New President of Lilly Foundation Elected

The Eli Lilly and Company Foundation Inc. has elected Cynthia Cardona as president. Cardona will also serve as senior director of social impact for Lilly.

Most recently, Cardona was part of Lilly’s corporate affairs team, which developed Lilly’s corporate messaging and health equity framework.

Lilly says in her new role, Cardona will focus on efforts to advance racial justice, improve educational outcomes for underserved students, enhance global health outcomes and improve the quality of life for people in Indianapolis.

“Cynthia is a trusted and valued member of our company with a passion for diversity, equity and inclusion,” said Leigh Ann Pusey, senior vice president of corporate affairs and communications. “I’m confident that she will leverage her considerable professional and unique lived experiences to advance Lilly’s volunteer, philanthropic, and social impact work to make lives better for people here in Indianapolis and around the globe.”

As senior director of Lilly’s social impact team, Cardona will oversee the company’s civic and investor engagement, employee giving and volunteerism, corporate responsibility reporting, global health partnerships and disaster relief efforts.

Cardona began work at Lilly in 2001 as a pre-MBA diversity fellowship intern and became a full-time employee in 2004. Lilly says her background includes work in primary care sales as well as consumer and brand marketing.