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.