Associate Vice President - Medicinal Chemistry

Role Summary

The Associate Vice President - Medicinal Chemistry leads the Advanced Molecule Design (AMD) team to optimize small molecules and advance projects across oncology, immunology, pain, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and obesity from lead identification to strong clinical candidates. This role requires a deeply experienced leader who can supervise and mentor medicinal chemistry project leaders and scientists, solve challenging med chem problems, and excel at synthetic execution. The leader should foster a highly collaborative culture that rewards teamwork, individual growth, and accountability. Location: onsite at a medicinal chemistry site. Travel may be required.

Responsibilities

• Scientific Leadership:
  • Champion rigorous science by overseeing a portfolio of small molecule programs across therapeutic areas, advancing projects from lead identification to quality drug candidates with strong potential to become breakthrough therapies.
  • Make sound scientific decisions that advance programs while maintaining quality—balance speed with scientific rigor and make timely no-go decisions based on evolving science and the clinical landscape.
  • Focus teams on what matters most—the highest-impact activities that advance programs toward patients, balancing short-term execution with long-term program strategy.
  • Build scientific credibility and influence across the organization through deep expertise and strategic thinking.
  • Build "ONE TEAM, SAME TEAM" collaboration across Lilly—break down silos and foster partnerships that accelerate programs.
  • Collaborate closely with cross-functional and therapeutic area leaders to align on program strategies, establish actionable goals, and communicate plans and challenges in real-time with radical transparency.
  • Apply innovative solutions to challenging targets by utilizing modern computational methods, including AI/ML, to analyze data, prioritize compounds, and accelerate program advancement.
• People Leadership:
  • Elevate individual and team performance consistently—provide coaching, feedback, and development that increases impact and consistency across Deep Thinking, Execution & Delivery, Culture & Teamwork, and Growth Mindset.
  • Create growth opportunities that build skills while advancing programs—align development with real project challenges.
  • Be accessible—make time for your team, be approachable, and create an environment where people feel comfortable bringing challenges forward.
  • Make fair, evidence-based performance assessments and differentiate based on impact and consistency.
  • Have courageous conversations—celebrate excellence and address performance gaps directly and constructively.
  • Create conditions where scientists can be successful—remove barriers, provide resources, and empower the team.
  • Foster a culture of mentorship and accountability where scientists' project impact continues to grow.
• Personal Performance:
  • Lead by example—model the behaviors expected of scientists: ownership, integrity, collaboration, and growth mindset.
  • Demonstrate hard work with a sense of urgency and deliver highest impact contributions with consistency.
  • Show continuous growth and learning agility—stay curious about emerging science, methods, and leadership approaches.
  • Balance scientific excellence with people development—excel in both dimensions, not just one.
  • Successfully manage internal and external collaborative relationships.
  • Contribute to a work environment that fosters integrity, support, collaboration, professionalism, mutual respect, and unwavering focus on creating value for patients.

Qualifications

• Required: PhD in Chemistry, Medicinal Chemistry or related scientific field with 8+ years academic/research/industry experience (may include post-doctoral experience); MS in Chemistry, Medicinal Chemistry or related scientific field with 10+ years industry/academic/research experience; or BS in Chemistry, Medicinal Chemistry or related scientific field with 12+ years industry/academic/research experience within the pharmaceutical sector.
• Preferred: Experience across a range of different mechanisms, modalities and therapeutic areas; proven track record of leading medicinal chemistry teams to advance strong drug candidates into pre-clinical development; strong experience leading teams of scientists to achieve cross-disciplinary goals; extensive experience in structure-based design, ADME PK optimization, and achieving challenging target product profiles.

Additional Requirements

• Travel may be required.