Sr. Director / VP, Business Development

• →Drive lead generation with leadership, representing Manifold externally, including at BIO, JPM, and partnering meetings
• →Build and manage the partnering pipeline, mapping target partners for each shuttle and payload combination
• →Lead term sheet negotiations across research collaborations, platform and target licenses, options, co-development and co-commercialization deals, and asset sales
• →Structure deal economics, balancing near-term cash with long-term value.
• →Bring financial fluency, including building or critically reviewing deal valuation models.
• →Protect Manifold's platform in every deal, defining what partners license and what Manifold retains
• →Run end-to-end transaction processes, from internal approvals and due diligence through timelines and cross-functional coordination with R&D, IP, finance, and leadership
• →Partner with alliance management, legal, and R&D after signing to make collaborations successful
• →Advise leadership and the board on deal strategy, market terms, and comparable transactions

• Hold an advanced degree (MS, PhD, PharmD, JD, MBA) or have equivalent experience
• Deep rolodex of relationships with pharma BD and search-and-evaluation teams
• Have 10+ years of experience in biopharma business development, transactions, or life sciences transactional law
• A deal sheet and clear ownership from identifying partners and building relationships through converting outreach into signed transactions
• Have served as lead negotiator on multiple signed biopharma collaboration and license agreements, from term sheet through definitive agreement
• Have deep command of platform biopharma deal structures, market terms, and IP issues
• Understand platform technologies and drug discovery science well enough to craft pitches and translate them into deal terms
• Bring sound judgment, composure, and clear written and verbal communication to high-stakes negotiations
• Comfortable in a fast-moving startup, setting strategy one day and doing the hands-on work the next

• Transaction experience in biologics, antibody, delivery or shuttle technologies, or oligonucleotide therapeutics
• Experience partnering targeting and delivery platforms (e.g., AAV capsids, BBB shuttles, conjugate/delivery systems, radioligand targeting moieties), where the platform remains a component of the partner’s final drug product.
• Experience in both big pharma and in biotech startups
• Familiarity with asset spin-outs or NewCo structures
• Experience building transaction processes, templates, and playbooks at a growing company

Base Salary Range: $250,000-$350,000

This reflects the typical offer range for this role, based on experience, role scope, and internal equity. Final compensation decisions are made using a consistent leveling framework and consider the candidate’s experience, interview performance, and expected impact.

This role is eligible for:

• Annual performance-based target bonus
• Stock options
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage
• 401(k) plan
• Flexible paid time off and holidays
• Perks including on-site gym, onsite lunch, and commuter support

Our compensation ranges are reviewed annually to ensure alignment with market trends and internal equity.