Senior/Executive Director, ExploR&D Translational Biology - Eli Lilly and Company

At Lilly, we unite caring with discovery to make life better for people around the world. We are a global healthcare leader headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our employees around the world work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to our communities through philanthropy and volunteerism. We give our best effort to our work, and we put people first. We’re looking for people who are determined to make life better for people around the world.

Actual compensation will depend on a candidate’s education, experience, skills, and geographic location. The anticipated wage for this position is $187,500 - $275,000.

Purpose

At JP Morgan 2024, Dave Ricks announced Lilly Catalyze360, our external innovation organization dedicated to biotech collaboration which is comprised of three pillars: Lilly Ventures, providing capital direct to biotechs and via a fund-of-funds investment strategy; Lilly Gateway Labs, a best-in-class network of biotech incubators; and ExploR&D. At ExploR&D, our mission is to unleash Lilly’s world-leading capabilities and know-how to accelerate the science of our biotech collaborators to value inflection, and to patients. Through a unique model that mixes dedicated headcount and flexible use of functional and therapeutic area expertise, we will provide the knowledge and services to enable our collaborator’s programs.

In this role you will:

• Shape and execute ExploR&D’s collaborative scientific strategy, advising on the modalities, platforms, technologies, and indications with the most promise for high-impact partnerships, both within and outside current areas of strategic focus for Lilly.
• Work closely with the ExploR&D External Partnering team to identify, evaluate, and strategically source the most innovative science worldwide, creating a strategic thesis for collaboration.
• Conduct rigorous biological due diligence on external programs, supporting the design of work plans to optimize value inflection and alignment with ExploR&D goals.
• Provide expert insights across ExploR&D’s portfolio, guiding translational science from discovery through early clinical development across multiple therapeutic areas.

Success in this role requires a high level of scientific depth and breadth, learning agility, an ability to think out of the box, a passion for exploring new frontiers, and the collaborative mindset necessary to foster seamless partnerships with external teams.

This role reports to the Head of ExploR&D.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Scientific Leadership
  • Contribute to the development and refinement of ExploR&D’s scientific strategy, identifying high potential scientific frontiers of focus across modalities, platforms, technologies, and therapeutic areas.
  • Collaborate with the ExploR&D leadership to craft a strategic roadmap within selected area(s) that align with broader ExploR&D goals and Catalyze360 priorities.
• Identification of External Opportunities
  • Partner with the External Partnering team to identify and evaluate innovative scientific opportunities globally.
  • Build and apply a strategic thesis for collaboration that aligns with both short- and long-term objectives, ensuring a pipeline of high-potential programs for partnership.
• Diligence
  • Conduct in-depth biology diligence on prospective external programs, rigorously assessing scientific data, mechanisms of action, and translational potential.
  • Identify areas of risk and opportunity, providing actionable recommendations to inform decision-making.
• Workplan Development
  • Design and support the development of collaborative work plans that maximize the scientific and strategic potential of each collaboration.
  • Ensure work plans are data-driven, strategically aligned with ExploR&D’s goals, and poised for value inflection across discovery and translational stages.
• Portfolio Input
  • Provide ongoing translational biology expertise across the active ExploR&D portfolio, guiding project teams from discovery through early clinical development.
  • Offer cross-functional support to ensure portfolio programs are positioned for scientific rigor, speed, and success.
• External Representation
  • Represent ExploR&D at scientific conferences, industry meetings, and other external forums to highlight ExploR&D’s mission, engage with key opinion leaders, and strengthen the organization’s scientific network.
  • Promote ExploR&D’s position as a partner of choice for cutting-edge science and collaboration.
• Lilly Connection
  • Maintain close connectivity with Lilly Therapeutic Area CSOs and heads of Search & Evaluation to stay updated on corporate strategy and priorities.
  • Identify opportunities to leverage Lilly’s internal discovery capabilities for external collaborations, align ExploR&D’s therapeutic area-aligned collaborations with Lilly’s strategic interests, and explore opportunities for ExploR&D collaborations to impact the Lilly pipeline.

Basic Requirements

• PhD, with a minimum of 5 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry.
• Thorough understanding of drug discovery and translational biology, including regulatory and IP considerations with a proven track record in moving projects to IND/CTA.
• Portfolio or therapeutic area-level leadership responsibilities, with experience contributing to external program diligence.

Additional Preferences

• Scientific experience spanning two or more therapeutic areas.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills; able to develop and communicate a compelling scientific vision and build trust and credibility with an internal and external network.
• Strong problem-solving skills; able to anticipate and recognize systemic problems, diagnose root causes and execute on a corrective plan.
• Excellent self-management and organizational skills; able to independently manage workload, set personal and team priorities and adjust as needed.
• Strong interpersonal and teambuilding skills; able to create a shared vision and productively manage conflict between team members and diverse interpersonal styles; able to deliver effective coaching and feedback.
• Well-grounded in business development fundamentals with the ability to maintain a portfolio mindset.

US-based – Boston-preferred, with up to 25% travel required.