VP, Business Development

Brightseed is a pioneer in biosciences and artificial intelligence (A.I.) that illuminates nature to restore human health. Brightseed’s proprietary A.I., Forager®, accelerates bioactive discovery, biological validation and ingredient formulation from years to months, rapidly revealing new connections between nature and humanity. Through Forager® and clinical evaluation, Brightseed partners with organizations across the consumer health continuum to offer insight into the world of bioactives and health solutions. 

Brightseed is a pioneer in biosciences and artificial intelligence (A.I.) that illuminates nature to restore human health. Brightseed’s proprietary A.I., Forager®, accelerates bioactive discovery, biological validation and ingredient formulation from years to months, rapidly revealing new connections between nature and humanity. Through Forager® and clinical evaluation, Brightseed partners with organizations across the consumer health continuum to offer insight into the world of bioactives and health solutions. Visit www.brightseedbio.com to learn more.

Bioactives are small molecule compounds produced by plants, fungi, and microbes that grow in and adapt to environments that present a wide range of challenges to their survival. Bioactives also benefit the health of humans – they are the enlivening caffeine in tea, the powerful antioxidant lycopene in tomatoes or curcumin in turmeric, and they inform active ingredients in medicines like Taxol, aspirin and Metformin, the latter a first-line treatment for Type 2 diabetes derived from the French lilac flower. Science has long known that bioactives are critical to human health, yet the vast majority remain unknown and uncharted – often referred to as the “dark matter” of nutrition. Brightseed’s A.I., Forager®, discovers bioactives in nature and maps them to human health outcomes at a rate and accuracy that was previously impossible.

As VP of Business Development, reporting to our COO, you are responsible for leading the team that will commercialize our technology and monetize its capabilities through joint discovery and development partnerships. In this capacity, you will be instrumental in designing how Brightseed engages with our ecosystem of partners across industries such as specialized ingredients, supplements, consumer health and packaged food and beverage.  This role will be based out of our SSF office and requires to be onsite at least 3 - 4 days per week and/or as needed.

Achieve revenue goals: Own and deliver against bioactives revenue goals by expanding existing partnerships and converting  new partners.  Achieve a 5x increase in partner revenue in the next 3 years and support the team with complex deal negotiations on terms such as fee structures, IP ownership and use, and value sharing. Work with the BD team to shape revenue projections and lead the team to deliver on that growth, at a global level by increasing the value of Brightseed’s bioactives pipeline by 50%.

Design deal structures for long-term success: Refine and evolve engagement models across industries from specialized ingredients, supplements, personal care, consumer health, life sciences and packaged food and beverage. Optimizing for maximizing our impact for driving health in a way that sets up Brightseed for long-term success.  This would involve assessing total deal value, informing  pricing strategies and projecting returns for Brightseed, supported by our head of Product and Finance.

Mentor and build a phenomenal team: Mentor the existing Business Development team and provide opportunities for growth and learning. Design and support the hiring of a growing BD team to meet our goals.

As a lab based company, where in person collaboration is key to drive innovation, we encourage all team members to be in our office most days each week. However we appreciate and honor the need and desire for flexibility and have implemented a hybrid working model. We have a fully stocked healthy kitchen, a gym onsite, plenty of free parking, weekly team events and a state-of-the-art lab and office. 

We offer a competitive total rewards package with team-first benefits programs for full-time employees, including medical, dental and vision coverage, unlimited paid time off, life insurance, employee assistance programs, 401(k) plan, a mental health platform, employee discounts, payroll credits for cell phone and commuter costs and a paid parental leave program. 

We are committed to making transformative discoveries with a team-first mentality. Successful team members are truth-seeking and trusting, with the tenacity required to trail blaze in uncharted territory. We are a collaborative team that actively seeks input and values differing perspectives. And we produce tangible results, holding ourselves accountable in the process. 

We are also committed to cultivating and preserving a culture of connectedness and inclusion. We grow and learn together, respecting professional and personal experiences, areas of expertise, and types of self expression. 

In recruiting for our team, we welcome the unique contributions that each one of us brings in terms of education, opinions, culture, color, ethnicity, race, sex, gender identity and expression, nation of origin, age, languages spoken, veteran’s status, religion, different abilities, sexual orientation and beliefs.

15+ years’ experience and a track record of accomplishment in functional leadership roles

Innovative business development or strategic partnership growth with top line revenue responsibilities via R&D or upstream discovery programs

Deep familiarity with nutritional commercialization in the health and life sciences sectors

Managing partnerships in Business Development, R&D, or Corp Dev and Strategy from the following industries: genomics, biotech, preventative health-focused life sciences, nutritional ingredient or national food and beverage company

Track record of large Joint Development Agreements that generated value for all stakeholders, negotiating and modeling complex deal terms including IP creation and licensing, preferably including global partners 

Strong ability to incorporate insights into additional commercialization opportunities by creatively combining and using assets to capture value

Experience growing and nurturing a successful team in fast-growing life sciences and health sectors, and admired as an impactful leaderExisting network in >50% of relevant targets

Working knowledge of nutritional path to market commercializationPipeline management and systems setup experience

MBA or JD preferred

The salary range for this position is $255,000 - $295,000. 

Compensation for this position is commensurate with relevant qualifications and work experience, academic credentials, job related skills, employment location and other factors. 

More senior candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.