Job Description
At Lilly, we unite caring with discovery to make life better for people around the world. We are a global healthcare leader headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our employees around the world work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to our communities through philanthropy and volunteerism. We give our best effort to our work, and we put people first. We’re looking for people who are determined to make life better for people around the world.
Eli Lilly has achieved unprecedented R&D productivity with the possibility of launching 20 new medicines in a 10-year period. To sustain the advancing pipeline, Lilly is expanding efforts to access a constant stream of external innovation, which will fuel its premier discovery and development engines. The Venture Science (VS) group within Lilly Ventures LV) is a pan-therapeutic, global organization. Our goal is to provide scientific expertise, identify breakthrough innovation, and deliver groundbreaking technologies, platforms, and assets into Lilly Research Labs (LRL). The VS/LV team sits at the intersection of Lilly’s industry leading venture capital strategy and the highly innovative global healthcare and life science ecosystems.
Purpose Of The Job We are seeking a VS Associate Director who will focus on helping us deliver and progress the best external cutting-edge science residing in external biotech companies into the Lilly portfolio.
- Your role will report to the of Head of East Coast Ventures and will be a key member of the geographic team defining strategy and tactics in the region. You will also be part of our larger global team working closely with peers in Indianapolis, Boston San Francisco, San Diego, London and Japan.
- Beyond our venture portfolio of opportunities, the role will support our expanded pillars of external innovation partnering models including (a) ExplorR&D (providing Lilly capabilities externally, including clinical development) and (b) Lilly Gateway Labs (sourcing companies to enter our physical innovation spaces).
- Opportunities are sourced from our strategic venture fund partners and other key institutions in our prioritized geographies. You will lead/co-lead fund interactions and work closely with the other the fund and geography leads (Associate VPs / Senior Directors / Senior Managers) and our management to find, monitor, and progress the best opportunities.
- There will be the potential to lead or participate in downstream partnering projects aiming to deliver Lilly pipeline value via acquisition or licensing deals.
- Key aspects of your role will require attendance at scientific meetings with the venture funds we work with (>20 funds / month globally, and a >$2B Lilly commitment), ensuring that key matters are discussed, and company / portfolio updates are accurately recorded across several 100 companies and acted upon.
- Your role will involve identification and delivery of direct financial investments in high profile biotech companies (>30 to date, growing at >10 per year) as well as interacting regularly with our existing portfolio to ensure Lilly has the optimum line of site ultimate aim of converting these relationships into portfolio facing deals.
- A strong relationship with the other Search and Evaluation colleagues responsible for individual therapeutic and functional areas (TA / FAs), other Corp BD colleagues in transactions
- Importantly, will have / build a strong demonstrable knowledge of Lilly's systems and highly professional ways of working, coupled with a good understanding of the drug discovery and development process / high learning agility.
The responsibilities of this role include, but are not limited to: - Technical evaluation of new partnership opportunities via objective scientific assessment including analysis of patents, scientific literature, and probing discussions with internal Lilly scientists; identification of key issues and appropriate expertise to facilitate resolution.
- Coordination and triage of an extensive number of external project opportunities – to include leadership of - and participation in - prioritization meetings.
- Deal team / Due Diligence / pre-due diligence participant, can have responsibility for preparation and presentation of governance documents and investment committee recommendations.
- Lead interactions with external organizations; represent Lilly strategies and needs to external organizations (companies, investment groups, and academic institutions) and provide agreed timely feedback.
- Contribute and lead, special projects and landscaping of technical areas.
- Liaise with internal functions (legal etc.) to ensure policies are strictly adhered to, and confidentiality processes are smoothly executed.
- Contribute to the reporting of the overall VS portfolio to senior management.
- Record all relevant information into Search & Evaluation caseload management information systems.
- Provide clear reports and information, updated on a regular basis, to monitor activity and progress against objectives.
- Facilitate the development and maintenance of strong external networks to enhance Lilly’s potential for productive business relationships with external companies.
- Maintain formal contact channels with key venture funds and biotech companies (such as in meetings and conference calls) that discuss potential new opportunities, working with the Ventures geography, fund and project leads and updating them as opportunities advance through the different stages of the Lilly evaluation process.
- Support Lilly’s visibility at conferences and partnering meetings, including prior analysis of opportunities, planning of logistics, and follow-up communications. Some attendance at events will be expected.
Basic Requirements - MSc / PhD in a discipline related to pharmaceutical drug discovery and development, e.g., Biochemistry, Chemistry, Pharmacology, Physiology, Cell Biology, Molecular Biology or Genetics.
- Prior experience in drug discovery or development. Minimum of 3 years of experience in the biopharmaceutical industry or related fields (life sciences VC, life science technology transfer, consulting) with additional experience working with small life science companies, venture capital firms or in the external innovation deal making space optimal.
- Strong project management, data science/analytics and organizational skills, demonstrated ability to accurately handle large amounts of complex unstructured data
- Strong scientific background as evidenced by publications, patents, presentations, project work
- Demonstrated knowledge across several disease areas relevant to Lilly’s business and an understanding of key pathways that impact critical disease states as well as a working knowledge across multiple modalities and emerging technologies.
- Evidence of the strong interpersonal skills required to generate and maintain internal and external networks both face to face and remotely
Additional Skills/Preferences - Flexible can-do attitude to respond quickly to fast moving initiatives and priorities and work effectively in a complex matrix environment
- Possesses the maturity and judgement to work on sensitive and often highly confidential projects in full adherence to Lilly policies
- Excellent English communication skills (written and oral)
- Strong database / computer skills. Interest in analytics desirable
- Travel up to 40%
Eli Lilly and Company, Lilly USA, LLC and our wholly owned subsidiaries (collectively “Lilly”) are committed to help individuals with disabilities to participate in the workforce and ensure equal opportunity to compete for jobs. If you require an accommodation to submit a resume for positions at Lilly, please email Lilly Human Resources ( Lilly_Recruiting_Compliance@lists.lilly.com ) for further assistance. Please note This email address is intended for use only to request an accommodation as part of the application process. Any other correspondence will not receive a response.
Lilly is an EEO/Affirmative Action Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, protected veteran status, disability or any other legally protected status.
Our employee resource groups (ERGs) offer strong support networks for their members and help our company develop talented individuals for future leadership roles. Our current groups include: Africa, Middle East, Central Asia Network, African American Network, Chinese Culture Network, Early Career Professionals, Japanese International Leadership Network (JILN), Lilly India Network, Organization of Latinos at Lilly, PRIDE (LGBTQ + Allies), Veterans Leadership Network, Women’s Network, Working and Living with Disabilities. Learn more about all of our groups.
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Job Tags
Full time, Remote job, Flexible hours,