INDIANAPOLIS -- Former Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson is joining Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly as senior vice president of corporate affairs and communications, the company announced Friday.

Peterson, who led the city for eight years from 1999-2007, will serve a variety of roles with the drug company, including political relations, public policy, branding and public relations.

"Bart is a proven leader with a strong list of achievements. His strategic approach, intellect and political acumen will make him a valuable addition to Lilly's leadership team," said Lilly president and CEO John Lechleiter in a statement released early Friday.

Peterson said he's particularly pleased to head up Lilly's effort to support reform of the nation's health care system.

"With this dynamism that's going on, with the efforts that Lilly endorses and strongly supports to provide greater access to health care and greater access to pharmaceuticals, the opportunity to be right at the center of that at this historic moment, I'm really looking forward to," Peterson said.

Peterson previously served as chief of staff for Gov. Evan Bayh and was president of The Precedent Companies, a real estate development and financial services company.

More recently, he served a semester as a resident fellow at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government.

Peterson lost his re-election campaign to Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard in what some considered a shocking defeat spurred by anger over large property tax increases.

Gov. Mitch Daniels previously held the same position Peterson is taking at Lilly. Peterson starts his new job on June 15.