Post-Doctoral Scientist, Bioconjugation Process Innovation

Postdoctoral Scientist Position

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.

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.

This postdoctoral position sits within the Purification Process Development group in  &D and focuses on advancing In-Process Conjugation (IPC) as a next-generation manufacturing platform for Antibody RNA Conjugates (ARC) and Antibody Drug Conjugates (ADC). The postdoc will work at the intersection of downstream purification, conjugation chemistry, and process analytics — a uniquely broad technical scope that prepares candidates for cross-functional roles in antibody conjugate process development.

Responsibilities:

• Design and execute purification development experiments to evaluate and optimize the in-process conjugation workflow.
• Collaborate with the Bioconjugation group to investigate conjugation efficiency and product quality attributes.
• Collaborate with Analytical teams to assess impurity detectability.
• Engage with the Medicine Foundry and PAT-knowledgeable collaborators to explore integration of in-line process analytical tools for real-time CQA monitoring.
• Collaborate with the Virology group to assess impacts on viral clearance.
• Document experimental results rigorously; author technical reports and contribute to potential patent filings and peer-reviewed publications in alignment with Lilly legal and IP processes.
• Present findings at internal forums (BR&D group meetings, API Forum,  &D Seminar) on a regular cadence (every 3–6 months).

Basic Requirements:

• Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering, Biochemistry, Chemistry, Biomolecular Engineering, or a closely related field, conferred within the past 3 years (or anticipated prior to start date).
• Hands-on experience with preparative protein chromatography (affinity, IEX, HIC, SEC) using ÄKTA or equivalent chromatography systems.

Additional Preferences:

• Familiarity with antibody conjugate modalities (ADC, ARC, or similar) and/or bioconjugation chemistry.
• Experience with analytical characterization methods relevant to conjugate process development (LC-MS, ELISA, HCP assays, DAR determination).
• Exposure to tangential flow filtration (TFF) or other membrane-based separation operations.
• Interest in or experience with process analytical technology (PAT) or process intensification.
• Strong written and oral communication skills; publication and/or conference presentation experience preferred.
• Highly collaborative with demonstrated ability to work effectively across multidisciplinary teams.
• Self-directed, intellectually curious, and motivated to build a career in the biopharmaceutical industry.

Additional Information:

• This position is part of Lilly's post-doctoral training program, which provides an exceptional environment and the opportunity for professional growth through learning, collaboration, networking, and mentorship from Lilly's leading scientists, aimed at facilitating groundbreaking discoveries.
• This position is not permanent. It is for a fixed duration of two years with the potential to extend to a maximum of 4 years. You will have opportunities to apply for full-time positions after your duration is complete.

About Eli Lilly's Postdoctoral Scientist Program:

• When it comes to research and development, our goal is to discover and deliver…