Title: National Business Development Manager
Company: BioMérieux
Location: Apex, NC
Education: BS, Food Science, Poultry Science, minor, Microbiology, North Carolina State University (NCSU), 1996
Career History: National Business Development Manager, bioMérieux, 2019-present;
Director of Quality and Sales, Baldies BBQ, 2010-2019;
Mid Atlantic US Account Manager, bioMérieux, North Carolina Area, 2012-2015;
Pre-Sales Engineer, Aircom International, Dallas, Texas, 2011-2012;
Equine Diagnostic Laboratory Director, Director of Pharmacology, NCSU (North Carolina State University) College of Veterinary Medicine, 2000-2011;
Microbiology Quality Assurance Manager, Gold Kist, Inc., 1997-2000
Douglas “Heath” LaFevers, National Business Development Manager at BioMérieux, has been recognized as a Marquis Emerging Leader for their contributions and achievements in the field of biotechnology management.
Mr. LeFevers joined BioMérieux in 2019 and has utilized his skills and managerial experience to carry out a plethora of everyday responsibilities. On a daily basis, he aligns with team members to educate and empower the territory account team for outreach and general food safety sales. His role entails understanding the needs and gaps from predominantly the U.S. region’s key opinion leaders within the food and food production industry and then joining this with his internal research development and scientific affairs team to close the gaps and deliver on the region’s needs. Prior to his current role, Mr. LeFevers served as the Director of Quality and Sales at Baldies BBQ, as a pre-sales engineer for AIrCom International, as the Equine Diagnostic Laboratory Director and Director of Pharmacology at North Carolina State University and as the Microbiology Quality Assurance Manager at GoldKist. His technical microbiology and quality assurance roles were direct food safety application roles within the industry, whereas the director role at the laboratory was a managerial role that leaned more heavily into in-laboratory processing, and data analysis expertise.
To date, Mr. LeFevers considers his most notable achievements to being every occasion where he is able to see a concept (an idea that fills a need or gap in testing capabilities) grow, through research and development, from concept to delivery. After a challenging 2020, he is overseeing three simultaneous novel assays through accreditation and launch. To prepare for his work within biotechnology and food safety, he earned a B Bachelor of Science in food and poultry science with a minor in microbiology at North Carolina State University (NCSU) in 1996.
Looking towards the future, Mr. LeFevers intends to stay within the food safety diagnostic realm because he sees the impact it can have on overall human health as well as confidence within their hardworking food industry team. As far as his specific role, the business development position has given him the unique ability to liaise between industry and research and development. He’s very happy with the role and is open to new opportunities that further his growth and the growth of others in his team. In recognition of his work, Mr. LeFevers was added to the President’s Club at BioMérieux in 2014, recognized as the Valedictorian of Sales Excellence Training at BioMérieux in 2012. He has also been the recipient of the Tom Hester Poultry Scholarship.