Dr. Juergen Eckhardt MD, MBA has been named the next Head of Business Development & Licencing / Open Innovation (BDL/OI) of Bayer’s Pharmaceuticals Division, effective September 1, 2023. He will be a member of the Pharmaceuticals Executive Committee and will report to Stefan Oelrich, Member of the Board of Management at Bayer AG and President of the company’s Pharmaceuticals Division. At the same time, Eckhardt will continue to oversee Leaps by Bayer, the company’s impact investment arm, and will report to Bill Anderson, Chairman of Bayer AG’s Board of Management.
“Juergen’s expertise of more than 25 years in the healthcare industry as a physician, strategy consultant and venture capital investor in healthcare, biotech, and agriculture will be key to lead our external growth strategy,” said Stefan Oelrich, Member of the Board of Management, Bayer AG, and President of the company’s Pharmaceuticals Division. “At the same time, I like to express my sincere gratitude to Friedemann Janus for stepping in as acting head of the BDL/OI organization in the past months.”
Dr. Juergen Eckhardt joined Bayer in 2016 to help launch Leaps by Bayer, which focuses on investments in cutting-edge health and agriculture innovations. Since then, Leaps by Bayer has invested over $1.7 billion in over 55 startups, several of which have been bought by Bayer to boost the company’s technological portfolio and pipeline. Prior to joining Bayer, Eckhardt worked as a physician at the University Hospital of Basel in Switzerland, as a management consultant with McKinsey & Co., and as a Venture Capital investor.
Throughout his career, he has served on the boards of various biotech businesses and has led numerous partnering deals. Juergen holds a medical degree from the University of Basel and an MBA from the “Institut Européen d’Administration des Affaires” (INSEAD) in Fontainebleau, France.
“At Bayer we are strong believers in collaboration and partnering as a strategy to combine each other’s strengths and capabilities in order to deliver breakthrough innovation to patients,” said Juergen Eckhardt, Head of Business Development & Licensing / Open Innovation and Head of Leaps by Bayer. “Listening to our partners’ needs and exchanging ideas to find the best solutions for our patients will continue to be integral to our partnering approach and I am looking forward driving this together with the BDL/OI teams around the globe.”
About Bayer:
Bayer is a multinational corporation with primary capabilities in the life sciences of health care and nutrition. Its products and services are intended to help people and the earth thrive by assisting efforts to address the major issues posed by the world’s rising and ageing population. Bayer is dedicated to achieving sustainable development and making a positive impact through its operations. Simultaneously, the Group intends to boost its earning potential and create value through innovation and growth. Throughout the world, the Bayer brand represents trust, dependability, and quality. In fiscal 2022, the Group employed around 101,000 people and generated 50.7 billion euros in sales.
