Post-Doctoral Scientist – Advanced Resin Characterization for TIDES Manufacturing

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.

Job Description

Synthetic Molecule Design and Development (SMDD) is involved in key activities for the development of synthetic active pharmaceutical ingredients from pre-clinical phases through commercialization of drug substances and drug products. Our scientists and engineers develop key technical and business solutions across the portfolio using their deep technical expertise to accelerate testing of the clinical hypothesis and overall drug development. SMDD delivers on these responsibilities by recognizing diverse talent and cultures are necessary to bring the next generation of life changing medicines to patients.

You will be part of a diverse team of scientists. Top candidates for this position will be able to:

• Develop advanced analytical techniques characterizing resin support for solid phase peptide and oligonucleotide synthesis. 

• Quantify internal resin mass diffusion effects on solid phase peptide and oligonucleotide synthesis reaction efficiency.

• Show proficiency in multiple modes of peptide and oligonucleotide synthesis including solid phase and liquid phase synthesis.  

• Have familiarity with chromatography, mass spectrometry, optical spectroscopy, and peptide automation.

• Present research findings at conferences and publish in high quality peer-reviewed journals.

The ideal candidate will have breadth in multiple resin characterization techniques, reaction engineering knowledge and peptide synthesis techniques. Must have strong technical problem-solving ability and have an internal motivation to work independently and achieve efficient, quality results in a fast-paced environment.

Position Responsibilities:

• Work collaboratively with one of best peptide research groups in the pharmaceutical Industry.

• Identify and develop advanced resin characterization techniques for peptide synthesis.

• Conduct and perform chemical reactions in the laboratory and collect experimental data to support developing sustainable synthetic peptide projects.

• Identify and exploit new scientific concepts, strong problem-solving skills, and be self-motivated to contribute across multiple projects.

• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to translate innovative ideas into designs, prototypes, and project implementations.

• Strong written and verbal communication to speak to both technical and business-related implications of your work.

• Provide regular updates on project status, milestones, challenges, and next steps to the supervisor and leadership.

Basic Qualifications:

• PhD in Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, or Chemical Engineering.

• Familiarity with advanced characterization techniques for particle size and active sites distribution quantification, pore size, and volume measurements.

• Prior experience in heterogeneous reaction system characterization, knowledge of intra particle mass diffusion, and its competitive effects on reaction rate.

• Strong technical skills in synthetic organic chemistry with experience as a hands-on technical contributor in a laboratory environment.

• 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

Additional Skills/Preferences:

• Familiarity with reversed phase chromatography, ion exchange chromatography, size exclusion chromatography, chiral chromatography.

• Prior experience of solid phase and/or liquid phase synthetic peptide and oligonucleotide process is preferred but not required.

• Ability to learn and apply technical knowledge to meet changing project needs.

• Flexibility and ability to prioritize work to meet interpersonal and scientific goals.

• Strong verbal and written communication skills and ability to collaborate in a team environment.

• Ability to balance multiple activities, prioritize and handle ambiguity.

Additional Information:

• This position is fixed duration employment (FDE) of 2 years, with potential to extend to 3 years, and for maximum of up to 4 years. This position is not full-time regular employment (FTE).

• Opportunities to apply to FTE positions may be available upon completion of the FDE.

• Travel 0-15%.

• Potential exposure to chemicals, allergens, and loud noises.

Lilly is dedicated to helping individuals with disabilities to actively engage in the workforce, ensuring equal opportunities when vying for positions. If you require accommodation to submit a resume for a position at Lilly, please complete the accommodation request form (https://careers.lilly.com/us/en/workplace-accommodation) for further assistance. Please note this is for individuals to request an accommodation as part of the application process and any other correspondence will not receive a response.

Lilly is proud to be an EEO Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion, gender identity, sex, gender expression, sexual orientation, genetic information, ancestry, 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 are open to all employees. Our current groups include: Africa, Middle East, Central Asia Network, Black Employees at Lilly, Chinese Culture Network, Japanese International Leadership Network (JILN), Lilly India Network, Organization of Latinx at Lilly (OLA), PRIDE (LGBTQ+ Allies), Veterans Leadership Network (VLN), Women’s Initiative for Leading at Lilly (WILL), enAble (for people with disabilities). Learn more about all of our groups.

Actual compensation will depend on a candidate’s education, experience, skills, and geographic location.  The anticipated wage for this position is

$58,000 - $123,200

Full-time equivalent employees also will be eligible for a company bonus (depending, in part, on company and individual performance). In addition, Lilly offers a comprehensive benefit program to eligible employees, including eligibility to participate in a company-sponsored 401(k); pension; vacation benefits; eligibility for medical, dental, vision and prescription drug benefits; flexible benefits (e.g., healthcare and/or dependent day care flexible spending accounts); life insurance and death benefits; certain time off and leave of absence benefits; and well-being benefits (e.g., employee assistance program, fitness benefits, and employee clubs and activities).Lilly reserves the right to amend, modify, or terminate its compensation and benefit programs in its sole discretion and Lilly’s compensation practices and guidelines will apply regarding the details of any promotion or transfer of Lilly employees.

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