Business Development Manager / Senior Manager
Licensing & Co-Development — Complex Generics and Biosimilars
Location: Barcelona (preferred)
Reports to: Senior Director or SVP of Business Development
Geographic scope: Worldwide, with primary focus on the US and Asia
Level: Manager or Senior Manager, depending on seniority of background
Compensation: Competitive, benchmarked to market
Eligibility: Must already be based in Spain, no relocation provided. Work visa can be sponsored
About the Role
Lotus is widening its in-licensing, out-licensing and co-development footprint across complex generics and biosimilars. This position sits at the centre of that agenda: sourcing and shaping partnerships that expand the portfolio, open new markets, and share development risk with the right counterparties.
The mandate is global. In practice, the centre of gravity is the US and Asia — the two regions where Lotus holds direct commercial presence and where most value creation sits. Europe and other territories enter scope selectively, usually within multi-territory arrangements.
This is a hands-on, individual-contributor post with visible ownership. You will originate ideas rather than wait for them, carry transactions from first conversation to signature, and stay involved once the ink dries.
Key Responsibilities
Deal Ideation and Sourcing
- Identify and prioritise in-licensing, out-licensing and co-development prospects across complex generics (injectables, inhalation, ophthalmics, transdermals, long-acting formulations, drug–device combinations) and biosimilars.
- Maintain a live opportunity map by molecule, dosage form, territory and therapeutic area — covering patent and exclusivity timelines, expected entrants, and likely competitive intensity.
- Generate leads from a cold start rather than relying on inbound flow: track pipeline disclosures, regulatory filings, litigation dockets, conference activity and industry press to spot openings early.
- Bring forward differentiated theses, including unconventional deal shapes and partner pairings.
Analysis and Business Case
- Build market models covering sizing, price erosion, share capture, cost of goods, development spend and launch timing.
- Run valuation and economics: NPV/IRR, milestone and royalty design, profit-share and transfer-price mechanics, upfront versus back-loaded trade-offs.
- Pressure-test assumptions with R&D, regulatory affairs, manufacturing, supply chain, quality, finance and the in-market teams before recommendations advance.
- Prepare and present decision-ready material for senior management and investment committees.
Network Building and Partner Engagement
- Cultivate a durable external network across originators, generics and biosimilar developers, CDMOs, API suppliers, distributors, licensing agents and advisors, with particular depth in both home regions.
- Represent Lotus at partnering meetings, industry conferences and one-to-one discussions (CPHI, DCAT, etc).
- Serve as a persuasive external face for the company, explaining Lotus's capabilities, technical strengths and partnering interests without ambiguity.
- Keep structured intelligence on counterparty strategy, capabilities and past behaviour at the negotiating table.
Execution and Contracting
- Lead or support negotiation of term sheets, LOIs, MOUs and definitive agreements, spanning licence, supply, development and co-development documents.
- Coordinate due diligence across technical, regulatory, IP, quality and market workstreams; manage findings and their bearing on terms.
- Collaborate with Legal and IP to translate intent into workable language and to surface risk early.
- Depending on transaction scale and your seniority, either own a negotiation end to end or run defined workstreams inside a larger team.
Alliance Management Support
- Assist Alliance Management on demanding partnerships — governance set-up, joint steering committees, KPI tracking and issue escalation.
- Provide continuity between signature and execution, so the reasoning behind negotiated terms reaches the people delivering against it.
- Contribute to amendments, scope expansions and renegotiations as programmes evolve.
Internal Collaboration
- Align sourcing priorities with colleagues running the American and Asian businesses.
- Keep pipeline reporting and CRM records current, giving leadership an accurate view of stage, probability and expected value.
- Feed into portfolio strategy and long-range planning.
Background
- Minimum 5–8 years in the pharmaceutical industry, concentrated on generics and biosimilars. Candidates at the upper end of that range, or with wider transaction ownership, will be considered at Senior Manager level.
- Prior business development experience is non-negotiable. This role is not an entry point into the function from an adjacent discipline.
- A record built at reputed pharmaceutical organisations and/or entrepreneurial firms where individual ownership ran high and support functions stayed lean.
- Demonstrable involvement in completed transactions — licensing, supply, co-development or M&A-adjacent — with a specific account of what you personally contributed.
- Familiarity with the US landscape (ANDA, 505(b)(2), 351(k) pathways, Paragraph IV litigation, distribution channels and pricing) and with Asian development and manufacturing ecosystems.
Education
- Bachelor's degree in a scientific or technical discipline — pharmacy, chemistry, biology, biotechnology, pharmaceutical sciences or similar.
- Master's (MSc, MPharm, MBA) preferred but not a hard requirement; proven capability outweighs credentials.
Data and Technical Fluency
- Hands-on use of industry data sources — IQVIA, GlobalData and beyond. Working knowledge of Evaluate, Citeline/Pharmaprojects, Orange Book, Purple Book, FDA and EMA databases, patent and litigation trackers, and their Asian equivalents is valued.
- Comfort triangulating across imperfect or contradictory inputs, and candour about where an estimate is soft.
- Fluent financial modelling in Excel; concise presentation building.
Competencies and Working Style
- Agility and entrepreneurial spirit — at ease initiating leads unprompted, operating without a fixed playbook, and moving fast when timing matters.
- Capacity to carry several projects at once, at different stages and varying degrees of complexity, and to prioritise sensibly when they compete for attention.
- Rigorous business judgement paired with genuine scientific curiosity; convincing in a room with formulators and dealmakers alike.
- Excellent written and spoken English; Spanish, Mandarin or another language relevant to the mandate is an asset.
- Readiness for frequent international travel, weighted towards the US and Asia, and for coordinating across time zones.
- Personal ownership, sound instincts, and the composure to hold a position under pressure