Merck KGaA Names One of Germany’s Only Female Company Chiefs

(Bloomberg) -- Merck KGaA said that Belen Garijo will take over as chief executive officer in May, replacing Stefan Oschmann and becoming one of the only female top executives in Germany.

Garijo is currently deputy CEO and head of the health-care unit at the Darmstadt, Germany-based company. Oschmann is leaving as planned after a decade at the science conglomerate, half of which he served as CEO, according to a statement.

Merck is also shaking up other parts of its executive board. Peter Guenter will replace Garijo as head of Merck’s health-care unit. He’s currently CEO of Almirall SA and based in Barcelona.

Matthias Heinzel will take over as head of the company’s life-science division as of next April, Merck said. Heinzel is currently head of nutrition and biosciences at DuPont.

The remainder of the five-person executive board will consist of Chief Financial Officer Marcus Kuhnert and Kai Beckmann, who is head of the performance materials unit.

Merck KGaA is not affiliated with U.S.-based Merck & Co.

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