Advisor/Senior Advisor - Discovery Immunology

Position Overview

Lilly Immunology is a therapeutic area focused on many autoimmune diseases spanning gastroenterology, dermatology and rheumatology. We are seeking an accomplished and creative Director for the New Target Validation within Discovery Immunology to develop biological strategy with translational readiness for projects and execution target identification through mechanistic validation.

Key Objectives/Deliverables

• Strategic Leadership & Discovery Excellence
• Drive scientific decision-making across multidisciplinary project teams to ensure robust biological rationale, mechanism-of-action understanding, and data-supported progression criteria.
• Provides hands-on guidance for associates in developing new technology and mentor them to deliver on key scientific objectives.
• Identify key technical/operational challenges and proactively develop mitigation strategies.
• Strong communication ability to interface with bioinformatics and discovery teams to facilitate iterative learnings from clinical data.

Technology Development

• Expand functional genomics capability, including pooled and arrayed CRISPR knockout, CRISPR base-editing, multiplexed perturbation systems, barcoding technologies, and data-integrated mechanistic workflows.
• Champion the development and application of primary human and induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived or organoid model systems and whole-blood assays.
• Lead the creation of and operationalize phenotypic discovery workflows to enable rapid target triage, mechanistic deconvolution, and clear go/no-go determination.
• Integrate these models with multimodal profiling (imaging, transcriptomics, cytokine and proteomics readouts) to strengthen human disease relevance and predictive validity.
• Ensure translational confidence by driving model selection, benchmarking, and alignment with patient-derived data and clinical insights.

Basic Minimum Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Molecular Genetics, Cell Biology, Immunology, or a related field.
• 5+ years of experience in pharmaceutical drug discovery biology in autoimmune diseases.

Additional Skills & Preferences

• Strong technical knowledge and organizational skills in laboratory.
• Demonstrated leadership in developing high-performing teams by coaching, mentoring, and empowering diverse talent to grow in capability, influence, and leadership impact.
• Ability to make data-driven decisions and find innovative solutions to overcome scientific and operational obstacles within matrix environment.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present complex scientific data to diverse audiences.
• Strong interpersonal skills for effective collaboration with internal teams, external partners, and vendors.