Senior Advisor Cell Line Development

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 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.

The Upstream Bioprocess Research and Development team (BR&D) within Lilly delivers new medicines to patients through the development and commercialization of insulins, peptides, oligonucleotides, monoclonal antibodies, and novel gene therapy systems. The Senior Advisor Scientist will lead the advancement of the cell line development platform, setting technical strategy and driving the innovation that strengthens Lilly's pipeline programs. The successful candidate will also mentor and develop scientific talent, and thrive in a collaborative, fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

Evaluate and deploy emerging molecular, automation, and analytical technologies that increase cell line productivity, enhance target product quality, and shorten CLD timelines.

Champion AI/ML across the CLG workflow to accelerate clone selection and enhance data-driven decision-making.

Serve as the cell line development lead on cross-functional CMC teams, translating platform advances into faster, more robust delivery across the large molecule pipeline.

Coach and develop scientists and research associates, to establish best practices and data standards that scale the group's capability.

Author and review the technical reports and regulatory documentation (IND, BLA) that carry cell line development through submission.

Lead external collaborations through academic partnerships and industry consortia to scout and evaluate emerging cell line development technologies.

Present scientific findings internally and externally through conferences and peer-reviewed publications, strengthening Lilly's reputation in cell line engineering.

Qualifications

Qualifications and Requirements (Basic)

Ph.D. in Biochemistry, Biotechnology, or a related field with 4+ years of biopharmaceutical industry experience, with a sustained record of platform leadership and technical mentoring.

Hands-on expertise in mammalian cell culture, transfection, clone screening, stability assessment, and cell banking.

Experience integrating lab automation, high-throughput screening, and digital tools into CLD workflows, including FACS, microfluidic screening, and am  micro-bioreactors.

Proficiency in CRISPR/Cas9-based genome-editing campaigns and application of molecular analytical tools, such as digital PCR and NGS, to assess gene expression dynamics.

Working knowledge of CMC regulatory expectations for cell line development and submission-ready documentation (IND, BLA).

Demonstrated ability to coach, and mentor scientists, and set technical direction for a team.

Proven ability to work…