Principal Scientist Jobs

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.

Position Summary
At Lilly, the molecules that become medicines start as ideas, and behind every breakthrough is a team that ensured the right compound reached the right assay at the right time. The work of Global Sample Management (GSM) is foundational to drug discovery, and the people who do it well make science move faster.
The Sr. Scientist / Principal Scientist within Global Sample Management executes daily sample management operations while taking active ownership of the data behind that work. This role requires strong information management abilities and effective communication skills to ensure clear sharing and interpretation of information within the Discovery team. The focus is on operationalizing and enhancing Sample Management, which involves improving and building processes for maintaining and distributing various sample types and responding to evolving scientific needs while improving operational efficiency.
Over time, this role may grow more towards data stewardship or operational focus depending on the individual and organizational needs. The level of appointment will be determined by the experience and qualifications of the selected candidate.

Responsibilities

• Support manual and automated workflows from registration to powder handling through preparation of assay-ready plates and format compound libraries using automated liquid handling and acoustic dispensing instrumentation (e.g., Echo, Hamilton) following established protocols; apply care and consistency to ensure outputs are fit for purpose.
• Design and enhance workflows for sample storage, manual and automated powder handling operations, liquid handling, ensuring high standards of scientific excellence and integrity.
• Support instrument qualification, routine maintenance, and basic troubleshooting of laboratory equipment; log maintenance activities accurately and escalate issues to appropriate personnel as needed.
• Build scientific understanding of assigned sample types and their handling requirements, including how physicochemical properties, storage conditions, and registration accuracy collectively determine whether a compound is fit for assay.
• Actively engage with scientific project teams to understand the research context behind sample requests, building scientific relationships and situational awareness to become a key scientific partner across Molecule Discovery.
• Serve as steward for both physical inventory and its associated data, acting as the technical resource for compound registration and data governance across GSM's LIMS platforms.
• Troubleshoot and resolve complex issues related to software, hardware, and sample dispensing, applying creative problem-solving skills and technical expertise.
• Develop, test, and validate updates to software, hardware, and procedures, proactively recommending and implementing usability and efficiency improvements to drive scientific progress.
• Perform quality checks on inbound and outbound samples; resolve deviations from quality guidelines before material ships or is used.
• Coordinate sample shipments across the GSM network and externally, maintaining proper documentation, chain of custody, and regulatory compliance.
• Collaborate with informatics, IT, scientific, and operational partners to ensure GSM’s data systems meet evolving research requirements; build relationships that enable proactive identification of data risks and opportunities for system improvement.
• Support the material restriction processes and controlled substance tracking within assigned scope; escalate compliance risks to appropriate stakeholders with clear documentation.
• Develop and maintain SOPs, governance documentation, and training materials for registration, data, and operational workflows.

Basic Requirements

• BS or MS in Chemistry, Biology, Pharmaceutics, Informatics, Engineering, Logistics or a related field.
• 3-5+ years of relevant laboratory or sample management or data stewardship experience.
• 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 and Preferences

• Strong organizational skills with attention to detail across both bench and data workflows.
• Commitment to data and sample quality as a scientific responsibility.
• Hands-on experience with LIMS platforms for sample management or similar; ability to identify and resolve data integrity issues across complex, high-volume datasets.
• Clear communicator; able to work collaboratively and escalate issues with appropriate context.
• Hands-on experience with automated liquid handling or acoustic dispensing platforms (e.g., Echo, Hamilton, Tecan).
• Experience handling diverse material types in a high-throughput laboratory environment.
• Basic SQL skills; interest in building data querying and reporting capability in an operational context.
• Coursework or practical exposure in cheminformatics or scientific databases relevant to compound identity and registration.
• Compound or biological sample management experience across one or more modalities.
• Knowledge of logistics for research materials.
• Familiarity with OEB/PHM compound potency classifications or high-potency material handling.
• Awareness of controlled substance handling requirements.

Additional Information:

• This is an onsite (5 days), lab-based position based in Indianapolis, IN

Work Environment:
The work environment characteristics described are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job in a laboratory setting.
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform the role and responsibilities satisfactorily.

Physical Demands:
The physical demands of this job include safe handling of controlled substances and the use of required personal protective equipment.
The physical demands here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.
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 (AMECA), Black Employees at Lilly (BE@Lilly), Chinese Culture Network (CCN), EnAble, Evolve, Lilly Indian Network (LIN), Organization of Latinx at Lilly (OLA), Pride (LGBTQ+ Allies), Veterans Leadership Network (VLN) and Women’s Initiative for Leading at Lilly (WILL).

Actual compensation will depend on a candidate’s education, experience, skills, and geographic location. The anticipated wage for this position is
$65,250 - $169,400

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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