Sr. Director – Immunology Translational Medicine

Role Summary

Sr. Director – Immunology Translational Medicine leads translational strategies across multiple immunology programs, integrating discovery- and clinical-stage efforts to identify mechanism-relevant biomarkers and develop drug-tailoring hypotheses for autoimmune diseases. The role drives translational immunology activities, laboratory leadership, publication strategy, regulatory support, and external partnerships, with a focus on enabling clinical trial success and informing future Lilly immunology investments. This leadership position requires innovation, collaboration, and the ability to coach and develop other scientists within a matrixed organization.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute Translational strategies for multiple programs in parallel to enable Lilly’s immunology portfolio.
• Play a key role in all Translational Immunology activities through active collaboration with program teams at various stages of discovery and clinical development.
• Establish and maintain a laboratory that leads and/or supports Translational Immunology aspects of programs in the Lilly pipeline and prioritize work.
• Initiate and drive publication strategy of biomarker research findings for disclosure at conferences and in journals.
• Protocol and regulatory support for the biomarker portion of Immunology clinical programs.
• Identify internal and external resources to enable biomarker strategies, in conjunction with operations and clinical teams.
• Support discovery efforts by identifying and enabling novel targets/pathways through collection and analysis of human bio-samples (bedside-to-bench).
• Represent Lilly Translational Immunology in collaborations with external partners and help in establishing new partnerships with academic or biotech/pharma partners.
• Maintain vigilance and strategically incorporate novel translational tools, including developments in Precision Medicine, novel approaches or technologies, companion diagnostics, imaging techniques, etc.
• Provide strategic input on future Lilly Immunology investment prospects.
• Experience working independently and in a matrixed environment with demonstrated ability to prioritize work for team, and meeting ambitious goals and timelines
• Actively coach, mentor, and develop other scientists at Lilly.

Qualifications

• Required: Ph.D. or M.D. in Immunology or related life science field.
• Required: At least 6 or more years of relevant pharmaceutical, biotech industry, or drug development experience, supporting clinical programs in the areas of rheumatology, respiratory, and/or gastroenterology with Translational Immunology assays and strategies.
• Required: Deep understanding of the drug discovery and development life cycle.
• Preferred: Demonstrated experience leading and managing diverse multi-disciplinary teams.
• Preferred: Direct experience with external academic, CRO, and biotech/pharma partnerships.
• Preferred: Demonstrated interpersonal communication, team building skills, and experience presenting in large forums.
• Preferred: Experience with high-content data and familiarity with computational methodologies and artificial intelligence applications in translational medicine.

Skills

• Leadership of multi-disciplinary teams and ability to operate in a matrixed environment.
• Strong collaboration and external partnership development across academia, CROs, and industry.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
• Experience with translational biomarker strategies, bio-sample analysis, and biomarker data interpretation.
• Familiarity with high-content data and computational methods in translational medicine.

Education

Additional Requirements

• Travel: Estimated ~20%
• Work Environment: Position can be based in San Diego CA, Indianapolis IN, or Boston MA