Meet Yeliz Cakiroglu: The Art of the Biotech Sale — and Why the Best Ones Start with Listening
Consultants Before Salespeople: Yeliz Cakiroglu on Navigating Buying Committees, Partnering with Startups, and Building Client Relationships That Last
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Yeliz Cakiroglu, Sales Manager at AES, works at the intersection of highly technical science and complex commercial decisions. With deep experience across the bioprocess equipment landscape, Yeliz brings a consultative mindset to every client engagement — one grounded in understanding process objectives, building trust across organizations, and finding solutions that serve clients not just today, but years into the future.
Q: How is selling bioprocess equipment different from other technical sales roles?
Selling bioprocess equipment isn’t really about selling equipment — it’s about helping clients make decisions that could affect years of manufacturing, regulatory compliance, and product quality.
What makes this field unique is that our customers are often experts in their own right. Process engineers, manufacturing specialists, and scientists frequently know their application more deeply than we do — and that’s exactly how it should be. Our role isn’t to out-science them. It’s to understand their objectives, ask the right questions, and help them find the best technical solution.
Buying cycles are also significantly longer than in most industries. Decisions rarely come down to one individual. Engineering, manufacturing, quality, procurement, finance, and project leadership all have different priorities, which means success comes from building trust across multiple stakeholders over months, not pushing for a quick close.
The most successful salespeople in biotech are consultants first and salespeople second.
Q: How do you think about which clients and projects to prioritize?
Every enquiry deserves careful consideration, but not every project has the same requirements — or the same readiness. Understanding where an organization is in its growth journey helps both sides have more productive conversations from the start.
Some of the factors we consider include whether a company is expanding manufacturing capacity or planning a new facility, what stage of growth they’re in — from early development through to commercial manufacturing — and whether they’re looking for a standalone piece of equipment or a broader integrated solution.
Equally important is having open conversations about timelines, budgets, and project objectives early on. Aligning on those fundamentals from the outset helps us recommend the most appropriate solution — whether that’s something available today, a phased approach, or, occasionally, advising that another option may better serve the client’s needs.
“Successful projects aren’t built on winning an order. They’re built on finding the right solution for the customer’s process, budget, and long-term goals.”
Yeliz Cakiroglu
Sales Manager
Q: Biotech startups are a big part of the market right now. What do they actually need from a vendor?
Startups operate very differently from established pharmaceutical companies. They typically have smaller teams, limited capital, aggressive timelines, and rapidly evolving processes. They’re often looking for more than equipment — they’re looking for a partner and a sounding board.
Flexibility becomes incredibly important in these relationships. Modular systems, scalable designs, strong documentation, and responsive technical support can often be more valuable to a startup than the lowest purchase price.
The best partnerships we’ve built with early-stage companies come from understanding where they are today while designing solutions that won’t limit where they’ll be in two or three years. That long view is what separates a vendor from a true partner.
Q: Who's really involved in a bioprocess equipment purchase — and how do you approach that complexity?
One of the biggest misconceptions in biotech sales is that you’re selling to just one person. In reality, most equipment purchases involve multiple stakeholders, each with their own priorities and definitions of success.
Your first conversation might be with a Process Engineer or Project Manager, but before a project moves forward, decisions typically involve Manufacturing, Quality, Validation, Procurement, and Finance. Each team evaluates success differently — whether that’s technical performance, regulatory compliance, ease of implementation, or commercial value.
At AES, we believe successful projects start with understanding the needs of everyone involved, not just the initial point of contact. By taking a collaborative approach from the outset, we can recommend solutions that support both the immediate project requirements and the client’s long-term manufacturing goals.
The best outcomes come from strong partnerships, clear communication, and a shared focus on delivering the right solution.
Q: Are there situations where you'd advise a client to look elsewhere?
Honest conversations are the foundation of any good partnership. We invest time upfront to understand a client’s objectives, timelines, and technical requirements — and sometimes that process reveals a mismatch between what they need and what we’re best positioned to deliver at that moment.
At AES, we don’t believe in finding a quick solution. We believe in finding the right one. Taking the time to establish realistic expectations early helps ensure that projects are delivered efficiently and that the solution we propose genuinely supports the client’s goals — not just the immediate purchase decision.
Q: How should biotech companies think about equipment decisions with growth in mind?
As biotech companies grow, their equipment requirements naturally evolve. What works well during early-stage development may not be the right fit for pilot or commercial manufacturing — and making that transition can be disruptive and costly if the original equipment wasn’t selected with scalability in mind.
That’s why we work with clients to understand not only their current requirements, but also their long-term objectives. Choosing solutions that can grow alongside your process isn’t just good planning — it can reduce unnecessary upgrades, minimize operational disruption, and support a smoother path to scale.
Yeliz Cakiroglu’s approach to biotech sales reflects something deeper than commercial strategy — it reflects the way AES thinks about client relationships as a whole. By leading with curiosity, investing in honest conversations, and keeping a client’s long-term roadmap in view, Yeliz and the AES sales team help biotech organizations navigate some of the most consequential equipment decisions in their growth journey. At AES, the goal has always been the same: not a faster sale, but a better outcome.