Senior Scientist/Principal Scientist, Upstream Process Development

This role is within Bioproduct Research and Development (BR&D), a multidisciplinary organization that develops and optimizes biologically derived products. Upstream Process Development engineers develop and optimize processes for recombinant therapeutic proteins and genetic medicines, including control strategy, characterization, qualification, scale-up, and technology transfer.

This is a hands-on, lab-based role supporting program progression from Research to Manufacturing. The successful candidate is self-motivated, analytical, and an effective communicator who works well across functions and with external partners (vendors/academia) to evaluate new technologies and benchmark best practices.

- Design and execute experiments to evaluate, optimize, characterize, and troubleshoot processes and equipment with minimal guidance.

- Operate suspension cell culture in shake flasks and small-scale bioreactors (e.g., Ambr250, 5 L benchtop bioreactor).

- Author technical reports, protocols, and regulatory-supporting documentation.

- Present clear, actionable, scientific insights to project teams and leadership.

- Support equipment qualification, scale-up/scale-down, and technology transfer of mammalian-based bioprocesses to clinical and commercial manufacturing.

- Evaluate emerging technologies and equipment to advance platform capabilities.

- Develop novel hypotheses, connect insights across fields, and propose experiments beyond the project plan.

- Build internal and external networks to leverage capabilities and accelerate progress.

- Implement automation to streamline analysis, improve visualization, and maintain data integrity.

- Occasional weekend work may be required for sampling or equipment preparation.

- Principal Scientist: B.S. or M.S. degree in chemical engineering, biological engineering, or related discipline with 6-9 years (BS), or 4-6 years (MS) of relevant industry experience.

- Senior Scientist: B.S. or M.S. degree in chemical engineering, biological engineering, or related discipline with 4-5 years (BS), or 1-3 years (MS) of relevant industry experience.

- Experience in operating cell culture in shake flasks and small-scale bioreactors.

- Qualified applicants must be authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis. Lilly will not provide support for or sponsor work authorization or visas for this role, including but not limited to F-1 CPT, F-1 OPT, F-1 STEM OPT, J-1, H-1B, TN, O-1, E-3, H-1B1, or L-1.

- Strong written and verbal communication skills; able to communicate with operations staff and management.

- Ability to work independently and mentor junior scientists in a collaborative, cross-functional environment.

- Comfort using AI tools (e.g., Claude, Copilot) for analysis and design.

- Working knowledge of molecular biology, omics, metabolic flux analysis, and PAT.

- Creativity to identify improvement opportunities and the initiative to implement them.

- Proven ability to manage multiple priorities and deliver results in a fast-paced, evolving environment.

The physical demands of this job are consistent with a lab environment .

The physical demands here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

- Position located in Indianapolis, IN (Lilly Technology Center North).

- 8-hour days with flexibility to support activities (Position requires on-site presence, five days per week).

This position's work environment is in a laboratory environment.

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.

Actual compensation will depend on a candidate's education, experience, skills, and geographic location. The anticipated wage for this position is $79,500 - $169,400