Director - Oligonucleotide Chemistry

BioSpace; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 153,000 - 264,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company bonus

401(k)

Health, dental, vision benefits

Paid time off

Job summary

Lilly, headquartered in Indianapolis, seeks a senior scientist to lead a multidisciplinary team in oligonucleotide discovery. You will design and optimize siRNA, ASOs, and conjugates, advance candidates to clinic, and apply data-driven decision-making across programs.

You will collaborate with therapeutic areas and champion inclusive leadership, mentorship, and people development while contributing to safety and process improvements. Competitive compensation and company benefits apply.

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in chemistry, or related field, with 7–10+ years of industry experience in oligonucleotide discovery and development.
• Experience delivering drugs to the clinic.
• Experience with extra-hepatic delivery of oligonucleotides and conjugates.
• Demonstrated skills for data-driven study design, timeline and partner management, competitive intelligence, and resource planning.

Responsibilities

• Hire, develop, and supervise a team of Ph.D.- and associate-level scientists.
• Lead screening, design, and SAR optimization of oligonucleotide constructs to advance clinical candidates.
• Support integration of AI/ML into oligonucleotide discovery efforts.
• Partner with legal to support IP strategy for assigned programs.
• Present and summarize results to teams and internal stakeholders.
• Advance technical capabilities and apply insights across discovery challenges.
• Demonstrate learning agility and adopt new technologies across projects.
• Maintain strong communication, organizational, collaboration, and leadership skills.
• Keep safety as a top priority and foster an interdependent safety culture.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Data-driven design

Mentorship

Project management

Team leadership

Education

Ph.D. in chemistry or related field

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.

We serve an extraordinary purpose. For more than 150 years, we have worked diligently to discover medicines that make life better. These discoveries start in Lilly Research Laboratories, where our scientists work to create new medicines that will help solve our world’s greatest health challenges.

The successful candidate will have a strong research track record in oligonucleotide chemistry, with demonstrated experience advancing candidates to clinical evaluation. Additionally, they should exhibit strong analytical skills, maintain a systematic approach, and consistently apply data-driven decision-making practices. The scientist will collaborate with multidisciplinary teams across key Lilly therapeutic areas (e.g. Neuroscience, Pain/Neuronal Health, Diabetes and Complications, Immunology) to perform experiments to aid development of oligonucleotide drug candidates for the next generation of RNA therapies. They will also have a demonstrated track record of prioritizing people development through inclusive leadership, mentorship, and a commitment to fostering individual growth and team excellence.

Key Responsibilities Include

• Hire, develop, and supervise a team of Ph.D.- and associate-level scientists
• Lead the screening, design, and SAR optimization of innovative oligonucleotide constructs—including siRNA, ASOs, and conjugates—to advance differentiated clinical candidates
• Support the integration of AI/ML into oligonucleotide discovery efforts
• Partner with legal to support IP strategy for assigned programs
• Clearly present and summarize results to team members and internal teams
• Contribute to the advancement of technical capabilities within the team, embracing new technologies and applying insights across oligonucleotide discovery challenges
• Demonstrate learning agility by quickly absorbing new scientific concepts, embracing new technologies, and applying insights across diverse oligonucleotide discovery challenges
• Leverage strong communication (oral, written), organizational, collaboration, EQ, and leadership skills
• Keep safety as a top priority at all times, striving toward an interdependent safety culture

Basic Qualifications

• Ph.D. in chemistry, or related field, with 7–10+ years of industry experience in oligonucleotide discovery and development

Additional Skills/Preferences

• Demonstrated track record of delivering drugs to the clinic
• Experience with extra-hepatic delivery of oligonucleotides and conjugates
• Demonstrated skills for data-driven study design, timeline and partner management, competitive intelligence, and resource planning
• Clear and defined management style
• Excellent communication, interpersonal skills, and team-player mentality
• Demonstrated initiative and appropriate risk-taking
• High level of organization and attention to detail

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

$153,000 - $264,000

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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