About the role
Sana Biotechnology is growing, and we are hiring new team members who believe in the potential of engineered cells as medicines, who are passionate about delivering the possible to patients, and who lead with the desire to work on novel ideas. As a Senior Director, Business Development, you will report to the Chief Financial Officer to lead and execute key business development initiatives for a publicly traded biotechnology company advancing innovative cell and gene therapy programs. This individual will play a central role in evaluating, structuring, negotiating, and managing transactions that support the company’s long-term growth objectives, including licensing, partnerships, collaborations, co-development arrangements, platform transactions, and other strategic opportunities.
What you’ll do
- Lead or play a central role in the execution of business development transactions, including: in-licensing and out-licensing, co-development and co-commercialization agreements, research collaborations & platform partnerships, option-based deals, key supply agreements, geographic licensing arrangements, and joint ventures or other structured transactions.
- Coordinate cross-functional diligence processes involving R&D, technical operations/CMC, clinical, regulatory, legal, IP, finance, commercial, and executive leadership.
- Develop business cases, valuation frameworks, competitive assessments, and transaction rationale to support internal decision-making.
- Structure, negotiate, and finalize term sheets, letters of intent, confidentiality agreements, and definitive agreements in collaboration with legal and executive leadership.
- Support preparation of presentations and recommendations for senior management, executive committees, and the Board of Directors.
- Build and maintain strong relationships with biotechnology peers, pharmaceutical companies and academic institutions.
- Serve as a key point of contact for existing and prospective partners, representing the company with professionalism, credibility, and strategic insight.
- Support alliance transition and post-signing governance as needed to help ensure successful execution of strategic collaborations.
- Partner closely with internal leaders across research, development, manufacturing, commercial, finance, legal, intellectual property, investor relations, and corporate strategy.
- Help drive internal alignment on external opportunities by synthesizing complex scientific, clinical, strategic, operational, and financial considerations.
- Contribute to broader corporate planning efforts, including portfolio prioritization discussions, long range planning and strategic reviews.
- Develop financial frameworks to properly analyze potential transactions.
What we’re looking for
- 7+ years of experience in biotech/life sciences business development, specifically in technology licensing or tech transfer; however, an alternate combination of education and experience will be considered in exchange for a specific degree.
- Deep understanding of the scientific, clinical, regulatory, and commercial dynamics relevant to therapeutic development.
- Proven track record of successfully negotiating and closing complex transactions, demonstrating strong strategic judgment, financial and transactional acumen, and cross-functional leadership.
- Ability to engage effectively with internal senior leadership and external stakeholders with a track record of operating with executive-level visibility and confidentiality.
What will separate you from the crowd
- Advanced degree (MD, PhD, MBA, or JD).
- Experience in a public company environment.
What you should know
- The base pay range for this position at commencement of employment is expected to be between $250,000 and $315,000/year; however, base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.
- This position is located in our Cambridge, MA office.
How we work together for patients
- Lead from every seat – we seek to understand, act with honesty, and engage in the crucial conversations
- Thrive as a team – we hire amazing people, are intensely curious, and cultivate inclusion and personal connectivity
- Make it happen – we value vigorous debate, alignment around our decisions, and resilient execution
Get to know us
At Sana, we believe that a workforce with varied backgrounds strengthens us as a company and helps us to achieve our mission to meaningfully change the outcome of many human diseases. This belief is a pillar of our business and is critical to our success. Our goal is that Sana is the place for talented people to bring their authentic selves to work, to have a great career and to deeply, positively impact patients.
Core to our values, we believe there is nothing more important than the health and wellness of you and your family. For benefit eligible employees, we cover a generous portion of the cost for employee health coverage, making high-quality care more accessible and affordable. We offer ample time-off (various paid time off benefits, such as holidays, vacation, sick time, and parental leave), short- and long-term disability, employer paid basic life insurance, additional voluntary life insurance protection, financial wellness programs including financial planning resources, a 401(k) Plan with an immediately vested employer match, Tuition Reimbursement and Student Loan Repayment, Employee Stock Purchase Plan, commuter subsidy and a variety of wellness offerings to support each person individually. For more details on our benefits, visit Sana’s Benefits Portal.
We are committed to providing a workplace free of discrimination and harassment based on race, color, religion, age, gender, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental or sensory disability (including the use of a trained guide dog or service animal by a person with a disability), genetic information, actual or perceived HIV or Hepatitis C infection, medical condition (cancer or a record or history of cancer and genetic characteristics), marital status, sexual orientation, sexual preference, pregnancy (including childbirth and related medical conditions), disability, veteran status, political ideology, social class (including caste/caste identity), taking or requesting statutorily protected leave, status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking, or any other basis prohibited by applicable law.
To perform this job successfully, you must be able to perform each job responsibility satisfactorily. The job description listed above is representative of the knowledge, skills, and/or abilities required for this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions described above.
Skills Required
- 7+ years of experience in biotech/life sciences business development, specifically in technology licensing or tech transfer
- Deep understanding of scientific, clinical, regulatory, and commercial dynamics relevant to therapeutic development
- Proven track record of negotiating and closing complex transactions with strong strategic judgment, financial and transactional acumen, and cross-functional leadership
- Ability to engage effectively with senior internal leadership and external stakeholders, operating with executive-level visibility and confidentiality
- Experience developing financial frameworks, valuation analyses, and competitive assessments to support transaction decisions
- Ability to work in the Cambridge, MA office
- Advanced degree (MD, PhD, MBA, or JD)
- Experience in a public company environment
What We Do
Sana Biotechnology is focused on utilizing engineered cells as medicines for patients. The ability to modify genes and use cells as medicines will be one of the most important advances in healthcare over the next several decades. Sana is building differentiated capabilities across the spectrum of cell and gene therapy. Three aspirations drive Sana as we look to discover treatments for patients with poor outcomes or currently untreatable diseases. The first is the ability to repair and control the genes in any cell in the body. We are advancing novel delivery technologies with the goal of being able to deliver any payload to any cell in a specific, predictable, and repeatable manner, paving the way for next-generation in vivo gene therapy. Next is the ability to differentiate pluripotent stem cells ex vivo into immune-cloaked functional cells with the aspiration of being able to replace any missing or damaged cells in the body. Last is a belief we can enable broader access to our therapies through focusing on scalable manufacturing solutions, the cost of manufacturing, and aligning with key stakeholders. Sana launched in early 2019 and has over 350 employees in Seattle, Cambridge, and South San Francisco. Sana was founded with the long view – bringing together great people and the best technologies to deliver on the challenging promise of using engineered cells to meaningfully change the outcome of many human diseases.
