Discovery ADME Project Leader

Initial Therapeutics, Inc.; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 177,000 - 308,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus program

401(k) plan

Medical, dental, vision benefits

Well-being programs

Job summary

Initial Therapeutics, Inc. invites applications for a Discovery ADME Project Leader to drive mechanistic drug disposition strategies across discovery programs. You will integrate biology, chemistry, and modeling to design and de-risk new molecules with PK translational insights.

The role requires a PhD and 3+ years in drug discovery, with strong leadership, cross-functional collaboration, and excellent written and verbal communication to influence senior leadership and project teams.

Qualifications

• PhD (or equivalent) in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacometrics, Systems Pharmacology, Preclinical or Clinical Pharmacology, Drug Metabolism, Toxicology, Chemical Biology, or related field.

Responsibilities

• Develop integrated preclinical ADME strategies aligned with discovery stage and regulatory expectations.
• Integrate ADME and pharmacology to enable translational simulations and modeling for dose selection and PK/PD design.
• Define profiling, decision funnels, and translational modeling to advance candidates.

Skills

ADME expertise

Project leadership

Scientific communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Pharmacokinetics

Education

PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences or related field

Tools

AI tools

Job description

Job Title: Discovery ADME Project Leader

Position Summary

We are seeking an experienced, accomplished drug hunter as a Discovery ADME Project Leader. The ideal candidate will provide deep mechanistic understanding of drug disposition, PK, and translational science, plus the ability to integrate biology, chemistry, and modeling. Experience with Small Molecule Discovery and in project teams with Beyond-Rule-of-Five and pan-modality chemotypes is advantageous. The successful candidate will bring exceptional scientific depth, acumen, and leadership as an integral member of the project team to create bold Target Product Profiles, help establish molecule design strategy and expectations, partner globally and cross‑functionally, and ensure teams are advancing The Right Molecule to The Right Study at The Right Time (our three R’s).

Geography for this position is open to Boston MA, Louisville CO, or Indianapolis IN.

What You Will Do

• Keep Safety as a priority.
• Develop and execute integrated preclinical ADME strategies aligned with discovery stage, target product profile (TPP), design hypotheses being tested, and regulatory expectations.
• Integrate ADME and pharmacology to enable translational simulations and modeling to support dose selection, design of PK/PD, efficacy, and safety studies.
• Define stage‑-, modality‑, and issue‑appropriate profiling, decision funnels (in silico, in vitro, in vivo to translational modeling).
• Guide compound design and optimization through data‑driven design principles (clearance, permeability, solubility, DDI risk, transporter liabilities).
• Serve as the ADME strategy and science single‑point‑of‑accountability on cross‑functional program teams, translating ADME findings into actionable design and test hypotheses.
• Collaborate closely with Medicinal Chemistry, DMPK, Toxicology, Pharmacology, and other Discovery Functions to drive high quality candidate selections. Contribute to go/no‑go decisions using quantitative PK/PD, IVIVE, and mechanistic interpretation.
• Represent ADME in portfolio governance discussions and leadership reviews.

• Implement best practices, assay innovation, and automation where appropriate. Drive continuous improvement in data reporting, knowledge management, and decision frameworks. Seek, leverage and deploy AI and agentic tools where possible to pipeline data, interpret data and share/accelerate results.
• Maintain inspection‑ready documentation and alignment with regulatory expectations.
• Mentor, teach and grow junior scientists and contribute to functional capability building.

Qualifications

• PhD (or equivalent) in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacometrics, Systems Pharmacology, Preclinical or Clinical Pharmacology, Drug Metabolism, Toxicology, Chemical Biology, or related field.
• You have minimally 3+ years of post‑graduation industry experience in a drug discovery environment, driving discovery teams and you understand how an ADME Project Leader impacts the life cycle/flywheel (Design, Make, Test, Analyze) of a discovery project.
• Deep subject matter ADME expertise and a working knowledge of medicinal chemistry, and Toxicology principles is advantageous.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills; ability to successfully navigate ambiguity and/or global cross‑functional collaborations.
• Demonstrated ability to translate complex technical concepts into strategic value for senior leadership and cross‑functional partners.

Compensation and Benefits

Actual compensation will depend on a candidate’s education, experience, skills, and geographic location. The anticipated wage for this position is $177,000 - $308,000.

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.

EEO Statement

Lilly is dedicated to helping individuals with disabilities to actively engage in the workforce, ensuring equal opportunities when vying for positions.

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.