Associate Director - Global Leadership Development Strategic Business Partner
Eli Lilly and Company
Summary
The GLD Strategic Business Partner (SBP) serves as a trusted advisor to senior business leaders, HRBPs, and leadership teams within a designated business area. This role sits at the intersection of business strategy and leadership development, diagnosing capability gaps, crafting development priorities, and ensuring Global Leadership Development's work is directly aligned to what the business needs to win.
Job description
Role Purpose
The GLD Strategic Business Partner (SBP) serves as a trusted advisor to senior business leaders, HRBPs, and leadership teams within a designated business area. This role sits at the intersection of business strategy and leadership development, diagnosing capability gaps, crafting development priorities, and ensuring Global Leadership Development's work is directly aligned to what the business needs to win.
Strategic Consulting & Business Partnership
- Serve as the primary leadership development advisor to senior leaders and HRBPs, operating as a trusted, embedded partner and integral member of the HR team.
- Diagnose leadership capability gaps through a deep understanding of the business area's strategy, performance challenges, talent profile, and people agenda.
- Translate business needs into clear, prioritized development requirements, crafting the ask before solutions are developed.
- Influence and inform succession planning, talent reviews, organizational efficiency, and mentor culture as a credible thought partner.
- Represent the voice of the business back into Global Leadership Development, ensuring the Learning Architect, Portfolio Lead, and Learning Impact Strategist are designing and measuring against the right outcomes.
Leadership Development Delivery: Selective and Strategic
- Facilitate high-stakes leadership experiences where the facilitator relationship is part of the intervention, including Lead Team conversations, transition support, and team efficiency sessions.
- Partner with the Portfolio Lead on the delivery of nomination-based and transition programs.
- Operate selectively, employing external partners and vendors where appropriate, and reserving SBP involvement for moments where internal presence is irreplaceable.
- Contribute to GLD design and implementation efforts, ensuring new programs, tools, and platforms reflect the day-to-day realities of the leaders they support.
Insight Generation & Business Intelligence
- Provide regular insights to HR and business leaders on leadership pipeline health, readiness, and capability gaps.
- Use leadership assessments, including 360s, psychometrics, and readiness tools, to inform individual and cohort development plans.
- Surface patterns and themes from the business area to inform Global Leadership Development portfolio decisions, design priorities, and measurement focus.
Collaborator Engagement & Ecosystem Navigation
- Build and maintain relationships with global and regional HR teams, the Inclusion Office, and external development partners.
- Champion leadership development and coaching as drivers of culture, performance, and business outcomes.
- Collaborate across Global Leadership Development, partnering with the Portfolio Lead on program delivery, the Learning Architect on content needs, and the Learning Impact Strategist on measurement priorities.
Innovation & Continuous Evolution
- Stay current on leadership development trends, digital learning, and AI-enabled development approaches, including the practical application of generative AI in learning design and delivery.
- Pilot and champion innovative solutions that address the needs of the business area.
- Contribute to Global Leadership Development thought leadership and cross-team knowledge sharing.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree
- Minimum 3 years experience in leadership development, talent management or OD
- At least 5 years overall relevant experience
- Must be authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis
- No visa sponsorship provided
- Master's degree in Organizational Psychology, HR, or Business (preferred)
- Coaching certification (preferred)
- Demonstrated experience as a strategic consultant to senior leaders
- Consulting orientation: leads with diagnosis before solution
- Executive credibility with VPs and SVPs
- Business insight
- Data fluency
- AI and digital learning proficiency
- Systems thinking
- Facilitation skills
- Commitment to inclusion
- Fluent in English
- Additional languages (preferred)
Benefits
- 401(k) Matching
- Pension
- Vacation Benefits
- Medical, Dental & Vision
- Prescription Drug Benefits
- Flexible Spending Accounts
- Life Insurance
- Death Benefits
- Employee Assistance Program
- Fitness Benefits
- Employee Clubs & Activities
- Company Bonus
Company overview
Eli Lilly and Company, commonly known as Lilly, is a leading American multinational pharmaceutical corporation headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Founded in 1876 by Colonel Eli Lilly, the company has grown into one of the world's most valuable pharmaceutical enterprises, with operations in approximately 125 countries. Lilly specializes in developing and manufacturing innovative medicines across multiple therapeutic areas, including diabetes, oncology, neuroscience, immunology, and cardiometabolic diseases. The company is renowned for its groundbreaking work in insulin production, having been the first to mass-produce insulin and later developing the first commercially available insulin product in the U.S. Lilly's current portfolio includes blockbuster medications such as Mounjaro and Zepbound (tirzepatide) for diabetes and obesity, Trulicity (dulaglutide) for type 2 diabetes, Verzenio (abemaciclib) for breast cancer, and Taltz (ixekizumab) for autoimmune conditions. With approximately 47,000 employees worldwide, Lilly maintains a strong commitment to research and development, investing heavily in scientific innovation to address some of the world's most significant health challenges. The company operates with a mission to make life better for people around the world through the discovery and delivery of innovative medicines.