The Director, Strategy & Business Development – Southeast Asia (SEA) serves as a strategic partner to the Vice President & General Manager, SEA, responsible for leading a breadth of strategic growth and business development initiatives across an integrated portfolio for the region.

This role is pivotal in shaping and executing the region’s long-term strategy, ensuring strong alignment with divisional and SEA priorities against a dynamic market backdrop. This colleague will play a key leadership role in advancing the region’s growth agenda, driving both inorganic initiatives (including M&A, investments, and partnerships) and supporting organic growth in collaboration with country and division leaders, aligned with the region’s long-term strategy. The role provides strategic thought partnership and leads high-impact analyses and initiatives, including new business opportunities and cross-divisional programs that leverage the breadth and depth of Thermo Fisher Scientific.

The role requires strong commercial and financial acumen, with the ability to assess deal structures and translate strategic opportunities into actionable growth initiatives The candidate will work collaboratively with the Southeast Asia Core Leadership Team including General Managers, Functional & Divisional Leaders to identify growth drivers, operational challenges, and transformation opportunities that accelerate business growth in the region.

Reporting directly to the Vice President & General Manager, Southeast Asia, this is a key leadership role that will help shape the long-term outlook for the region and will lead a cross-functional team responsible for strategy, commercial excellence and program management.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

Partner with the Vice President & General Manager, SEA to define and implement the regional strategy and growth agenda

Identify opportunities for both organic and inorganic growth in the region and develop actionable strategic plans to support execution

Drive execution of these strategic initiatives in close partnership with the country teams and cross functional leaders, ensuring alignment and accountability

Lead M&A and inorganic initiatives end-to-end, including evaluation of deal structures, financial impact, strategic fit and execution (sourcing, diligence, and integration)

Coordinate cross-divisional and, where appropriate, cross-country collaboration on targeted growth initiatives to leverage Thermo Fisher’s breadth and capabilities

Oversee strategy execution tracking, ensuring KPIs and milestones are delivered on time

Support the SEA strategy planning processes, aligning regional priorities with broader regional and global objectives

Collaborate with GMs and senior leaders to integrate strategic growth initiatives into country-level plans and ensure seamless execution

Develop and deliver high-impact presentations and strategic narratives for senior leadership to support decision-making and alignment

Commercial Excellence & Program Management

Program Management as a strategic lever to enhance efficiency, scalability, and business performance across the region

Drive continuous improvement across the sales organization through Process improvement and data-driven insights.

Implement best practices in coverage design, performance management, and commercial enablement.

Partner with business and functional leaders to identify opportunities and support execution of strategic priorities

Ideal Candidate Profile: This critical leadership role will leverage prior experience and best practices to shape a compelling regional strategy. It is essential that this person builds rapport, credibility, trust, and respect throughout the organization, be viewed as a team player, and is able to work effectively under pressure and with tight deadlines.

Deep understanding of the industry and Thermo Fisher’s market position, product portfolio and competitive dynamics is an added advantage though not a requirement.

Key Attributes

Exceptional learning agility and strong drive

Proven strategic thinking and ability to translate strategy into execution

Strong experience in M&A, partnerships, or corporate development, with exposure to deal structuring and evaluation

Skilled in cross-functional leadership and stakeholder influence

Strongly structured and analytical with outstanding analytical, structured, and results-oriented mindset

Highly proficient in creating robust presentation materials; financial modelling experience is a benefit

Strong executive communication and presentation skills, with high EQ and ability to influence senior stakeholders across cultures and functions

Demonstrated ability to work effectively with executive leadership teams and drive alignment across a matrixed organization

Proven ability to manage complexity, prioritize effectively, and drive execution in a dynamic environment