"Most deals will fail for non-technical reasons". A sobering thought for the biotech industry, especially with the global markets collapsing around us where big deals are a lifeline to many companies. Mark Barbato explains how Eli Lilly & Company decided to tackle this problem back in the 90's with the creation of its Alliance Management group, which is now responsible for the company's relationships with its partners. Part of their role is to find, get and create value and Mr Barbato stresses that although Lilly is currently acquiring several small companies, such as ImClone and SGX, their focus today is still on forming a diverse range of collaborations.

Mark A. Barbato
Vice President, Alliance Management
Eli Lilly and Company

Mr. Barbato joined Eli Lilly and Company in 1973 as a sales representative and has held a variety of sales, marketing, and new product development management positions. Recent assignments with Lilly have included Vice President of Operations for Lilly USA, Executive Director and Cardiovascular Platform Team Leader and prior to that Executive Director of the Cialis™ and ReoPro® global product teams, the cardiovascular business unit, and global cancer and cardiovascular therapies. In 1986, Mr. Barbato was named Director of Pharmaceutical Marketing for Lilly European Operations in London, United Kingdom, and returned to the United States as Director of Sales for the Western Hospital Region in 1989. Mr. Barbato became Director of Corporate Pharmaceutical Pricing Development in 1991 and was named Executive Director of Global Hospital Business Planning in 1992.

He is Chairman of the Advisory Board to the Supply Chain and Global Management Academy at the Kelley School of Business, Indiana University; a member of the Boards of Directors for Providence Cristo Rey High School in Indianapolis, the Indiana University Kelley School of Business Alumni Association, and the Association of Strategic Alliance Professionals; and a member of the American Society of Health-Systems Pharmacists and the Beta Gamma Sigma business scholastic honor society.

Mr. Barbato received a Bachelor of Science degree in pharmacy in 1972 from the University of Minnesota and an MBA in marketing from Indiana University in 1982.

Eli Lilly & Co.

Eli Lilly & Co. was founded in 1876 by Eli Lilly a 38-year-old pharmaceutical chemist and a veteran of the U.S. Civil War, Colonel Lilly was frustrated by the poorly prepared, often ineffective medicines of his day. The company headquarters are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.A. and it employs more than 40,000 people worldwide. In 2007 Lilly had revenues of $18.6 billion in 2007, making it the 148th largest company in the United States and the 10th largest corporation by global pharmaceutical sales. The company is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange.

Lilly is the world's largest manufacturer and distributor of medications used in a broad range of psychiatric and mental health-related conditions, including clinical depression, generalized anxiety disorder, narcotic addiction, insomnia, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and others.