Protein Biochemist – Associate​/Senior Associate Scientist

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. Lilly’s Biotechnology Discovery Research (BioTDR) organization has a track record of delivering novel biotherapeutic medicines into clinical research across key areas of unmet medical need, including diabetes, oncology, immunology, and neuroscience.

Our diverse team is committed to making a meaningful impact by developing therapies that transform lives.

The Associate / Senior Associate Scientist will join the Lead Optimization Team within the BioTDR organization, based in Indianapolis. Our team generates, characterizes, and optimizes biotherapeutics from lead generation through lead optimization and preclinical development. In this role, you will work closely with cross‑functional teams to understand and address the properties of protein reagents and potential biotherapeutics, and to help turn innovative ideas into clinical candidates.

We are looking for a motivated and creative scientist with a background in protein design and engineering. You will apply expertise in protein expression, purification, and characterization to support the delivery of novel medicines to patients. You will also be encouraged to develop your own ideas and contribute them to the broader group, designing your own experiments while collaborating across the organization to advance research programs.

This role offers a meaningful opportunity to build workflows that support both foundational research and translational medicine.

• Express, purify (ÄKTA), and characterize (HPLC) proteins and antibodies using a variety of biochemical and biophysical techniques (Biacore) to identify and address issues related to the physicochemical properties of protein reagents and potential biotherapeutics
• Perform analytical characterization of purified proteins and antibodies
• Characterize protein structure, stability, and other critical quality attributes using a range of biochemical and biophysical approaches
• Characterize protein–protein interactions
• Collaborate within multifunctional teams, and coordinate and present experimental data and results at team meetings
• Independently design experiments, generate data, interpret results, and document your work
• Communicate clearly in both spoken and written form, with strong self‑management, task planning, and organization

BS or MS degree in biochemistry, chemical/biomedical engineering, biotechnology, molecular biology, protein chemistry or related STEM field with at least 2 years (with MS) and at least 4 years (with BS) of expression characterization experience

• Strong proficiency in protein biochemistry, protein design and engineering, and knowledge of protein structure–function relationships, along with experience in biochemical analyses
• Hands-on multi-mode chromatography experience on ÄKTA systems, including affinity (Protein A, CH1, IMAC, light‑chain/VH-domain capture), ion exchange, HIC, and preparative SEC, plus method development for resolving closely related product species
• Analytical characterization of proteins and antibodies by aSEC, CE–SDS, icIEF, and LC–MS (intact, reduced, and subunit‑level), with the ability to interpret mass spectra for identity, purity, and post‑translational modifications
• Biophysical and binding characterization by SPR (Biacore), light scattering, DSF/DSC, and ITC, including protein–protein interaction kinetics and thermodynamic analysis
• Familiarity with the generation and characterization of protein/antibody conjugates (ADCs), including site‑specific conjugation…