Art Director

Eli Lilly and Company; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 132,000 - 194,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation package

Job summary

Lilly’s in-house Thread Collective seeks an experienced Art Director to transform briefs into distinctive, brand-aligned campaigns across digital and print. You will collaborate with writers, designers, and cross-functional teams to deliver high-impact work that resonates with diverse audiences.

With 10+ years in the field and a strong portfolio, you will lead concepting through final production, ensuring accessibility and brand consistency while guiding teams and nurturing talent.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree is required.
• 10+ years of experience as an Art Director.
• 6+ years in a traditional agency setting.
• Portfolio link or link to portfolio is required.

Responsibilities

• Concept & execute across channels, translating briefs into distinctive creative.
• Collaborate with writers, designers, and cross-functional teams to build cohesive storytelling.
• Champion brand and accessibility standards across all deliverables.
• Evolve design systems, platforms, and tools to improve consistency and efficiency.
• Mentor and elevate the work through reviews and knowledge sharing.

Skills

Creative Expert

Collaborative Leader

Quality-Driven Brand Steward

Hands-On Campaign Builder

Education

Bachelor’s degree

10+ years Art Director experience

6+ years agency experience

Portfolio required

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite

Microsoft Office

Workfront

Job description

At Lilly, the work is demanding because patients are waiting. We unite caring with discovery to help make life better for people around the world, knowing that every decision, every detail, and every day matters. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, our over 50,000 employees around the globe take on complex challenges to discover and deliver life-changing medicines, strengthen how health is understood and managed, and support the communities we serve. This is hard, urgent, selfless work—but it’s work worth doing. If you’re driven by purpose and ready to bring your best to work that truly matters for patients, we invite you to join us.

Orrganization Overview

At Lilly, we serve an extraordinary purpose. Every day, we make a difference for people around the globe by discovering, developing, and delivering medicines that help them live longer, healthier, and more active lives. As Lilly's in-house agency, Thread Collective (TC), we fuse data, creativity, and technology to turn bold ideas into work that moves people worldwide. As a true creative engine, we partner across the enterprise, uniting deep brand expertise with integrated insights and modern production to deliver breakthrough ideas with confidence and speed. We deliver human-centric experiences that build trust, deepen understanding, and measurable outcomes. Together, we push past "good enough" to achieve creative excellence and operational agility. If you are driven to raise the bar every day, join us as we redefine what a best-in-class in-house agency can do.

Who We Are

Thread Collective, our in‑house agency, is elevating creative excellence through sharp ideation, strategic rigor, operational craft, emerging technology, and empowered teams. We're seeking an agency-experienced Art Director to transform strategy and briefs into distinctive, inclusive, multi-channel campaigns that command attention and drive relevant engagement. In this role, you'll shape high‑impact digital‑first integrated campaigns by supporting concepting, presentations, and execution in close partnership with writers, designers, social, and cross‑functional teams. Your bold work will resonate across channels to elevate our presence in the market, set a refined creative standard, bring ambitious ideas to life, and strengthen how audiences experience and connect with our brands.

What We Are Looking For

• Creative Expert & Visual Storyteller — Innovative designer with a strong portfolio demonstrating expertise in concepting and implementing high‑impact work across digital and print channels, with deep knowledge of design principles, layout, typography, brand standards, and advanced proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite.
• Collaborative Leader & Communicator — Confident, cross‑functional partner who unifies teams, works downward and across TC staff to ensure cohesive storytelling, and can clearly articulate creative concepts and incorporate collaborator feedback.
• Quality-Driven Brand Steward — Meticulous professional who ensures consistency, quality, and brand alignment in every deliverable, with a commitment to inclusive and accessible practices across all formats.
• Hands-On Campaign Builder — Thrives on developing and delivering visual concepts and campaigns from concept through final production across multiple brands and channels.

What You’ll Do

• Concept & Execute Across Channels — Develop and implement integrated campaign concepts across digital, social, video, print, and experiential platforms, translating strategic briefs into distinctive, brand-aligned creative for diverse audiences.
• Collaborate & Communicate — Partner with copywriters, designers, cross‑functional teams and agency partners to build cohesive storytelling, present ideas confidently, and incorporate feedback effectively.
• Champion Brand & Accessibility Standards — Ensure deliverables adhere to brand guidelines, accessibility requirements, and regulatory standards while advocating for inclusive design across all formats.
• Advance Systems & Emerging Technology — Evolve design systems, creative platforms, technologies and tools to improve consistency, streamline workstreams, and create more space for high‑value creative thinking.
• Mentor, Optimize & Elevate the Work — Stay current on trends and audience behaviors, mentor talent, and chip in to a culture of creative excellence and continuous improvement through thoughtful reviews and shared findings.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree
• 10+ years of experience as an Art Director for both digital and traditional channels.
• 6+ years in traditional agency setting leading concepting, pitches, and creative development from initial strategy through final execution.
• Link to portfolio required

Preferred Qualifications

• Robust portfolio supporting recognized global brands showing range, craft, and strategic thinking across digital and print channels, and campaign types.
• Deep technical expertise in Adobe Creative Suite with strong written and verbal communication skills across all organizational levels.
• Proven ability to manage capacity, diagnose process and technology challenges, and drive solutions through structured project planning.
• Experience in pharmaceutical, biotech, or healthcare marketing is a plus but not required.
• Agency experience supporting global brands across multi-channel campaigns, with understanding of healthcare audiences and compliance‑driven review processes.
• Command of creative development, social and digital marketing, brand strategy, and omnichannel strategy with a collaborative, ego‑free leadership style.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Cloud, Workfront, and Agile or Waterfall project workflows.
• Ability to support end‑to‑end video oversight from storyboard, direction, and production review.
• Commitment to ongoing professional development, industry standard methodologies, and any skills assessments required during selection.

Additional Information

Position is on‑site in Indianapolis; local hybrid work options may be considered. Relocation package provided. Travel up to 15% expected. Lilly may provide support for or sponsor work authorization or visas for this role for internal applicants only.

Lilly is dedicated to helping individuals with disabilities to actively engage in the workforce, ensuring equal opportunities when vying for positions. If you require accommodation to submit a resume for a position at Lilly, please complete the accommodation request form (https://careers.lilly.com/us/en/workplace-accommodation) for further assistance. Please note this is for individuals to request an accommodation as part of the application process and any other correspondence will not receive a response.

Lilly is proud to be an EEO Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion, gender identity, sex, gender expression, sexual orientation, genetic information, ancestry, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or any other legally protected status.

• Africa
• Middle East
• Central Asia (AMECA)
• Black Employees at Lilly (BE@Lilly)
• Chinese Culture Network (CCN)
• EnAble
• Evolve
• Lilly Indian Network (LIN)
• Organization of Latinx at Lilly (OLA)
• Pride (LGBTQ+ Allies)
• Veterans Leadership Network (VLN)
• Women's Initiative for Leading at Lilly (WILL)

Actual compensation will depend on a candidate's education, experience, skills, and geographic location. The anticipated wage for this position is $132,000 - $193,600. Full-time equivalent employees also will be eligible for a company bonus (depending, in part, on company and individual performance).

In addition, Lilly offers a comprehensive benefit program to eligible employees, including eligibility to participate in a company-sponsored 401(k); pension; vacation benefits; eligibility for medical, dental, vision and prescription drug benefits; flexible benefits (e.g., healthcare and/or dependent day care flexible spending accounts); life insurance and death benefits; certain time off and leave of absence benefits; and well‑being benefits (e.g., employee assistance program, fitness benefits, and employee clubs and activities).

Lilly reserves the right to amend, modify, or terminate its compensation and benefit programs in its sole discretion and Lilly's compensation practices and guidelines will apply regarding the details of any promotion or transfer of Lilly employees.

#WeAreLilly At Lilly we strive to ensure our employees are part of a team that cares about them and our shared purpose of making life better for those around the world. How do we do this? We continue to look for ways to include, innovate, accelerate and deliver while maintaining integrity, excellence and respect for people. We hope that you seek to join us on our journey as we create medicine and deliver improved outcomes for patients across the globe! #WeAreLilly