Lilly Announces Leadership Transitions

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Oct 04, 2023, 06:45 ET

INDIANAPOLIS, Oct. 4, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) today announced changes to its executive leadership team.

Mike Mason, executive vice president and president of Lilly Diabetes and Obesity, will retire from Lilly at the end of 2023 after 34 years with the company. Over the last two decades, Mason has served in the leadership of Lilly's Neuroscience and Diabetes businesses to achieve significant growth and leading market positions. Over the last four years at the helm of Lilly Diabetes and Obesity, Mason has overseen tirzepatide's late-stage development and unprecedented diabetes launch while establishing and preparing the company's obesity franchise for its anticipated launch.

Patrik Jonsson will assume leadership of Lilly Diabetes and Obesity as executive vice president and president, effective January 1, 2024, in addition to his current responsibility as executive vice president and president of Lilly USA. In this capacity, Jonsson will lead Lilly's launched products and Phase 3 portfolio of diabetes and obesity medicines, including tirzepatide. A 33-year Lilly veteran with strong US and international commercial experience, Jonsson also has led Lilly Immunology and Lilly Bio-Medicines, as well as served as the general manager of Lilly Sweden, Scandinavia, Italy and Japan.

Daniel Skovronsky, M.D., Ph.D., Lilly's chief scientific officer and president of Lilly Research Laboratories, will take on the additional role of president of Lilly Immunology from Jonsson. In this capacity, Skovronsky will have responsibility for Lilly's launched products and phase 3 portfolio of medicines in dermatology, gastroenterology and rheumatology – fast-growing therapeutic areas with high unmet patient needs.

"As we embark on this exciting new chapter of growth for our company, I've never been more confident about our ability to deliver life-changing medicines to the patients who need them," said David A. Ricks, Lilly's Chair and CEO. "The deep experience of our leadership team ensures that we will continue to accelerate our efforts in effective, innovative ways."

In addition, Lilly announced that Leigh Ann Pusey, executive vice president of corporate affairs and communications, has decided to leave the company at the end of 2023, returning to Washington, DC, for another career opportunity. Lilly plans to assign her function's responsibilities amongst its executive committee members.

Ricks commented on the accomplishments of Mason and Pusey:
"I have worked with Mike throughout most of my career at Lilly and can attest to the broad and positive impact he has had on our company," said Ricks. "He's a true enterprise leader who leaves behind an enduring legacy that reflects his deep passion for patients and commitment to our people. On behalf of our Board, leadership team and the thousands of employees who have benefited from working with Mike, I want to thank him for his many years of outstanding service to Lilly."

"Leigh Ann joined Lilly at a critical time, bringing essential experience and expertise to bear on our efforts to promote and sustain medical innovation," said Ricks. "She has left a lasting impact on Lilly and the patients we serve, and we are grateful for her many contributions over the past six years."

Related to these transitions, David Hyman, MD, will become Lilly's chief medical officer, reporting to Skovronsky, in addition to continuing to oversee oncology development; Jennifer Oleksiw will be promoted to group vice president, global chief customer officer, reporting to Ricks; and Mark Genovese, MD, most recently senior vice president of inflammation development at Gilead Sciences and Professor of Medicine/Immunology/Rheumatology emeritus at Stanford University, will join Lilly on October 16 to serve as senior vice president, Immunology Development, leading clinical development of the mid and late-stage immunology portfolio, reporting to Skovronsky.

About Lilly
Lilly unites caring with discovery to create medicines that make life better for people around the world. We've been pioneering life-changing discoveries for nearly 150 years, and today our medicines help more than 51 million people across the globe. Harnessing the power of biotechnology, chemistry and genetic medicine, our scientists are urgently advancing new discoveries to solve some of the world's most significant health challenges, redefining diabetes care, treating obesity and curtailing its most devastating long-term effects, advancing the fight against Alzheimer's disease, providing solutions to some of the most debilitating immune system disorders, and transforming the most difficult-to-treat cancers into manageable diseases. With each step toward a healthier world, we're motivated by one thing: making life better for millions more people. That includes delivering innovative clinical trials that reflect the diversity of our world and working to ensure our medicines are accessible and affordable. To learn more, visit Lilly.com and Lilly.com/news or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn. C-LLY

Lilly Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements regarding leadership changes and expectations for the future. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The words "will", "anticipate" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially due to various factors. The following include some but not all of the factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated, including the significant costs and uncertainties in the pharmaceutical research and development process, including with respect to the timing and process of obtaining regulatory approvals; the impact and outcome of acquisitions and business development transactions and related costs; the expiration of intellectual property protection for certain of the company's products and competition from generic and/or biosimilar products; the company's ability to protect and enforce patents and other intellectual property; changes in patent law or regulations related to data package exclusivity; competitive developments affecting current products and the company's pipeline; market uptake of recently launched products; information technology system inadequacies, breaches, or operating failures; unauthorized access, disclosure, misappropriation, or compromise of confidential information or other data stored in the company's information technology systems, networks, and facilities, or those of third parties with whom the company shares its data; the impact of global macroeconomic conditions, trade disruptions, disputes, unrest, war, regional dependencies, or other costs, uncertainties and risks related to engaging in business globally; unexpected safety or efficacy concerns associated with the company's products; litigation, investigations, or other similar proceedings involving past, current, or future products or commercial activities as the company is largely self-insured; issues with product supply and regulatory approvals stemming from manufacturing difficulties, disruptions, or shortages, including as a result of unpredictability and variability in demand, labor shortages, third-party performance, quality, or regulatory actions related to our facilities; dependence on certain products for a significant percentage of our total revenue and an increasingly consolidated supply chain; reliance on third-party relationships and outsourcing arrangements; the impact of public health outbreaks, epidemics, or pandemics, such as the COVID-19 pandemic; regulatory changes or other developments; regulatory actions regarding operations and products; continued pricing pressures and the impact of actions of governmental and private payers affecting pricing of, reimbursement for, and access to pharmaceuticals; devaluations in foreign currency exchange rates or changes in interest rates and inflation; changes in tax law, tax rates, or events that differ from the company's assumptions related to tax positions; asset impairments and restructuring charges; changes in accounting and reporting standards promulgated by the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); regulatory compliance problems or government investigations; and actual or perceived deviation from environmental-, social-, or governance-related requirements or expectations. For additional information about the factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from forward-looking statements, please see the company's latest Form 10-K and subsequent Forms 8-K and 10-Q filed with the SEC. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. Except as is required by law, the company expressly disclaims any obligation to publicly release any revisions to forward-looking statements to reflect events after the date of this release.