Eli Lilly CFO resigns after 'inappropriate' communications with employees

The pharmaceutical company said an independent investigation was recently launched after it was "made aware of allegations of an inappropriate personal relationship" between Smiley and employees. The investigation found "consensual though inappropriate" communication with employees and that his behavior "exhibited poor judgment."

Eli Lilly didn't provide detail about the nature of the communication.

"Lilly holds all employees accountable to its core values and strongly believes its executive officers carry an even higher burden in ensuring those values are upheld," the company said in a release Tuesday. "Mr. Smiley did not meet that standard."

Smiley is being replaced by Anat Ashkenazi, a 20-year veteran of the company who was most recently vice president of Lilly Research Laboratories.

The company said Smiley can assist in the transition and that the conduct which led to his departure was not related to "financial controls, financial statements or any other business matters or judgments." Smiley joined Lilly in 1995 and was promoted to CFO in 2018.