Director Business Development Transactions

Job Description

We have an exciting opportunity for a Director Business Development Transactions to be based in Moorgate, London.

This role is hybrid and requires presence onsite 2 days a week.

The Transactions group within the Business Development & Licensing organisation in London, is responsible for Early Stage (pre-Proof of Concept in humans) partnerships that advance our company’s Human Health portfolio.

The team evaluates, structures, and executes collaborations that drive sustainable growth, including license/collaboration deals, options, acquisitions and other types of deals.

As the Director Business Development Transactions you will lead the structuring, negotiation, and execution of Early Stage transactions in the pharmaceutical arena for the European hub.

You will develop deal structure and economics, and lead internal governance through to contract signature.

This role may also support Commercial deals in Europe and other transactions as part of ongoing professional development.

What you will do:

• Own the end-to-end transaction and negotiation process, partnering closely with the cross-functional team during the term sheet and contract negotiations.

• Develop deal structure, define deal scope and ownership and set-up financial terms to support negotiation strategy.

• Lead internal deal governance and stakeholder alignment (e.g., decision memos, approvals, trade-off framing), bringing teams together to solve complex problems and enable timely signature and effective handover to implementation teams.
• Interface with leaders and teams across Search & Evaluation Team, Commercial, Manufacturing/Supply Chain, Legal and Patents, and Alliance Management.
• You will operate on a small but high intensity team with significant responsibility for helping our company achieve its ambitious Business Development & Licensing goals.

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree (MBA) preferred.

• Candidates must demonstrate sufficient scientific fluency to engage credibly with internal experts and external partners.

Required experience:

• Substantial experience in pharmaceutical business development, with demonstrated ownership of deal workstreams and relevant experience structuring, negotiating and executing similar type of agreements.

• Hands-on experience with leading Early Stage transactions and familiarity with relevant market benchmarks.

• Strong working knowledge of common structures used in Early Stage transactions.

Skills/Competencies:

• Excellent deal execution skills, including ability to develop negotiation strategy, manage contracting/legal processes, and partner effectively with internal stakeholders and external partners.
• Demonstrated leadership and structured problem-solving skills, including the ability to frame complex issues, develop options and drive alignment across diverse stakeholders.
• Strong influencing skills with external counterparties and the ability to lead internal deal teams through ambiguity to timely, high-quality decisions.
• Proven ability to communicate clearly with executive leadership and to influence decisions through concise synthesis of science, strategy, risk and financial trade-offs.

• Excellent judgment in structuring and negotiating agreements, escalating issues appropriately, and balancing risk, scientific uncertainty and strategic value.

• Self-motivated, attention to detail, and proven ability to work well on teams.

Our ability to excel depends on the integrity, knowledge, imagination, and skills of our team, with an inclusive culture of respect, encouragement, and teamwork. Members of our global team have the opportunity to collaborate with talented and dedicated colleagues, while developing their own careers.

Please include a brief deal sheet summarising relevant transaction experience. We respect confidentiality, so company names or other confidential details shall not be included.

Additional location(s) Compensation Information:

Required Skills:

Deal Strategy, Negotiation, Professional Networking, Project Management Leadership, Stakeholder Management

Preferred Skills:

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully
Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

VISA Sponsorship:

Travel Requirements:

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Valid Driving License:

Hazardous Material(s):

Job Posting End Date:

11/8/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.