Business Development Associate

Department: Business Development
Location: Remote, Spain
Experience: 2-3 years

About Ardena

Ardena is a global Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) and Contract Research Organization (CRO) supporting pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in developing complex and innovative medicines from discovery to market.

With more than 750 professionals across Europe and the United States, Ardena provides integrated services spanning drug substance and drug product development, GMP manufacturing, bioanalysis, nanomedicine, fill & finish, clinical logistics, and CMC regulatory support.

Our sites are located in Oss and Assen (the Netherlands), Ghent (Belgium), Pamplona (Spain), and Somerset (USA).

The Role

Ardena is looking for a Business Development Associate to support our commercial growth by identifying new opportunities, engaging prospective customers, and generating qualified meetings for our Business Development Directors.

This is a hands-on commercial role focused on prospecting, lead generation, account research, and opportunity creation within the biotech and pharmaceutical industry.

You will work closely with Business Development and Marketing teams to identify companies and development programs that could benefit from Ardena’s CRO/CDMO capabilities and turn those insights into meaningful commercial conversations.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead Generation: Identify and qualify prospective biotech and pharmaceutical customers, from early-stage companies to commercial organizations.

• Outbound Prospecting: Engage prospects through structured email, LinkedIn, and digital outreach campaigns.

• Program & Market Research: Track pipelines, funding rounds, clinical milestones, licensing deals, and outsourcing activities to uncover new opportunities.

• Target Account Development: Build and maintain prioritized account and contact lists using commercial intelligence and prospecting tools.

• Meeting Generation: Secure qualified introductory meetings for Ardena’s Business Development Directors.

• Collaboration: Work closely with Business Development Directors and Marketing to align target accounts, campaigns, events, and follow-up strategies.

• Brand Awareness: Introduce Ardena and its integrated CRO/CDMO capabilities to new prospective customers.Qualifications & Experienc

  Qualifications & Experience

  Mandatory

  • 1-3 years of commercial experience in business development, sales development, lead generation, or a related role.

  • Degree in Life Sciences, Business, or a related field.

  • Proven experience in outbound prospecting using email, LinkedIn, and sales intelligence tools such as LinkedIn Sales Navigator, Apollo, Closely, ZoomInfo, Lusha, or similar.

  • Proactive, persistent, and comfortable with prospecting and disciplined follow-up.

  • Strong research, communication, and organizational skills, with the ability to work independently and collaborate within an international team.

  Preferred

  • Experience within the CRO/CDMO, biotechnology, pharmaceutical, or life sciences industry.

  • Experience with CRM systems such as HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive, Microsoft Dynamics, or similar.

  • Familiarity with AI tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, or Perplexity for research and outreach.

  • Understanding of drug development, pharmaceutical outsourcing, CMC, bioanalysis, or related CRO/CDMO services.

  Candidates may come from a Life Sciences background with commercial experience or a Business/Marketing background with a strong interest in biotech and pharma.

What Success Looks Like

Success in this role means consistently:

• Generating qualified meetings and new commercial opportunities.

• Executing effective and persistent prospecting campaigns.

• Maintaining high-quality account intelligence and CRM data.

• Expanding Ardena’s network and awareness across target biotech and pharmaceutical companies.

• Contributing measurable opportunities to Ardena’s commercial pipeline.

What Ardena Offers

Ardena is a science-driven, people-focused organization where employees contribute to the development of medicines for patients worldwide.

We offer:

• Full-time permanent contract.

• Competitive salary and benefits package (€25,500–€30,000 gross annual salary).

• Remote working from Spain within an international European and US team.

• Professional development and training opportunities.

• Exposure to innovative pharmaceutical and biotechnology programs.

• Opportunities to develop your career within an international CRO/CDMO organization.

• A collaborative culture guided by Ardena’s CARE values: Communicative, Accountable, Reliable, and Excellent.

How to Apply

Ready to build your career in pharmaceutical business development? Apply here or through the Ardena Careers website at careers.ardena.com.

We Know Development.