COLOGNE, Germany—Lanxess A.G. has selected a new chief financial officer in addition to revealing a proposal to appoint two new members to its supervisory board.
Michael Pontzen will succeed Bernhard Duttmann as CFO, effective April 1. The firm said Duttmann was leaving Lanxess to pursue “new career challenges.” He has served as CFO since 2011.
“We would like to thank Dr. Duttmann for his outstanding work in the past years and wish him well on his future career path,” Supervisory Board Chairman Rolf Stomberg said in a statement.
Pontzen joined Lanxess in November 2004 as head of the Investor Relations Group Function. He became head of corporate finance in October 2008 and assumed responsibility for risk and cash management in the spring of 2009.
He has been the head of the Corporate Controlling Group Function since January 2012.
“I look forward to welcoming Michael Pontzen as a member of the management board team from April,” CEO Matthias Zachert said in a statement. “He has worked for Lanxess since its establishment and has held leading functions in almost all of the company's finance departments.”
Lanxess' supervisory board—or board of directors—will nominate Lawrence A. Rosen and Matthias Wolfgruber for election as members to the board at the firm's annual stockholders meeting on May 13. They will replace Rainer Laufs and Robert J. Koehler, who will leave the board upon expiration of their current terms.
Rosen serves as the CFO of Deutsche Post A.G. and Wolfgruber is the CEO of Altana A.G.
“Mr. Laufs and Mr. Koehler are due the thanks of the entire company,” Stomberg said in a statement. “They have significantly contributed to Lanxess having developed well within a decade. I am pleased that we have been able to attract two further proven experts as their successors.”
Lanxess is scheduled to release its financial results from 2014 on March 19. The firm produces specialty chemicals globally and reported sales of about $10.4 billion in 2013. It employs about 16,700 in 29 countries with 52 production sites.