AVP, Oncology Pharmacology

100 Eli Lilly and Company; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 219,000 - 321,000; Full time

Job summary

Eli Lilly and Company in Indianapolis seeks an Oncology Pharmacology senior leader to guide a portfolio of cancer programs. You will lead a team of project leaders, senior and junior scientists, and mentor future leaders while aligning strategy with senior leadership and cross‑functional partners.

Responsibilities include setting program priorities, directing preclinical and IND activities, collaborating with Translational, Clinical, toxicology and other groups, and delivering differentiated

Qualifications

• PhD in pharmacology, cancer cell biology, or allied disciplines with a minimum of 15 years’ experience (at least 10 years of direct drug development experience).

Responsibilities

• Lead teams of scientists and mentor next-generation project leaders.
• Synthesize cross-functional data to support oncology strategy and portfolio priorities.
• Drive IND enabling work and preclinical data packages for candidate progression.
• Collaborate with Translational, Clinical, toxicology and other functions across Lilly.
• Define biomarker, patient selection, and indication strategies in liaison with clinical teams.

Skills

PhD in pharmacology or cancer biology

Leadership experience in oncology

IND submission experience

Education

PhD in pharmacology, cancer biology, or allied disciplines

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.

Position Summary

As the Oncology Pharmacology senior leader, you will lead a dynamic group of scientists conducting research to identify medicines that effectively treat various forms of cancer. You will oversee several portfolio projects simultaneously and be responsible for the ultimate delivery of clinical candidates. As part of the portfolio leadership team, you will guide the strategic focus of our Oncology portfolio to balance delivery of medicines with the innovation necessary for next‑generation, differentiated products across various modalities, including small and large molecules. As the pharmacology leader, you will integrate cross‑functional information to set program priorities, portfolio decisions, and innovation. You will lead a team of project leaders, senior scientists, and junior scientists to ensure efficient program execution and decision making and mentor the next generation of scientific and project leaders. Working with peer leaders and project teams, you will regularly update senior leadership and engage with clinical colleagues to guide target product profile (TPP) alignment and product differentiation to ensure our best medicines advance into clinical development. Collaboration across functional areas within Lilly is required. You will continue to build strong relationships with colleagues in Indianapolis and at other sites including CMC, toxicology, and clinical departments to strengthen collaborations key to our discovery program success. You will be a key member of the Oncology organization, responsible for maintaining its scientific quality and efficiency and helping guide the company’s strategic direction.

Roles and Responsibilities of the Position

Scientific roles and responsibilities

Oversee several teams of scientists who lead individual portfolio programs and actively mentor our next‑generation project leaders.

Synthesize complex, cross‑functional information, including target biology, clinical opportunity, product differentiation, and competitive landscape to support our Oncology strategy and portfolio priorities.

Serve as a key member of the Oncology portfolio leadership team, working with peer leaders in New York and South San Francisco to execute our pipeline strategy and advance molecules from early Discovery to IND.

Collaborate with cross‑functional teams across Lilly to drive the execution of Oncology programs. For example, work with project teams across functions and sites to provide the expertise, resources, and infrastructure to efficiently progress all Oncology candidates.

Integrate newly acquired technologies and scientific teams into our portfolio projects to deliver differentiated, innovative medicines.

Oversee the design and execution of key mechanistic and preclinical experiments involving diverse oncogenic mechanisms (e.g., oncogenic signaling pathways, tumor‑specific targets, biologic mechanisms of tumor inhibition) across multiple tumor indications.

Contribute to business development strategy and recommend novel modalities, targets, and platforms that add value to our existing Oncology portfolio.

Contribute to the assessment of external opportunities, formal diligence, and recommendations to leadership.

Assemble documents and present at leadership meetings (including Discovery portfolio reviews, Clinical review meetings, and Candidate advancement reviews).

Deliver IND sections related to preclinical development as well as supporting preclinical reports.

Partner with Translational and Clinical colleagues to define biomarker, patient selection and indication strategy, and to develop PK/PD‑based dose projections, so preclinical data packages support first‑in‑human readiness and the TPP.

Leadership roles and responsibilities

Lead, coach, develop, and manage teams of project leaders and scientists.

Liaise with internal teams and provide guidance on key strategic business decisions.

Build and execute on roadmaps that deliver on specific targets and overall strategic projects.

Align with senior leaders around portfolio decisions, priorities, and resources.

Cross‑site leadership: Lead and influence across sites, aligning INDY, NYC and SSF teams on shared priorities and ways of working.

Talent development: Develop project leaders and future scientific leaders, and foster an inclusive, high‑performing team culture.

Support and communicate difficult portfolio decisions, including stopping/prioritizing programs, using data‑driven criteria and a transparent rationale.

Minimum Qualifications

PhD in pharmacology, cancer cell biology, or allied disciplines with a minimum of 15 years’ experience (at least 10 years of direct drug development experience).

Additional Preferences

Demonstrated success in developing Oncology medicines across modalities (experience in large molecules including ADCs desired but not required).

Experience in IND submission and preclinical data package generation.

Hands‑on, direct drug‑hunting experience with a track record of progressing multiple programs to Phase 1.

Ability to collaborate with translational functions (PK/PD, toxicology, antibody discovery).

Deep understanding of drug discovery and development through Phase 1 (or beyond).

Proven success leading, managing, and coaching large cross‑functional teams in dynamic organizations.

Demonstrated ability and track record in overseeing work performed by third parties/vendors/strategic partners.

Demonstrated experience working collaboratively across scientific disciplines to meet business goals.

Demonstrated business acumen.

Demonstrated excellence in making key strategic decisions in support of broader business goals.

Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Physical Demands/Travel

TBD; estimated ~20%.

Additional Information

The successful candidate for this position will transfer laterally into the role at their current level. For example, an R9 employee who applies for and is selected for this position, posted as R10, would transfer laterally at the R9 level.

Work Environment: You will work in our state‑of‑the‑art laboratories in our Indianapolis headquarters facility.

*To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each role and responsibility satisfactorily. The requirements listed above are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. 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 $219,000 - $321,200 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