Senior Director, Media Portfolio Ad Operations

Company: Eli Lilly and Company
Location: Indianapolis
Posted on: January 26, 2026

Job Description:

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. Lilly is staffing for a Senior Director of Media Portfolio Operations that will work across the portfolio of brands. This position reports to the Associate Vice-President for Media and Partnerships. An ideal candidate is data driven with end-to-end knowledge of media strategy, execution, and measurement. They can quickly build trust and rapport within the organization by partnering across cross-functional teams as they establish processes and build new capabilities to support the constantly evolving landscape. They are proactive, agile, and energized by the opportunity to work in a fast-paced environment with a broad responsibility. Key Responsibilities Influence & Strategic Leadership Lead and influence cross-functional decision-making to drive positive customer experiences. Act as a key lead during annual and ongoing business planning processes. Effectively communicate and present to senior leadership (2–3 levels up), including CMO and other C-suite customers, providing clear strategic direction and recommendations. Marketing Transformation & Capability Building Work closely with Consumer and HCP media teams to maintain standards, evolve capabilities, and establish new and scalable processes. Lead initiatives that eliminate customer struggles and advance best-in-class media experiences across audiences. Cross-Functional & External Collaboration Collaborate closely with external agency partners and internal cross-functional teams—including Privacy, IT, Analytics, Legal, and Regulatory—on operational and governance topics such as privacy compliance, data partnerships, third-party agreements, media guidelines, tagging, trafficking, and taxonomy. Data-Driven Decision Making Partner with Advanced Analytics and Market Research teams to develop frameworks, define success metrics, shape learning agendas, and operationalize insights across Consumer and HCP media to inform optimization and future strategy. Ad Tech & Data Management Manage and continuously evaluate relationships with marketing and media technology partners and tools, including ad servers, data connectivity partners, measurement solutions, and brand safety platforms, ensuring effectiveness, compliance, and alignment with business needs. Agency Management & Partnership Excellence Manage media agency relationships by establishing clear, two-way expectations for client–agency partnerships. Build strong relationships with agency leadership to deliver customer-focused strategies and tactics and develop action plans based on regular performance and partnership evaluations. Risk & Compliance Management Ensure adherence to all consumer marketing guidelines, good promotional practices, privacy and regulatory policies, and internal procedures, to proactively managing risk across media operations. Upskilling & Knowledge Sharing Shape and lead internal connects, conferences, and marketing transformation forums. Upskill marketers by bringing together internal and external thought leaders to share perspectives, innovations, and procedures across the organization. Financial & Operational Excellence Instill flawless fundamentals in budget management for the team and the media portfolio, agile forecasting, and windows-of-change processes. Develop cases and financial justifications to support funding requests during annual and long-range business planning. Basic Qualifications Minimum of a bachelor’s degree 10 years’ experience Lilly does not anticipate providing sponsorship for employment visa status (e.g., H-1B or TN status) for this employment position Preferred Qualifications 5 years’ media experience Understanding of marketing technology, tools, platforms and emerging media industry changes Requires knowledge emerging media platforms and technologies Strong learning agility and be able to solve complex problems and recommend enterprise solutions Broad expertise across multiple media channels, with experience in both offline and online planning, and strong proficiency in planning tools, media measurement, media mix modeling, and multi-touch attribution Strategic, analytical problem-solver with strong decision-making, project management, budget management, and prioritization skills Highly collaborative leader with a consistent record of influencing stakeholders above level and outside their function within a complex, matrixed organization Demonstrated success leading cross-functional teams to deliver measurable results in dynamic, fast-paced environments Comfortable operating in ambiguity and change, with the ability to identify, prioritize, and resolve issues effectively Excellent verbal and written communication skills, high attention to detail, and the ability to work effectively with diverse teams and perspectives Other Position may be remote, but require 10% travel 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 $154,500 - $226,600 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. WeAreLilly

Keywords: Eli Lilly and Company, Cincinnati , Senior Director, Media Portfolio Ad Operations, PR / Public Relations , Indianapolis, Ohio