Senior Distribution Manager

Senior Distribution Manager - Bioprocessing Sales, Distribution Management

Location: This role is fully remote, offering flexibility to work from any location with reliable internet access, preferably on the East Coast.

What you will get:

The full-time base annual salary for this position is expected to range between $97,000 to $155,000. In addition, below you will find a comprehensive summary of the benefits package we offer:

• Performance-related bonus.

• Medical, dental and vision insurance.

• 401(k) matching plan.

• Life insurance, as well as short-term and long-term disability insurance.

• Employee assistance programs.

• Paid time off (PTO).

Compensation for this role will be determined by the candidate’s qualifications, skills, experience, and relevant knowledge.

What you will do:

The Distributor Manager (DM) is responsible for developing, managing, and optimizing indirect sales channels by building strong relationships with third-party partners (e.g., distributors, resellers, Marketplace). The role drives revenue growth through effective distributor recruitment, enablement, performance management, and compliance. The DM owns the regional distributor strategy for assigned countries/territories and ensures distributors meet agreed sales targets, service levels, forecasting accuracy, and operational standards. In close collaboration with the Head of Distributor Management, Sales, Marketing, SMEs, and Service teams, the DM ensures a scalable, high-performing distributor network.

Distributor Strategy & Performance Management

• Develop and execute regional distribution sales strategies to expand market penetration and revenue growth.

• Define and align distributor targets, KPIs, and expectations (e.g. sales targets, forecasting accuracy, service levels, payment terms) in collaboration with the Head of DM.

• Develop and maintain distributor scorecards to track performance, effectiveness, and market trends.

• Manage sales delivery and forecasting for designated distributors, ensuring transparency and accuracy.

• Ensure optimal stock levels at distributor warehouses, avoiding overstocking and supply disruptions.

Distributor Lifecycle Management

• Recruit, evaluate, and contract new distributors in line with regional strategy.

• Lead structured onboarding and offboarding processes for distributors.

• Manage and grow a portfolio of existing partners, ensuring continuous performance improvement and compliance with company policies.

• Resolve conflicts and operational challenges with distributors to maintain productive, long-term partnerships.

Training, Enablement & Support Resource Management (NEW)

• Plan, coordinate, and manage distributor training and enablement programs, including product, application, sales process, and compliance training.

• Ensure effective utilization of internal support resources (e.g. SMEs, application specialists, service teams, customer support).

• Act as the primary interface between distributors and internal teams to ensure timely and high-quality support.

• Identify capability gaps within distributor organizations and implement targeted training or coaching plans.

• Ensure distributors are service-ready in collaboration with the company’s service organization.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Collaborate closely with Marketing to develop and execute partner marketing programs, campaigns, and sales tools.

• Work with SMEs, Product Management, and Service teams to support complex sales opportunities and customer needs.

• Develop annual regional distributor business plans, including sales, marketing, and business development activities.

What we are looking for:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field (e.g., Bioengineering, or related discipline); advanced degree preferred.

• Experience: Minimum of 3-5 years of sales experience within the life sciences or pharmaceutical industry, with a proven track record of driving revenue and profit growth in complex sales environments.

• Industry Knowledge: Strong understanding of customer needs, competitive landscape, and market dynamics across drug discovery, drug manufacturing/QC, and cell & gene therapy segments within biotech/biopharma.

• Demonstrated success leading and developing high-performing global sales teams, including talent development, coaching, performance management, and problem resolution.

• Exceptional core selling skills (prospecting, funnel management, closing, consultative and technical selling, creating customer value, and delivering effective sales presentations).

• Strategic & Analytical Skills: Excellent strategic thinking, problem-solving, and analytical abilities.

• Outstanding communication, negotiation, presentation, and public-speaking skills, with demonstrated effectiveness across a wide range of audiences.

• Ability to work collaboratively across departments and with international teams, including Executive Leadership; strong track record of effective cross-functional partnership.

• Work Style: Effective listener; proactive, independent, and self-directed; team-oriented with a strong work ethic and commitment to continuous improvement.

• Travel: Willingness and ability to travel across North America approximately 30% of the time to meet business objectives.

• Fluency in Portuguese is a plus.

About Lonza

At Lonza, our people are our greatest strength. With 30+ sites across five continents, our globally connected teams work together every day to manufacture the medicines of tomorrow. Our core values of Collaboration, Accountability, Excellence, Passion and Integrity reflect who we are and how we work together. Everyone’s ideas, big or small, have the potential to improve millions of lives, and that’s the kind of work we want you to be part of.

Innovation thrives when people from all backgrounds bring their unique perspectives to the table. At Lonza, we offer equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. If you’re ready to help turn our customers’ breakthrough ideas into viable therapies, we look forward to welcoming you on board.

Ready to shape the future of life sciences? Apply now.