Associate Director, Media & Influence

Indianapolis, IN (On-site)

$128K/yr – $187K/yrSenior Level6+ years expFull time

Posted 4 weeks ago

Top 1% of applicants do these two things.

The other 99% submit and hope. You're about to do something different.

Job Summary

Own and scale a modern media relations engine guided by audience data, blending traditional outlets with creators and podcasts to shape perception, trust, and business outcomes.

  • Media ecosystems: Build relationships across journalists, creators, newsletters, community moderators, podcasters, and influencers for broad reach.
  • Narrative architecture: Weave pipeline and corporate initiatives into patient impact stories for leadership amplification.
  • Execution and enablement: Prepare executives, draft materials, and coordinate high-stakes launches and events to drive coverage and outcomes.

Job Description

Responsibilities

  • Execute day-to-day media relations and influence activity across traditional and emerging platforms, managing pitches, inbound inquiries, and ongoing reporter relationships.
  • Contribute to the enterprise media and influence strategy, taking an audience- and data-first approach to identify where Lilly's key audiences form trust, how they consume information, and which platforms, voices, and formats will move perception and business outcomes.
  • Create modern media strategies for milestones, product launches, and media events, that reflect an audience-first approach.
  • Map and build the modern media ecosystem — traditional journalists, independent creators, community moderators, podcasters, newsletter writers, substack and reddit authors, and influencers — and cultivate a deep, current rolodex of relationships across new verticals and platforms, not just legacy media. Become our in-house media guru.
  • Develop and pitch proactive stories that connect Lilly's pipeline, business performance, and corporate initiatives to patient impact and innovation leadership, supporting senior team members on narrative, targeting, and pitch approach.
  • Support planning and execution of product announcements and high-stakes media events, including drafting media plans and materials, coordinating spokesperson preparation, and managing post-event follow-up.
  • Help prepare executives and subject matter experts to represent Lilly across media platforms — legacy and emerging — by drafting briefing materials, talking points, and Q&As, and supporting strategic placements including interviews, bylines, podcasts, and speaking opportunities.
  • Partner with global communications counterparts across therapeutic areas, business development, investor communications and other external communications functions to ensure upleveled storytelling that resonates with the stakeholders who shape Lilly's reputation.
  • Track coverage, sentiment, share of voice, and message pull-through across the full ecosystem, and use data and audience insights to demonstrate media's impact on perception and business outcomes.

Requirements

  • Bachelor's degree in Communications, Journalism, Public Relations, Marketing, or a related field.
  • 6+ years of experience in communications, media relations, or public relations.
  • 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.

Preferred

  • Demonstrated experience building and implementing media and influence strategies across both traditional outlets and emerging platforms (podcasts, newsletters, creator networks, social platforms).
  • Previous experience in communications, media relations, or influence at a Fortune 500 company, large pharmaceutical or healthcare organization, or major newsroom (in-house or agency side).
  • Proven ability to build and energize a modern media rolodex — including independent creators, podcasters, newsletter writers, community moderators, and influencers — across new verticals and platforms, not just legacy outlets.
  • Proficient in using audience data, social listening, and media analytics to shape strategy, measure impact, and demonstrate business value.
  • Prior work translating complex topics — financial performance, scientific innovation, corporate strategy — into narratives that resonate with varied audiences.
  • Experience in product communications within healthcare or medicine preferred, but not required.
  • Proven ability – with examples – to proactively storytell outside landmarks, product launches, etc.
  • Experience navigating matrixed global organizations, building trust and influence across functional boundaries while maintaining strategic alignment.
  • Deep understanding of the pharmaceutical industry and healthcare landscape, with the credibility to engage on regulatory, scientific, policy, and patient topics.
  • Stays current with communications trends and tools, including AI-enabled platforms; brings fresh thinking beyond traditional pharmaceutical communications and demonstrates sound judgment in high-stakes and crisis situations.
  • Traits that will help you succeed: proactive, bias for action, test-and-learn mentality, curiosity.

Benefits

  • 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).
Eli Lilly and Company logo

Eli Lilly and Company

4.1 Glassdoor

We're a medicine company turning science into healing to make life better for people around the world. It all started nearly 150 years ago with a clear vision from founder Colonel Eli Lilly: "Take what you find here and make it better and better." Harnessing the power of biotechnology, chemistry and genetic medicine, our scientists are urgently advancing science to solve some of the world's most significant health challenges.General Information and Guidelines:When you engage with us on LinkedIn, you're agreeing to these Community Guidelines: https://e.lilly/guidelines. If you have questions about a Lilly medicine, contact The Lilly Answers Center at 1-800-Lilly-Rx (1-800-545-5979) Monday through Friday, excluding company holidays.

Founded in 1968
Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
53K employees (3,172 in marketing)
80% recommend to a friend
92% CEO approval

Traffic Signals

Monthly Visitors
4.3M
Monthly Google Ads Budget
$2.1M
Traffic Source Mix
Search
48.5%
Direct
37.7%
Referral
7.7%
Social
3.1%
Paid
2.9%

Headcount Trend

Current headcount: ~53.4K

Marketing Team

Marketing Team Size
2,777 (5% of company)
Median Career Experience
18 years
Median Tenure
12.1 years
Marketing Roles Posted (Last 30 Days)
7

Funding

Total Funding
$6.5B
Last Raise
$6.5B
Post IPO Debt, 2 years ago

Funding History

  • Feb 2024
    Post IPO Debt • $6.5B

Recent News