Business Development Manager

£55,000 - £58,000 FTE (Pro Rata)  plus benefits

Reports to: Associate Director – Search & Evaluation

Directorate: Research & Innovation

Contract: Permanent

Hours: Part Time 21 hours per week (Ideally across 3 days)  

Location: Stratford, London Office-based with high flexibility (1-2 days per week in the office) There will also be occasional business travel.

Closing date: 2 December :55pm

This vacancy may close earlier if a high volume of applications is received or once a suitable candidate is found, therefore we strongly recommend that you apply early to avoid disappointment. Please let us know if there is anything about the recruitment process that you would like to discuss, in particular if there are any changes or adjustments that would make it easier for you to apply. Please contact or as soon as possible.

Visa sponsorship: You must be eligible to work in the UK to apply for this vacancy. Cancer Research UK is not able to offer visa sponsorship.

Recruitment process: Screening call followed by competency-based interview with presentation task.

Interview date: TBC

At Cancer Research UK, we exist to beat cancer.

Cancer Research Horizons (CRH), the innovation engine of Cancer Research UK, is dedicated to translating cutting-edge discoveries into effective treatments and diagnostics for cancer patients. With exclusive access to CRUK's annual investment of over £300 million in world-class cancer research, we are a powerful partner in the fight to conquer cancer and a global leader in oncology innovation.

Our Business Development team is the primary interface with industry and investors, responsible for promoting CRUK's technologies and capabilities through a range of commercialisation routes, including licensing, collaborations, spin-out formation, and strategic partnerships.

As a Business Development Manager, you will work at the interface of science and industry, building relationships across academia and the health sector to advance CRUK's flagship programmes, including TRACERx and TRACERx EVO—the world's largest cancer evolution studies. These programmes are transforming our understanding of how lung cancers evolve, develop resistance to therapy, and spread, using advanced genomic and clinical data to track changes in real time.

In this role, you will identify and develop commercial opportunities, evaluate discoveries emerging from these studies, and lead or support negotiations for commercial contracts and academic collaborations. You will play a key role in maximising the commercial potential of CRUK's strategic programmes and promoting CRH's capabilities to increase industry partnerships across the health sector. This is an exceptional opportunity to work with world-class researchers and industry leaders, helping translate breakthrough oncology science into real-world impact.

• Provide support to TRACERx partnering initiatives to maximise the impact of these programmes.

• Liaise with scientific teams, institution tech transfer offices and CRH / CRUK teams to identify, evaluate and progress collaborations and commercial development opportunities.

• Complete and/or support completion as appropriate of commercial agreements (including collaborations, confidentiality, material transfer and licence agreements).

• Evaluate commercial opportunities through analysis of technology application areas, market size, competition and market need to build and develop our tech-focussed licensing portfolio.

• Proactively and competently promote CP and its activities and technologies to external parties through a variety of channels including visits, presentations, marketing events and participation at meetings.

• Keep apprised of industry and institutional trends and developments to aid judgement and to keep others informed.

• Deliver responsibilities assigned on an individual basis (including supporting other initiatives and commercial agreements) that contribute to overall CP team objectives.

• Work with colleagues from other CRH functions to support implementation of the CRH strategy.

• Influencing and working effectively with key stakeholders, showing tenacity and persistence in business development situations.

• BSc (or equivalent) in a Life Science discipline, ideally with an understanding of current research in the oncology space.

• Business development, transactions and/or technology transfer experience in industry, academia or non-profit organisations is desirable but not essential. Strong interest in business development, particularly as it relates to oncology drug discovery and development and an appetite to develop skills in new areas.

• An understanding of the steps required to translate scientific innovation into commercial products.

• Strong organisational skills and the ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously.

• Excellent interpersonal skills, able to establish and maintain effective working relationships and communicate without authority with senior personnel.

• Ability to influence and resolve conflict and construct innovative solutions to overcome challenges.

Our organisation values are designed to guide all that we do.

Bold: Act with ambition, courage and determination  

Credible: Act with rigour and professionalism   

Human: Act to have a positive impact on people  

Together: Act inclusively and collaboratively

We're looking for people who can believe in and embody these organisation values and can use them to drive forward progress against our mission to beat cancer.

If you're interested in applying and excited about working with us but are unsure if you have the right skills and experience we'd still love to hear from you.

We create a working environment that supports your wellbeing and provide a generous benefits package, a wide range of career and personal development opportunities and high-quality tools. Our policies and processes enable you to improve your work-life balance, take positive steps in your career and achieve your personal wellbeing goals.

You can explore our benefits by visiting our careers web page.

We operate an anonymised shortlisting process in our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion. CVs are required for all applications; but we won't be able to view them until we invite you for an interview. Instead, we ask you to complete the work history section of the online application form for us to be able to assess you fairly and objectively.

For more information on this career opportunity please visit our website or contact us at   

For more updates on our work and careers, follow us on: Linked In, Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.

There's a place for everyone at Cancer Research UK. Our vision is to create a charity where everyone feels like they belong, benefits from and participates in, the work we do. We're committed to creating an inclusive culture where everyone can be themselves and reach their full potential. 

We actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and cultures, in particular those from ethnic minority backgrounds who are currently under-represented, and believe that a diverse workforce will help us to beat cancer sooner. 

If you're interested in applying and excited about working with us but are unsure if you have the right skills and experience we'd still love to hear from you. We don't expect everyone to meet all of the criteria listed.

We want to see every candidate performing at their best throughout the job application process, interview process and whilst at work. We therefore ask you to inform us of any concerns you have or any adjustments you might need to enable this to happen by emailing us at  

Unfortunately, we are unable to recruit anyone below the age of 18, so that we can protect young people from health & safety and safeguarding risks.