Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) has moved up on Fortune magazine's list of America's 50 Best Companies for Minorities, to be published in its July 10 issue, the magazine announced this week.

Lilly ranked 40th on the list, up four places from the previous year. Fortune editors took special notice of Lilly's innovative executive mentoring program for minority business owners, which has increased the success rate for small, minority-owned businesses. This is the second year that Lilly has earned a spot on the list, which debuted in 1998. The list also is available at www.fortune.com.

"Lilly's move up on the Fortune list shows that the company is making progress in its commitment to employ the best and brightest minds," said Sidney Taurel, chairman of the board, president and CEO of Lilly. "This is a journey, however, and we are constantly looking at ways to improve our performance."Fortune teamed with the Council on Economic Priorities (CEP), a nonprofit research organization in New York, to determine which companies do best in hiring, promoting and retaining minorities. This year's list ranked companies by 15 categories, with special attention paid to the number of minorities in leadership roles. In addition, Fortune and the CEP enhanced its list by checking on two new criteria: retention rates for minorities and the number of minorities represented in management compared against its workforce as a whole.

Lilly, a leading innovation-driven corporation, is developing a growing portfolio of best-in-class pharmaceutical products by applying the latest research from its own worldwide laboratories and from collaborations with eminent scientific organizations. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Ind., Lilly provides answers - through medicines and information - for some of the world's most urgent medical needs.

Eli Lilly and Company

Eli Lilly and Company

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