Associate Director of Entertainment Marketing

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.

At Lilly, we unite caring with discovery to create medicines that make life better for people around the world. Our employees 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.

The Global Brand Activation Team is the creative engine behind the Lilly brand, driving world-class campaigns, sponsorships, and experiences that inspire employees, elevate our reputation, and connect with millions globally and is dedicated to creating a strategic global approach to building Lilly as a brand for consumers, customers and stakeholders.

If you’re passionate about bold thinking, collaboration and putting health above all, this is where your work can make an impact.

Position Overview

Lilly is seeking an Associate Director of Entertainment Marketing to join the Global Media & Partnerships team within the Global Brand Activation Team. This individual will play a key role in driving Lilly’s presence and storytelling across entertainment platforms, including film, television, streaming, and cultural events. Reporting to the Senior Director, Sports & Entertainment Partnerships, this individual will help shape how Lilly shows up authentically in culture — leveraging entertainment partnerships, talent collaborations, and experiential marketing to build trust and relevance with the Lilly brand and Lilly medicines.

The ideal candidate brings a passion for entertainment marketing, talent and partnership management, and creative storytelling that connects brands to audiences in meaningful ways. They should have demonstrated experience leading integrated campaigns, managing agencies and entertainment partners, and working cross-functionally (e.g., Legal, PR, Media, and Regulatory) to bring ideas to life.

This position will support entertainment strategies for the Lilly brand and across Lilly’s product portfolio— including partnership activations, content development, and talent engagement — with a focus on driving measurable impact.  This role will champion the balance between brand intent and talent/content authenticity, ensuring every collaboration supports Lilly’s strategic vision and goals while inspiring talent to share genuine stories that connect with audiences in meaningful and relatable ways.

Meaningful role for the brand in entertainment

The right representation

Key Responsibilities

Entertainment & Partnership Strategy

• Define and elevate a meaningful role for the Lilly brand within entertainment by leading the strategy, development, and execution of entertainment marketing initiatives across talent, content (film, television, streaming), and broader cultural platforms.

• Understand Lilly’s overarching brand strategy and articulate the role entertainment marketing plays in advancing it — identifying how cultural storytelling and partnerships reinforce brand equity and business priorities.

• Define the role of talent within the brand narrative ensuring each partnership reflects the brand’s purpose, tone, and values while authentically leveraging the talent’s voice, influence, and lived experience to build trust and connection with audiences.

• Drive a balance between Lilly’s brand and business objectives and the authentic voice, values, and lived experiences of talent, ensuring all activations reflect credible, human storytelling that builds trust and cultural relevance.

• Partner with agency and entertainment consultants to identify, evaluate, and activate new opportunities — including talent collaborations, content partnerships, and experiential integrations — that align with Lilly’s brand purpose and marketing priorities.

Creative Development & Content

• Consult on creative concepting, production, and distribution of talent and/or product integrations into entertainment content

• Consult cross-functional creative reviews and ensure all content aligns with Lilly’s brand, compliance, and medical/legal requirements.

• Partner closely with talent and branded entertainment agency to bring culturally relevant stories to life authentically and effectively.

Talent & Influencer Engagement

• Partner with branded entertainment agency to identify, negotiate, and manage celebrity and talent collaborations.

• Oversee relationship management, contractual alignment, and ongoing communication with entertainment industry partners (e.g., agencies, studios, guilds).

Campaign & Asset Management

• Manage entertainment campaign planning, development, and activation deliverables, including tracking key milestones, assets, and budgets.

• Coordinate approvals with cross-functional partners to ensure seamless execution.

• Support the development of measurement frameworks to assess ROI and impact across partnerships.

Agency & Stakeholder Management

• Serve as day-to-day lead for external agency partners and entertainment consultants.

• Build strong relationships across internal stakeholders including Media, Legal, PR, Privacy, E&C, and Creative to ensure alignment on execution.

• Foster a collaborative and innovative environment that encourages new ideas while maintaining compliance and operational rigor.

Financial & Operational Excellence

• Manage project budgets and scopes across entertainment activations, ensuring strong fiscal accountability and adherence to internal processes.

• Partner with procurement and finance teams to maintain compliance with Lilly’s financial and contractual standards.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications, business, or related field.

• Minimum of 7+ years of experience in marketing, entertainment partnerships, content production, or talent management

• 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 and/or visas for this role.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in entertainment marketing, including film, television, streaming, or celebrity/talent partnerships.

• Prior experience managing agency and entertainment partner relationships.

• Strong understanding of cultural marketing, storytelling, and brand strategy.

• Demonstrated success in leading cross-functional projects and managing multiple stakeholders.

• Experience in regulated industries (pharmaceutical, healthcare, or consumer) preferred.

• Strong project management, communication, and problem-solving skills.

• Demonstrated ability to work with agility and optimism in a fast-paced, matrixed environment.

• Inclusive, collaborative team player with excellent interpersonal skills and a strong attention to detail.

Other

• Position is based on site in Indianapolis, Indiana.

• Travel: 25%

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

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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