cross-functional collab

Education

Master's degree in life sciences

MBA advantageous

PhD in pharmaceutical sciences

Tools

Salesforce

Job description

JOB DESCRIPTION

Designation: Technical Sales Director for Small Molecule Drug Substance and Drug Product Development & Manufacturing Services – North & South America

Job Location: Bangalore, India

Department: Business Development

About Syngene

Incorporated in 1993, Syngene International Ltd. is an innovation-focused global discovery, development and manufacturing organization providing integrated scientific services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, nutrition, animal health, consumer goods and specialty chemical industries around the world. Syngene’s clientele includes world leaders such as Bristol-Myers Squibb, Baxter, Amgen, GSK, Merck KGaA, Elanco and Zoetis. Its innovative culture is driven by the passion of its 4240- strong team of scientists who work with clients from around the world to solve their scientific problems, improve R&D productivity, speed up time to market and lower the cost of innovation.

Job Purpose

• Lead the proposal management team currently composed of 4 team members
• Support business development activities for the drug product (DP) business from first customer interactions to business closure along with the regional BD and the DP technical team.

This role reports to the VP of Business Development CDMO for North & South America

Key Responsibilities

• Managing the proposal management team
• Act as the drug product subject-matter partner to Global Business Development, qualifying enquiries and shaping the solution strategy before formal proposal development.
• Own proposal governance for the Americas territory, including scope definition, assumptions, exclusions, deliverables, timelines, resource inputs, pricing rationale, risk review and internal approvals. Cost and process optimization during proposal preparation process so that the best, winnable proposal is submitted to the client by the business development lead
• Collaborate with Operating Units including technical leaders and site/department heads.
• Supporting the overall sales process to achieve quarterly and annual KPIs
• Ensuring Proposal responses to RFP’s are timely and of superior quality to maximize chances of winning
• Providing technical support to BD – Acting as an initial filter for new enquiries and supporting through the closure cycle and beyond
• Attending appropriate trade and scientific conferences
• Partner with Marketing to develop, technically review and finalize drug product brochures, capability pamphlets and other scientific-commercial collateral for trade shows, conferences and client engagements.
• Work with business leads to gather and synthesize market intelligence on customer demand, competitor positioning, service trends and regional dynamics, and translate these insights into recommendations for the drug product pricing policy.
• Provide market intelligence and competitive benchmarks to inform proposal costing, pricing assumptions, commercial positioning and internal price-review discussions.
• Providing suitable reports on activity to senior management

Educational Qualification

Master's degree or higher in life sciences. A management degree, such as an M.B.A., is an advantage. A doctorate degree, preferably in pharmaceutical sciences or allied fields, is an advantage. Fluent in both written and spoken English. Fluency in other languages is an advantage.

Technical / Functional Skills

• Essential - Wider appreciation of pharmaceutical development services from Preclinical to Commercialization to lifecycle management of a drug
• Essential: Ability to scope and position Syngene’s drug product services in front of prospective clients
• Essential - Understand the key business drivers as they relate to CDMO services
• Essential - Good understanding of technical selling skills and management of an opportunity pipeline
• Essential: Ability to provide market intelligence and competitive benchmarks to inform proposal costing, pricing assumptions, commercial positioning and internal price-review discussions. Desirable - Understanding of CRM systems and in particular Sales Force
• Essential - Ability to manage a team
• Essential - Effective planning
• Essential - Ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams

Experience

• The ideal candidate will have a minimum of 10 years’ direct or indirect selling experience within a pharma or pharma services related environment. The ideal candidate will have a proven track record in Product Development, BD and/or in CDMO proposal management.
• Candidate MUST be comfortable working through others as well as selling in general. This requires strong interpersonal skills and cultural awareness. The candidate must be diligent and capable of proactively generating high-quality enquiries through a combination of research, remote outreach and the attendance of local trade and technical events.

Individual must be capable of developing the strong internal networks needed to make productive changes and drive business. Role involves international travel. The candidate will be familiar with Sales Force and be aware of the importance of maintaining the data.

Behavioral Skills

• Leadership
• Diligence and proactiveness – self starter
• Resilient - Ability to overcome obstacles/barriers and setbacks
• Strong hard & soft influencer (both internal and external)
• Good Negotiation skills
• Concern for impact - Cultural Empathy and Understanding
• Sound business ethics
• Flexible and adaptable

Equal Opportunity Employer

It is the policy of Syngene to provide equal employment opportunity (EEO) to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable legislation or local law. In addition, Syngene will provide reasonable accommodation for qualified individuals with disabilities