Associate Director, Operations and Escalations Pharmacist

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

Job summary

Lilly is seeking an Associate Director, Operations and Escalations Pharmacist to serve as the licensed decision authority for LillyDirect Pharmacy prescriptions. You will bring strong judgment, extensive knowledge of pharmacy operations, and a commitment to patient safety across a direct-to-patient environment.

The role requires leadership across pharmacy operations, quality, regulatory affairs, and IT, with on-site presence Monday to Friday and some remote work. Indiana license and PharmD/B.S.

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy or Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree.
• Active, unrestricted Indiana pharmacist license in good standing.
• Minimum of 3 years of experience in pharmacy practice or pharmacy operations.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the pharmacist decision authority for prescriptions requiring pharmacist judgment, including prescriber clarifications, allergy and therapy conflicts, and transfer exceptions.
• Resolve escalations in real time during scheduled shifts so issues are addressed at the point of work.
• Codify recurring escalation types into documented decision guidance for consistent handling across LillyDirect Pharmacy.
• Act as a subject-matter resource on prescription escalations across LillyDirect Pharmacy and cross-functional partners.
• Manage in‑shift service levels for the prescription queue and intervene when needed.
• Forecast licensed coverage needs against escalation volume and turnaround targets for staffing planning.
• Verify accuracy of prescription orders and resolve issues with prescribers and patients.
• Collaborate with QA, Regulatory Affairs, and Risk Management on deviation documentation and corrective actions.
• Contribute to process and system design to support pharmacy operations and workflow automation.
• Stay current on industry trends and translate into operational improvements.
• Work Monday through Friday with a minimum three days on site each week and up to two remote days.

Skills

Pharmacist judgment

Leadership

Communication

Regulatory compliance

Education

PharmD or B.S. in Pharmacy

Tools

Pharmacy management software

Workflow automation

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, self‑less 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.

Associate Director, Operations and Escalations Pharmacist

Pharmacy Operations

LillyDirect Pharmacy Operations | Indianapolis, IN

About LillyDirect

U.S. consumers navigate considerable complexity in managing their healthcare, and their experience is often vastly different from the personalized, seamless engagements we have come to expect from the banking, retail, and travel industries. While the pandemic led to innovations in virtual care, alternate models for distribution, and integrated health and wellness solutions, these innovations focus on specific points in the patient journey rather than a holistic, end‑to‑end patient experience. Launched in January 2024 for people in the U.S. living with obesity, migraine, and diabetes, LillyDirect is an industry‑first digital healthcare experience designed to support and empower patients on their care journey. Through this new operating model, Lilly aims to improve patient access to care, help reduce healthcare costs, and enable better outcomes for people living with chronic disease. The rapid uptake of LillyDirect since its launch underscores the significant unmet need of people struggling to navigate the complex U.S. health care system. As such, we are seeking to expand our offerings and scale business operations to enable better outcomes for patients.

About The Role

We are seeking an experienced Pharmacist to serve as the licensed decision authority for prescriptions processed by LillyDirect Pharmacy. The ideal candidate brings strong professional judgment, in‑depth knowledge of pharmacy operations, and a commitment to patient safety and compliance, ideally in an online or direct‑to‑patient environment. This position is the escalation point for prescriptions that require pharmacist judgment, including prescriber clarifications, allergy and therapy conflicts, and transfer exceptions. The successful candidate resolves those issues in real time during scheduled shifts, manages in‑shift service levels for the prescription queue, and partners across pharmacy operations, quality, regulatory affairs, and technology as LillyDirect scales its direct‑to‑patient operating model. Beyond individual cases, the position codifies how recurring escalation types are resolved, serves as a recognized escalation resource across the pharmacy, and recommends changes to escalation policy and workflow.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the pharmacist decision authority for prescriptions requiring pharmacist judgment, including prescriber clarifications, allergy and therapy conflicts, and transfer exceptions.
• Resolve escalations in real time during scheduled shifts so that issues are addressed at the point of work.
• Codify the approach for recurring escalation types into documented decision guidance, aligned to the verification standards maintained by the quality and standards pharmacists, so like cases are resolved consistently rather than one at a time.
• Serve as a recognized subject‑matter resource on prescription escalations across LillyDirect Pharmacy and for cross‑functional partners, beyond the assigned shift.
• Manage in‑shift service levels for the prescription queue, including throughput, turnaround time, and accuracy, and intervene or elevate when results move.
• Forecast licensed coverage needs against escalation volume and turnaround targets, and provide that input to pharmacy leadership for staffing and resource planning.
• Verify accuracy of prescription orders and resolve issues with prescribers and patients.
• Apply established verification standards consistently, and raise defects and gaps for resolution.
• Analyze escalation patterns observed at the point of work, and recommend changes to escalation policy and workflow to pharmacy leadership, and to verification standards through the quality and standards pharmacists.
• Partner with Quality Assurance, Regulatory Affairs, and Risk Management on deviation documentation, corrective actions, and inspection readiness.
• Collaborate with internal teams (logistics, commercial operations, customer support, IT) to streamline processes and enhance patient satisfaction.
• Review and improve workflow processes to optimize efficiency and patient care.
• Contribute to the design and improvement of processes and systems that support pharmacy operations, including workflow automation and exception routing.
• Stay current on industry trends and technological advancements related to direct‑to‑patient pharmacy operations, and translate those into operational changes that drive state‑of‑the‑art execution.
• Per the in‑office schedule created by the pharmacy scheduler, this position will be expected to work scheduled shifts Monday through Friday, with a minimum of three days on site each week and up to two days worked remotely when appropriate. Remote work flexibility applies consistent with Lilly's remote work policy.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy or Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree.
• Active, unrestricted Indiana pharmacist license in good standing.
• Minimum of 3 years of experience in pharmacy practice or pharmacy operations.

Additional Preferences

• Experience in a high‑volume, centralized, or direct‑to‑patient pharmacy environment.
• Demonstrated judgment resolving prescription exceptions, including prescriber clarifications, allergy and therapy conflicts, and transfer exceptions.
• Experience developing escalation protocols, decision guidance, or work instructions for recurring exception types.
• Experience with pharmacy management software and workflow automation, including exception queues and routing logic.
• Willingness to obtain and maintain pharmacist licensure in additional states as the LillyDirect footprint expands.
• Comfort working to defined service levels and documenting outcomes as pharmacy records.
• Strong attention to detail and commitment to patient safety.
• Excellent leadership, organizational, and communication skills. Supervisory experience preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to influence and communicate across levels of technical experts and senior leadership.
• 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.

Our employee resource groups (ERGs) offer strong support networks for their members and are open to all employees. Our current groups include: 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) and 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.

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