Associate Director - Functions Learning Lead

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.  Job Position Overview: The Global Manufacturing and Quality Learning and Development (GMQLD) organization is dedicated to delivering learning solutions and strategies that empower Lilly's Manufacturing and Quality organizations to achieve our mission: making medicine with safety first and quality always. The Functions Learning Leader is the recognized internal expert in learning and capability development for site and central functions — driving excellence through a team of L&D professionals and serving as the critical connector between platform execution and the global Center of Excellence (CoE). This role operates at the intersection of global strategy and platform and site-specific needs — ensuring that learning priorities, governance frameworks, and compliance standards are consistently and effectively delivered across every site the platform serves. Responsibilities : Leadership & High-Performance Team Development Build and lead a high-performing global functions team by setting a clear standard of excellence, holding accountability to outcomes with directness and care, and addressing performance gaps and talent gaps. Bring high emotional intelligence to team leadership — reading individual motivators, team dynamics, and organizational pressure accurately to coach effectively, sustain cohesion through change, and create an environment where strong performers thrive. Translate strategic priorities into clear team direction and execution rhythm — removing blockers, maintaining momentum, and closing the gap between what leadership asks for and what the team delivers. Develop team members across craft, partner influence, and leadership capacity — coaching individuals to frame problems well, bring solutions, and operate with increasing independence and confidence. Operate as a skilled problem-solver and credible cross-functional partner — navigating sophisticated, matrixed relationships across platforms, sites, and senior leadership with substance, influence, and a clear line of sight to business outcomes. Strategic Leadership & Governance Serve as the primary L&D Leader across site and central functions, ensuring alignment with global L&D strategies, policies, and procedures while meeting local operational needs. Partner with the global CoE, LA and LEPs to implement future-facing learning solutions that drive performance, compliance, and operational excellence. Ensure global governance frameworks are driven for site and central functions, in partnership with Platform Lead, maintaining inspection and audit readiness in real time. Act as a champion for a modern learning culture, shifting away from site-based traditional document-based training toward interactive, digital, and experiential global, network and platform-based learning solutions. Learning Strategy & Execution Support the team by providing function-specific L&D initiatives that enable compliance, manufacturing excellence, and employee development. Drive learning effectiveness measurement using real-time data and analytics to ensure programs deliver measurable business impact. Partner cross-functionally with customers to embed a learning culture across functions and sites. Ensure audit and inspection readiness, proactively addressing training gaps and regulatory expectations. Advocate for technology-enabled