8-20-09

Deirdre Connelly

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – Deirdre Connelly, a 1983 Lycoming College graduate, has been named by Forbes as one of “The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women.” Ranked 73rd on the list, Connelly is president of North American pharmaceuticals for GlaxoSmithKline, one of the world’s leading research-based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies.

A native of Puerto Rico, Connelly joined GSK last February. Prior to that, she spent 26 years at Eli Lilly and worked her way up from a sales representative to the president of U.S. operations. Connelly earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Lycoming and graduated from Harvard University’s Advanced Management Program in 2000.

In assembling the list, Forbes says it looked for women who run countries, big companies or influential nonprofits. The rankings are a combination of two scores: visibility, by press mentions, and the size of the organization or country these women lead.

For the fourth consecutive year, No. 1 on the list is German Chancellor Angela Merkel. This year’s list includes several notable newcomers. First lady Michelle Obama debuts at No. 40. Sonia Sotomayor, the recently approved Supreme Court Justice, appears at No. 54.

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