Director/Senior Director - New Target Validation

Eli Lilly and Company; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 153,000 - 264,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company bonus

401(k) plan

Vacation benefits

Well-being benefits

Job summary

Eli Lilly and Company is seeking a Director/Senior Director for New Target Validation within Discovery Immunology. The role guides biological strategy and translational readiness, coordinating across internal teams and external partners to advance validation through mechanistic discovery in human model systems.

The candidate will lead end-to-end validation strategy, develop innovative human systems, and integrate multimodal data to support robust decision-making and progression criteria.

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Molecular Genetics and Immunology.
• 8-10 years of drug development experience in autoimmune diseases GA/RS? (asthma, atopic dermatitis, rheumatologic diseases).
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to make data-driven decisions and communicate with senior leadership.

Responsibilities

• Define and lead end-to-end strategy for new target validation across genetic perturbation and translational model design.
• Develop novel human systems for target validation (Organs-on-chip, IPSC, ex vivo models).
• Integrate multimodal profiling (imaging, transcriptomics, cytokines, proteomics) to strengthen disease relevance.
• Communicate workplans to drive scientific decision-making across multidisciplinary teams.
• Train discovery biologists in molecular designs and functional assays.
• Guide cross-functional project teams through influence in a matrixed organization.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Ph.D. in Molecular Genetics and Immunology

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 Overview

Lilly Immunology is a therapeutic area focused on many autoimmune diseases spanning gastroenterology, dermatology and rheumatology. We are seeking an accomplished and influential Director / Senior Director for New Target Validation within Discovery Immunology. The key responsibility would be to guide biological strategy and translational readiness for projects and to steer target identification through mechanistic validation. The ideal candidate is a seasoned drug developer who advances new target validation by working through and with others - partnering across internal functions and external collaborators (CROs, academic groups, and technology partners) - while bringing deep scientific judgment in functional genomics, phenotypic and mechanistic discovery, and physiologically relevant primary human model systems.

Key Objectives/Deliverables

• Define and lead the end-to-end strategy for new target validation, spanning genetic perturbation, pathway deconvolution, cellular pharmacology, and translational model design.
• Drive innovation through the development of novel human systems for target validation (Organs-on-chip, ex vivo human model systems, IPSC, HSC engineering)
• Integrate multimodal profiling (imaging, transcriptomics, cytokine and proteomics readouts) generated across internal and external partners to strengthen human disease relevance and predictive validity.
• Communicate workplans that drive scientific decision‑making across multidisciplinary project teams to ensure robust biological rationale, mechanism‑of‑action understanding, and data‑supported progression criteria.
• Train discovery biologists in molecular biology designs and building functional assays.
• Guide cross-functional project teams through influence across a matrixed organization.

Qualifications

Required

• Ph.D. in Molecular Genetics and Immunology
• 8-10 years of drug development experience, with a strong focus including research on asthma, atopic dermatitis, and rheumatologic diseases.

Prefered

• Demonstrated leadership in developing high‑performing teams by coaching, mentoring, and empowering diverse talent to grow in capability, influence, and leadership impact.
• Proven track record of generating data packages that increase mechanism‑of‑action confidence, target engagement requirements for advancing validated targets into lead generation/candidate selection.
• Strong interpersonal skills and a demonstrated ability to make data-driven decisions and find innovative solutions to overcome scientific and operational obstacles within matrix environment
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to communicate upward to senior leadership and governance and to present complex scientific data to diverse audiences.

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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