About

 

Deirdre Connelly Deirdre P. Connelly

President, Lilly USA

Deirdre P. Connelly was named president of Lilly USA in June 2005. She is a member of the company’s operations committee and senior management council.

In the fall of 2006, Connelly was recognized by Fortune magazine as one of the 50 most powerful women in business.

In 2008, she was appointed to the President's Commission on White House Fellowships. In this role, she will help select the White House Fellows, a prestigious annual program that fosters leadership and public service.

Before assuming the role of president, Connelly was senior vice president of human resources for Lilly. She had been vice president of human resources for pharmaceutical operations since May 2004.

Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Connelly received a bachelor's degree in economics and marketing from Lycoming College in Pennsylvania in 1983. She graduated from the Harvard University's Advanced Management Program in 2000.

Connelly joined Lilly in 1984 as a sales representative in San Juan. In 1985, she began a marketing associate role in San Juan. In 1989, she joined the international management development program at Lilly Corporate Center and later became a sales supervisor in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1990, she returned to San Juan as a diabetes product manager. In 1991, Connelly was named national sales manager for the Puerto Rico affiliate and, in 1992, she was named marketing and sales director for Puerto Rico. In 1993, she became director of sales and marketing for the Caribbean Basin Region, including Central America, Puerto Rico, and Caribbean Island countries. She was promoted to general manager for Eli Lilly Puerto Rico, S.A., in 1995.

Connelly returned to Indianapolis in 1997. From 1997 to 2001, she held the positions of regional sales director, executive director of global marketing for Evista®, and team leader for the Evista® product team and was promoted to leader of the woman’s health business unit in the U.S. affiliate. In 2003, she became executive director of human resources for the U.S. affiliate.