Life Science Recruiting | Executive Search for Biotech, Pharma & Diagnostics

Connexis Search Group recruits across the life sciences —

biotech, pharma, diagnostics, medical devices, and life science tools

for companies building technical, commercial, and leadership teams.

for hospitals, commercial labs, academic medical centers, and pathology groups.

Talk to a RecruiterHire in Life Sciences
✓ Recruiting Life Science Talent Since 2001
✓ 400,000+ Person Proprietary Database
✓ Technical, Commercial & Executive Search

What Makes Our Life Science Recruiting Different

Industry Operators, Not Generalist Recruiters

Our senior recruiters have been managers, VPs, and GMs at life science companies.

They've sat on the other side of the table — hiring scientists, reviewing R&D candidates, building commercial teams.

That operating experience is why our screening conversations land differently with hiring managers than a generalist firm's.

A 400,000-Person Proprietary Database

Two decades of relationship-building has produced one of the most
extensive life science talent networks in U.S. executive search.

We track specialties, modalities, therapeutic areas, and career trajectories — not just titles.

When a search starts, we already know who to call.

Technical and Commercial Depth

Most generalist firms can find candidates for one side of life science or the other.

We recruit across both — R&D scientists, clinical and regulatory affairs, quality, engineering, medical affairs, and the commercial side (sales, marketing, business development, and executive leadership).

Roughly 57% of our placements come from technical roles; 43% from commercial operations.

Sub-Segments We Recruit For

Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals

  • Research & Development
  • Discovery & Translational Research
  • Clinical Development
  • Regulatory Affairs
  • Medical Affairs
  • Quality Assurance & Quality Control
  • Manufacturing & Process Development
  • Commercial Operations

Life Science Tools & Instruments

  • Sales (Capital Equipment & Consumables)
  • Product Management
  • Applications & Technical Support
  • Field Service Engineering
  • Business Development
  • Marketing & Market Development

Diagnostics & Medical Devices

  • IVD (In Vitro Diagnostics)
  • Molecular Diagnostics
  • Companion Diagnostics
  • Medical Device R&D
  • Clinical Affairs
  • Regulatory Affairs (FDA, ISO, CE)
  • Field Application Specialists
  • Sales & Marketing

Executive & Leadership Search

  • C-Suite (CEO, COO, CSO, CCO, CMO)
  • VP of R&D, VP of Commercial, VP of Operations
  • General Manager & Division Leadership
  • Heads of Function (Regulatory, Medical, Quality)

The Life Science Hiring Landscape

The talent market hasn't kept pace with industry growth.

Biotech, diagnostics, and life science tools have all expanded significantly over the past decade. The specialized talent pool — people with the right combination of scientific training, industry experience, and functional expertise — has grown more slowly. The result is a market where multiple companies are competing for the same short list of candidates.Life science recruiting has gotten harder because the supply of qualified candidates hasn't kept pace with industry growth.

Tenures have shortened along the way. Twenty years ago, a candidate who changed jobs every ten years was considered a job hopper. Today, three years at any one company is becoming the norm. More candidates are technically "available" than ever — but the strongest performers move frequently and are harder to catch at the right moment.

‍Compensation has shifted faster than most hiring managers realize. Salary ranges for life science roles have moved meaningfully over the past several years, and companies relying on outdated comp data lose candidates to better-informed competitors before they get to a serious conversation. A specialist recruiter brings current market intelligence — what candidates are actually being offered, not what the role was paying eighteen months ago.

The practical effect: searches led by life science specialists fill faster and produce better fits. Generalists know the roles but not the people, not the compensation, and not the timing.

Technical and commercial recruiting are different disciplines.

The same playbook doesn't work for both, and treating them as interchangeable is the most common reason life science searches stall.

Technical candidates — scientists, regulatory affairs leaders, quality professionals, engineers — evaluate opportunities based on the science, the pipeline, the lab environment, and the technical leadership of the company. They want to know what they'll be working on and who they'll be working with. Compensation matters, but it's rarely the deciding factor for the strongest technical candidates.

Commercial candidates evaluate opportunities very differently. Sales reps, marketing leaders, and business development executives weigh territory, quota structure, product competitiveness, commission plans, and growth trajectory. They want to know if the role will let them build their book and hit their numbers. The screening questions, the pitch, and the close all look different.

Most generalist recruiters default to one approach for both — usually the commercial one, because it's faster — and then wonder why their technical candidates ghost after the first call. A recruiter who can't speak credibly about the science will lose the strongest R&D candidates in the first conversation. That's not hypothetical; it's the most common failure mode for technical searches.

Company stage matters as much as functional fit.

Candidates who thrive at one stage often struggle at another. A technically perfect candidate at the wrong stage is still a wrong hire — and in life sciences, where time-to-productivity is long and turnover is expensive, those mismatches show up on the P&L.

‍Early-stage biotech and diagnostics companies need people who can operate with ambiguity, wear multiple hats, and build process where none exists. The strongest candidates have a tolerance for risk and a builder mindset. Pedigree matters less than adaptability.

‍Mid-stage companies — past their first commercial product but still scaling — need a different profile. These hires often involve people coming down from large pharma who want more impact, or people coming up from startup environments who are ready for more structure. Getting the stage transition right is one of the trickier judgment calls in life science search, and it's where pedigree-focused recruiters most often miss.

‍Large pharma and established diagnostics companies need candidates who can navigate complexity — matrix organizations, longer decision cycles, regulatory rigor, and global stakeholders. The skills that win at this stage aren't the skills that win at a startup, even when the job titles look identical.

A strong life science search starts with understanding the company's stage and culture, not just the role. The candidates who look right on paper often aren't — and the candidates who don't look obvious are often the ones who actually work out.

Frequently Asked Questions About Life Science Recruiting

How long does a typical life science search take?
‍

Most life science searches identify a viable shortlist within 4-6 weeks and reach an offer within 8-12 weeks when handled by a specialist.

Executive roles (VP and C-suite), highly specialized technical roles (gene therapy, cell therapy, novel modalities), and searches in tight geographic markets typically run longer.

What types of life science roles do you recruit for?

We recruit across both technical and commercial functions

R&D scientists, clinical and regulatory affairs, quality, engineering, manufacturing, medical affairs, sales, marketing, business development, and executive leadership (VP through C-suite).

Technical roles account for roughly 57% of our placements; commercial and leadership roles make up the remainder.

Do you work with early-stage biotech and diagnostics startups?

Yes.

We work with companies across all stages — pre-clinical biotech, Series A through Series D, late-stage and public companies, and established pharma and diagnostics.

Each stage requires a different candidate profile, and we calibrate the search to the company's current operating reality.

Can you help with team expansions or multi-hire projects?

Yes.

Team expansions — hiring multiple roles in the same function or geography over a defined period — are a core part of our practice.

We've executed sales force builds, R&D group expansions, and full commercial team launches for venture-backed and public companies.

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Specialized executive search for the diagnostics, pathology, and life science industries since 2001.

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