Business Development Manager

Are you eager to discover market opportunities in the Agrifood and Renewable materials domain?

Do you have the skills to convert these leads into research projects enabling our partners to meet their innovation and sustainability goals?

We have opened a new position for a Business Development Manager doing exactly that.
Wageningen Food & Biobased Research (WFBR) helps to advance a sustainable, healthy and resilient society by translating scientific knowledge into practical insights and applications. With a team of 250 world-leading scientific experts, our applied research institute takes a transdisciplinary approach offering business-relevant solutions to the domains of healthy food and renewable materials. Partnerships with industries, governments, institutional funders and philanthropies are at the core of our business. We find solutions that drive the sustainable use of natural resources to ensure the supply of healthy, safe and sustainable products over the entire value chain. Read more about our market oriented research themes here . At WFBR we create real solutions to real issues. This is our contribution to a bright and sustainable world for everyone. Join us!

Your Job
The main aim of this position is to contract new research projects enabling innovation that advances sustainability. You will identify business opportunities in the Agrifood and Renewable materials domain, formulate high-quality research proposals, negotiate terms and conditions and secure funding.

Your responsibilities

• maintain and expand our network of new and existing customers in the Agrifood and renewable materials domain enhancing the brand name of WUR and WFBR;
• identify societal needs, market trends and business opportunities and translate these into insightful research questions and research propositions;
• initiate state-of-the-art applied research projects in close collaboration with our scientists converting leads and proposition into signed research contracts;
• lead negotiations on financial and contract terms and conditions collaborating with our legal and financial experts;
• establish consortia with international customers for large, transformative research projects;
• organise and coordinate the acquisition process from contact to contract and lead strategic account management for selected customers.

• a result-oriented and entrepreneurial professional with strong networking skills;
• at least 5 years of experience in business development, acquisition and sales;
• expertise in value-based selling in a R&D environment, preferably in the Agrifood and renewable materials domain;
• proven experience in initiating and (co-)creating project propositions;
• passionate about innovative research advancing sustainability;
• well-developed organisational awareness and excellent communication skills;
• holds a MSc in a relevant area such as Food Technology, Life Sciences, Chemical Engineering or Material Science;
• excellent proficiency in written and spoken English. Willing to learn Dutch.

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• the option to discuss a tailored working schedule allowing for the best possible work-life balance;
• the option to accrue additional compensation hours by working more on weekly basis;
• sabbatical leave, study leave and partially paid parental leave;
• a strong focus on vitality, you can use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
• a fixed December bonus of 8.3%;
• an excellent pension scheme.

Wageningen University & Research encourages internal advancement opportunities and mobility with an internal recruitment policy. There are plenty of options for personal initiative in a learning environment and we provide excellent training opportunities. We are offering a multi-faceted position in an international environment with a pleasant and open working atmosphere.

For more information about this position, please contact [email protected]
For more information about the procedure, please contact [email protected]

Do you want to apply?
You can apply directly using the apply button on the vacancy page on our website which will allow us to process your personal information with your approval.
This job opportunity will be open until March 24th, 2024. We will arrange job interviews as soon as we identify suitable candidates, so we recommend submitting your application directly.

Equal opportunities
Wageningen University & Research (WUR) employs a large number of people with very different backgrounds and qualities, who inspire and motivate each other. We want every talent to feel at home in our organisation and be offered the same career opportunities. We therefore especially welcome applications from people who are underrepresented at WUR. A good example of how WUR deals with inclusiveness can be read on the page working at WUR with a functional impairment.

The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life”. Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to major questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment. With its roughly 30 branches, 7,600 employees (6,700 fte), 13,100 students and over 150,000 participants to WUR’s Life Long Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.

Read the 5 reasons why your future colleagues enjoy working at WUR and watch this video to get an idea of our green campus!

We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves, so no employment agencies please. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.