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Lonza Group AG
/ Key word(s): Personnel
Lonza Appoints Jason Berndt as Head of Group Operations, and Maria Soler Nunez as Chief Quality Officer
12.09.2025 / 09:00 CET/CEST
- Jason Berndt will join Lonza on 1 October 2025 as new Head of Group Operations, Executive Vice President and member of the Executive Committee (EC)
- Maria Soler Nunez, currently Head of Group Operations, is appointed Chief Quality Officer and Executive Vice President, remaining a member of the EC, effective as of 1 October 2025
- The newly-created Chief Quality Officer role elevates Lonza’s Quality function to the executive committee level, underscoring its fundamental importance for Lonza as an organization
Basel, Switzerland, 12 September 2025 – Lonza today announced that its Board of Directors has approved the appointment of Jason Berndt as Head of Group Operations, Executive Vice President and member of the EC. Jason succeeds Maria Soler Nunez, who will take up the newly-created role of Chief Quality Officer and Executive Vice President, remaining a member of the EC. Both appointments will be effective as of 1 October 2025.
Jason brings more than two decades of experience in global operations, having previously served in a variety of leadership roles spanning operational excellence, manufacturing, supply chain management, technical services, and network transformations across leading pharmaceutical and consumer goods companies. An American citizen, Jason also brings a wealth of international expertise, with prior roles based in the US, Germany, Israel and Japan.
Jason most recently served as Head of Global Technical Services and Senior Vice President at Bristol-Myers Squibb. Prior to this, he spent more than eight years in different leadership roles at Teva Pharmaceuticals, and six years in manufacturing operations at Procter & Gamble, as well as two years as a consultant at McKinsey and Company. Jason began his career in the US Army, where he spent five years as a military officer. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the United States Military Academy at West Point and an MBA from the University of Michigan.
Maria Soler Nunez joined Lonza in 2022 as Head of Group Operations and member of the EC. In this position, she has successfully led Lonza’s engineering, procurement, supply chain management, operational excellence and program management Group Functions. In her new role as Chief Quality Officer, Maria will be responsible for upholding and reinforcing the highest quality standards across Lonza’s global development and manufacturing network, as well as overseeing regulatory affairs and regulatory compliance.
Maria’s appointment builds on her proven leadership track record at Lonza, her deep understanding of the company’s operations, and her established expertise in and commitment to quality and regulatory compliance. A Spanish national, Maria has 28 years of experience in manufacturing and quality roles in the pharmaceutical industry, working in multiple countries including Spain, Switzerland and the US. Before joining Lonza, Maria served as Chief Quality Officer at Novartis, with responsibility for all aspects of quality across the global operations network. Prior to Novartis, Maria worked with Eli Lilly and Company for 12 years.
Commencing 1 October 2025 and continuing until his retirement in 2026, Oliver Schläfli, currently serving as Global Head of Quality, will transfer his responsibilities to Maria and provide counsel on different projects across the organization.
Wolfgang Wienand, Chief Executive Officer, Lonza, commented: “I am pleased to welcome Jason to our One Lonza Team and to warmly congratulate Maria on her new role. With our ambition to further elevate Lonza’s execution excellence in manufacturing, engineering and large capital projects, Jason will be a strong addition to the team with his hands-on experience and proven leadership from the shop floor over site operations to large network transformations across the US, Europe and Asia. Jason will work closely with Maria and our three Business Platforms to further strengthen the operational, technical and quality foundations for the growth journey ahead of us.
“With her deep knowledge of our business from her tenure in Group Operations, her first-hand experience and passion for quality and her collaborative leadership style, Maria is perfectly positioned to take on the new and elevated role of Chief Quality Officer in the Lonza executive leadership team. Backed by our whole leadership team and myself, Maria and her global quality organization are fully dedicated to ensuring that Lonza lives up to the highest standards in the industry and meets our commitment to the safety of our customers’ patients.
“I want to thank Oliver for his extensive work in building and leading Lonza’s global Quality Function over the last five years. Looking back, I congratulate Oliver for an impactful career in the pharmaceutical industry spanning more than three decades and wish him all the best in his next chapter.”
Note to editors:
A high-resolution image of Jason is available here.
About Lonza
Lonza is one of the world’s largest contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs) dedicated to serving the healthcare industry. Working across five continents, our global team of more than 19,000 colleagues works alongside pharma and biotech companies to turn their breakthrough innovations into viable therapies. We support our customers in bringing life-saving and life-enhancing treatments to patients worldwide with a combination of cutting-edge science, smart technology and lean manufacturing.
Our company generated sales of CHF 3.6 billion with a CORE EBITDA of CHF 1.1 billion in Half-Year 2025.
Find out more at www.lonza.com
Additional Information and Disclaimer
Lonza Group Ltd has its headquarters in Basel, Switzerland, and is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. It has a secondary listing on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (“SGX-ST”). Lonza Group Ltd is not subject to the SGX-ST’s continuing listing requirements but remains subject to Rules 217 and 751 of the SGX-ST Listing Manual.
Certain matters discussed in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations and estimates of Lonza Group Ltd, although Lonza Group Ltd can give no assurance that these expectations and estimates will be achieved. Investors are cautioned that all forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainty and are qualified in their entirety. The actual results may differ materially in the future from the forward-looking statements included in this news release due to various factors. Furthermore, except as otherwise required by law, Lonza Group Ltd disclaims any intention or obligation to update the statements contained in this news release.
All trademarks belong to Lonza and are registered in CH, US and/or EU, or belong to their respective third-party owners and are used only for informational purposes.
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