Associate Director, Global Leadership Development Strategic Business Partner

Role Purpose

The GLD Strategic Business Partner (SBP) serves as a trusted advisor to senior business leaders, HRBPs, and leadership teams within a designated business area. This role sits at the intersection of business strategy and leadership development, diagnosing capability gaps, crafting development priorities, and ensuring Global Leadership Development’s work is directly aligned to what the business needs to win. The SBP develops a deep understanding of the business and translates that insight into clear leadership development priorities. They partner closely with the Portfolio Lead and the broader GLD team to ensure the right experiences are delivered to the right leaders at the right moments.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary leadership development advisor to senior leaders and HRBP's operating as a trusted, embedded partner and integral member of the HR team.
• Diagnose leadership capability gaps through a deep understanding of the business area’s strategy, performance challenges, talent profile, and people agenda.
• Translate business needs into clear, prioritized development requirements, crafting the ask before solutions are developed.
• Influence and inform succession planning, talent reviews, organizational efficiency, and mentor culture as a credible thought partner.
• Represent the voice of the business back into Global Leadership Development, ensuring the Learning Architect, Portfolio Lead, and Learning Impact Strategist are designing and measuring against the right outcomes.
• Selective and Strategic Facilitate high-stakes leadership experiences where the facilitator relationship is part of the intervention, including Lead Team conversations, transition support, and team efficiency sessions.
• Partner with the Portfolio Lead on the delivery of nomination-based and transition programs.
• Operate selectively, employing external partners and vendors where appropriate, and reserving SBP involvement for moments where internal presence is irreplaceable.
• Contribute to GLD design and implementation efforts, ensuring new programs, tools, and platforms reflect the day-to-day realities of the leaders they support.
• Provide regular insights to HR and business leaders on leadership pipeline health, readiness, and capability gaps.
• Use leadership assessments, including 360s, psychometrics, and readiness tools, to inform individual and cohort development plans.
• Surface patterns and themes from the business area to inform Global Leadership Development portfolio decisions, design priorities, and measurement focus.
• Build and maintain relationships with global and regional HR teams, the Inclusion Office, and external development partners.
• Champion leadership development and coaching as drivers of culture, performance, and business outcomes.
• Collaborate across Global Leadership Development, partnering with the Portfolio Lead on program delivery, the Learning Architect on content needs, and the Learning Impact Strategist on measurement priorities.
• Stay current on leadership development trends, digital learning, and AI-enabled development approaches, including the practical application of generative AI in learning design and delivery.
• Pilot and champion innovative solutions that address the needs of the business area.
• Contribute to Global Leadership Development thought leadership and cross-team knowledge sharing.

Basic Requirements

• Bachelor's degree required.
• Minimum 5 years in leadership development, talent management, or organizational development in a global, matrixed organization.
• Qualified applicants must be authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis.

Additional Preferences

• Master's degree in Organizational Psychology, HR, Business.
• Coaching certification is a strong asset.
• Demonstrated experience operating as a strategic consultant to senior leaders, rather than primarily as a program facilitator or content developer.
• Consulting orientation: Leads with diagnosis before solution; asks sharper questions than most leaders have considered.
• Executive credibility: Operates confidently with VPs and SVPs; advises with insight, courage, and cultural fluency across geographies and levels.
• Business insight: Understands how the business works, where it is going, and what leadership capability is required to get there.
• Data fluency: Uses data and storytelling to surface insights and influence decisions.
• AI and digital learning proficiency: Proficient with modern development tools and platforms.
• Systems thinking: Sees how individual development connects to team performance, succession health, and organizational capability over time.
• Facilitation (when it counts): Brings craft and presence to critical leadership moments; does not default to facilitation as the primary contribution.
• Commitment to inclusion: Actively designs for equity in access, voice, and development opportunity.

Additional Information

• Flexible role in Indianapolis (on site the majority of the time)
• US working hours required, with flexibility to meet with global colleagues as needed outside of those hours
• Up to 30% business travel
• Lilly will not provide support for or sponsor work authorization or visas for this role, including but not limited to F-1 CPT, F-1 OPT, F-1 STEM OPT, J-1, H-1B, TN, O-1, E-3, H-1B1, or L-1