Director/Senior Director, Analytical Methods (Methods4Insight)

At Lilly, the work is demanding because patients are waiting. We unite caring with discovery to help make life better for people around the world, knowing that every decision, every detail, and every day matters.

Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, our over 50,000 employees around the globe take on complex challenges to discover and deliver life-changing medicines, strengthen how health is understood and managed, and support the communities we serve. This is hard, urgent, selfless work—but it’s work worth doing.

If you’re driven by purpose and ready to bring your best to work that truly matters for patients, we invite you to join us. Location: San Francisco, CA; Louisville, CO; Indianapolis, IN Reports to: AVP - Methods4Insight, Data Foundry Overview: At Lilly, we serve an extraordinary purpose.

We make a difference for people around the globe by discovering, developing and delivering medicines that help them live longer, healthier, more active lives. Not only do we deliver breakthrough medications, but you also can count on us to develop creative solutions to support communities through philanthropy and volunteerism.

Lilly Small Molecule Discovery is an organization purpose-built to create molecules that make life better for people. We focus on using cutting edge science to unlock new approaches that can treat people suffering from diseases with poor treatment options.

We continually challenge ourselves to deliver molecules that can provide breakthrough efficacy with the highest possible safety margins. We are dedicated to optimizing our mindset, technology, and processes for faster, more nimble execution.

Our success is built on a culture that empowers innovative problem solving through open collaboration and individual accountability. Discovery Technology and Platforms is a newly established function within this organization.

Its mission is to accelerate molecule discovery by building highly optimized foundational platforms, streamlining lab operations through advanced technologies and data connectivity, and intentionally investing in novel technologies and capabilities. About Data Foundry Data Foundry is a multidisciplinary team dedicated to enabling and accelerating molecule discovery through scalable and reproducible data generation, fueled by advanced scientific computing, informatics, and automation solutions.

Data Foundry operates through four integrated pillars: Architecture4Insight (data infrastructure and scientific software), Methods4Insight (analytical and computational methods), Scale4Insight (lab automation and agentic workflows), and Preparedness4Insight (data governance and readiness). Together, these pillars empower every Lilly scientist to make optimal decisions by providing seamless access to data, insights, and AI-driven capabilities at scale.

Position Summary The Director/Senior Director, Analytical Methods will serve as a domain expert and technical leader within Methods4Insight, responsible for developing, deploying, and maintaining cutting-edge analytical approaches in their area of expertise — such as cheminformatics, computational structural biology, statistical modeling, or AI/ML. This role combines deep domain knowledge with scientific leadership, translating advanced methods into practical capabilities that accelerate molecule discovery for both human scientists and autonomous AI agents.

You will work alongside discovery project teams and supporting functions to understand scientific challenges, provide expert consultation, and develop custom solutions when existing methods fall short. You will maintain awareness of emerging methods, evaluate their value, and make informed build-versus-buy-versus-adopt recommendations.

You will collaborate closely with Methods4Insight domain experts, Architecture4Insight, Scale4Insight, and Frontier AI. We're looking for someone who is recognized as an expert in their analytical domain, has a strong publication record, has deployed methods that influenced real discovery decisions, and is passionate about advancing their field and enabling scientific impact.

What You'll Do Serve as the subject matter expert in your analytical domain, staying current on innovative methods and making informed recommendations about adoption, adaptation, or development of novel approaches. Develop and deploy cutting-edge analytical methods tailored to Lilly's discovery challenges, building workflows that integrate multiple approaches (e.g., physics-based and data-driven) to harness complementary strengths.

Work alongside discovery project teams to translate complex scientific questions into tractable analytical problems, driving analyses that directly inform compound prioritization, design recommendations, and mechanism of action hypotheses. Collaborate with Architecture4Insight to deploy analytical methods as accessible tools and agent-ready capabilities with well-defined APIs for autonomous AI decision-making.

Identify strategic data gaps in your domain and partner with Scale4Insight to design targeted experiments that generate data in high-value areas. Establish best practices for method validation, including prospective testing against experimental outcomes, and demonstrate impact through tracked metrics: decisions influenced, hypotheses generated, and timelines accelerated.

Collaborate across all Data Foundry pillars and with Frontier AI to ensure analytical capabilities are fully integrated into the broader discovery ecosystem. Publish peer-reviewed research, present at scientific conferences, and build analytical literacy across the organization.

Mentor junior computational scientists and contribute to a culture of scientific rigor, reproducibility, and continuous improvement. Basic Requirements MS/Ph.D. in Cheminformatics, Computational Biology, Biophysics, Applied Mathematics, Computer Science, Statistics, or a related quantitative field. 6+ years of experience developing and applying analytical methods in drug discovery or related life sciences fields.

Additional Preferences Deep expertise in at least one analytical domain with demonstrated impact on scientific outcomes. Strong programming skills in Python, R, or similar scientific computing languages.

Publications in peer-reviewed journals demonstrating contributions to your analytical domain. Ability to explain complex analytical concepts clearly to non-computational scientists.

Track record of deploying analytical methods that influenced real scientific decisions or discoveries. Breadth across multiple analytical approaches, with experience both developing novel methods and adopting external approaches.

Familiarity with software engineering practices and deploying research code in production environments. Experience mentoring junior scientists or managing interns/postdocs.

Ability to communicate effectively across scientific, technical, and executive audiences. Passion for mentoring and empowering others.

Additional Information: Physical Demands/Travel: The physical demands of this job are consistent with an office environment. This position will require travel.

The physical demands here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Work Environment: This position’s work environment is in an office.

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. *To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform the role and responsibilities satisfactorily. The requirements listed above are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.