Director - In Vitro Pharmacology

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

We are excited to invite a passionate scientific leader to join our Neuroscience Next Generation Therapeutics (NGTx) team as Director of In Vitro Pharmacology. If you're driven by discovery and eager to make a profound impact on the future of neuroscience, this is your opportunity to lead breakthrough innovation and shape the next chapter in life-changing medicines. Located at Lilly's brand-new Boston Seaport Innovation Center, our dynamic team is dedicated to advancing innovative therapeutic modalities to deliver medicines for patients with neurodegenerative and chronic pain disorders.

In this pivotal role, you will build and lead the in vitro engine of our discovery pipeline and direct a multidisciplinary team of scientists. You will direct the design and application of iPSC-derived and primary cellular systems, engineer disease-relevant models that recapitulate neurodegenerative and pain biology, and drive the design and screening of siRNA and other genetic medicines to interrogate targets and generate development candidates. You will be empowered to champion novel approaches by any means that can move programs forward—new assays, new model systems, new technologies, and new collaborations— to accelerate our neurodegeneration and pain portfolios.

Key Responsibilities

Scientific Leadership

• Provide strategic direction and scientific oversight for all in vitro pharmacology activities, ensuring alignment with Neuroscience portfolio priorities and organizational goals

• Lead the design, execution, and interpretation of human-relevant in vitro studies, including iPSC-derived neurons and glia, reporter cell assays, and primary cell culture systems

• Build and validate disease-relevant in vitro models that recapitulate the biology of relevant disorders to enable target validation, mechanism-of-action studies, and candidate characterization

• Direct the design, screening, and optimization of siRNA and genetic-medicine approaches, including sequence design, activity and selectivity screening, and translation of hits into leads

• Establish assay validation standards and fit-for-purpose rigor, ensuring robust, reproducible, and decision-grade data across the in vitro platform

• Drive scientific rigor and innovation in assay design, incorporating emerging technologies and methodologies appropriate for novel modalities

• Serve as the in vitro biology and pharmacology expert on cross-functional project teams, influencing key decisions on target selection and candidate progression

Team Leadership & Development

• Mentor, coach, and retain a high-performing team of cell biologists, molecular biologists, and research scientists

• Foster a culture of scientific excellence, collaboration, and continuous learning

• Provide career development guidance and create opportunities for team growth

• Manage resource allocation and prioritization across multiple projects

Strategic Contributions

• Contribute to target validation and candidate selection decisions through expert in vitro assessment of novel therapeutic modalities

• Pursue innovation by any means that could accelerate programs in neurodegeneration and pain—new model systems, assay platforms, and external partnerships

• Partner with Computational Biology and Data Science to design screens, structure and analyze high-dimensional data

• Partner with In Vivo Pharmacology, Discovery Research, and Clinical Development to ensure seamless translation from cellular models to in vivo studies and the clinic

• Identify and implement new technologies, models, and capabilities to strengthen the in vitro platform for CNS therapeutics, including high-throughput and high-content screening

Operational Excellence

• Ensure assays and studies are conducted to high standards of reproducibility, data quality, and scientific integrity

• Manage departmental budget and external vendor relationships

• Drive operational efficiency and speed while maintaining scientific quality

• Establish and track key performance metrics for the team

Qualifications

Required

• PhD in Neuroscience, Cell Biology, Molecular Biology, or related scientific field

• Minimum 6 years of pharmaceutical/biotechnology experience with deep expertise in in vitro pharmacology and cell-based biology

• Minimum 4 years of people management experience, including leading teams of scientists

Preferred

• Deep expertise in iPSC-derived cellular systems (e.g., neurons, microglia, astrocytes, and co-culture models), primary cell cultures, and reporter cell assays

• Demonstrated scientific leadership at the group or platform level, with a track record of setting direction and delivering results across multiple programs and developing other leaders

• Demonstrated experience developing and applying disease-relevant in vitro and cellular disease models

• Expertise in establishing in vitro toxicology investigation framework that can be used to de-risk candidate molecules

• Hands-on expertise in siRNA and oligonucleotide design and screening — including sequence design, activity/selectivity profiling, and structure–activity optimization — with broader knowledge of genetic medicines and other novel therapeutic modalities

• Experience with high-throughput and high-content screening, assay development and laboratory automation

• Deep understanding of drug discovery and development processes

• Proven track record of contributing to successful preclinical candidate nominations

• Expertise in neurological disorders, particularly chronic pain and neurodegenerative disease

• Understanding of translational biomarker strategies and translation from cellular models to in vivo and clinical settings

• Knowledge of regulatory requirements for IND-enabling studies

• Strong publication record in peer-reviewed journals

• Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration skills

• Demonstrated ability to influence and make strategic decisions in a matrixed, innovation-focused, fast-paced environment

Additional Information

• 5-10% travel

What We Offer

• Opportunity to impact millions of patients' lives through innovative medicines for critical unmet needs

• Collaborative, passionate culture with world-class scientists at our state-of-the-art Seaport Innovation Center

• Fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment with the resources and stability of a leading pharmaceutical company

• Support for professional development and career growth

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 $163,500 - $281,600

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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