FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Germany’s Merck KGaA said on Tuesday its lab equipment division and its pharmaceuticals division would be under new leadership from June but it added that its strategy remains unchanged.
Jean-Charles Wirth is to become the CEO of the Life Science unit, a maker of gear and supplies for biotech labs, succeeding Matthias Heinzel, who has decided to not renew his contract.
Wirth currently heads the Science & Lab Solutions subunit within Life Science, the company said in a statement.
Danny Bar-Zohar, currently the head of drug research and development, will become CEO of the pharmaceuticals division, succeeding Peter Guenter, who has decided to retire from Merck, it added.
In addition, Khadija Ben Hammada will assume the newly created role of Chief People Officer on March 1, as Merck adds a sixth executive board seat.
She currently holds the title of Chief Human Resources Officer and will take on additional responsibilities in areas such as sustainability, compliance and site management of the headquarters in Darmstadt.
(Reporting by Ludwig Burger, editing by Rachel More)
