We advocate a culture of mutual esteem and respect. As an expression of this open and dynamic company culture, belonging and inclusion are important to us throughout the Group – at all levels, including the Executive Board and Supervisory Board.
We believe that a diverse workforce boosts the innovative strength of the Group and contributes materially to our business success. That is why we are fostering a culture of belonging and inclusion independent of factors such as age, gender, disability, ethnic or cultural background, religion, industry experience, and educational background. As part of our efforts, we have developed a policy to strategically steer the topics of belonging and inclusion in our corporate bodies (see S1 Own Workforce of the Sustainability Statement); this focuses on the following key criteria:
In this context, it should be noted that, with respect to the Executive Board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, many rules can only be applied correspondingly. This is because the Executive Board comprises personally liable general partners of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, and is not a management board with employed members of a corporate body (for details, please also see the Joint Report of the Executive Board and the Supervisory Board).
In addition to the aspects presented below, reference is made to the objectives of the Supervisory Board with respect to its composition and the profile of skills and expertise and the qualification matrix for the Supervisory Board (see the information on the Objectives of the Supervisory Board with Respect to Its Composition, Profile of Skills and Expertise, and Qualification Matrix). The statements made therein form part of the Diversity Policy for the Supervisory Board presented here.
Age
Our boards are to have a balanced age structure. This permits future-oriented and consistent succession planning and is a key element of sustainable company management and monitoring. There are upper age limits for the Executive Board and Supervisory Board. There is an age limit of 70 years for members of the Executive Board and a standard age limit of 75 years for members of the Supervisory Board. Our Diversity Policy aims for an age range of at least ten years between the youngest and the oldest member of the respective board.
The current composition of both bodies satisfies this objective. The age range of the Supervisory Board spans 27 years, while the age range of the Executive Board currently spans 20 years.
Gender
Gender balance also plays a crucial role, since it enables us to benefit from a larger talent pool and allows us to develop a better understanding of important customer groups as a company.
Our company continues to pursue representation of both genders as an objective for the Executive Board. The Board of Partners of E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany, appointed Belén Garijo as the new Chair of the Executive Board effective May 1, 2021, making it the first time a woman had been appointed to this position. Helene von Roeder has been a member of the Executive Board and the Chief Financial Officer of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, since July 1, 2023. Khadija Ben Hammada has also been a member of the Executive Board and Chief People Officer since March 1, 2025. This means that women currently account for 50% of the members of the Executive Board. The statutory target of 30% pursuant to section 96 (2) AktG already applies to the Supervisory Board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, and is currently met at 44%.
Internationality and global mindset
As a global science and technology company with operations and major markets on five continents and more than 62,000 employees1 at locations in 652 countries, internationality and the associated global mindset are one of our key success factors. Our Diversity Policy stipulates that the Executive Board should demonstrate internationality through leadership experience or background, relative to our key sales markets or those locations that are organizationally and culturally relevant to our employee development efforts. For both criteria, Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific are currently the key regions.
The Executive Board and the Supervisory Board meet this objective with management experience in these regions, and especially in the following countries: Belgium, China, France, the United Kingdom, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Switzerland, Singapore, Spain, and the United States. In addition, 67% of the Executive Board members are of non-German origin.
Management experience
The key prerequisites for high-performance leadership teams are the diversity of the individual profile of skills and expertise and a balance between an internal and external management perspective. Therefore, the Executive Board as a whole must have in-depth knowledge and experience in the following key areas of importance to the company: strategy and planning, finance and accounting, sales and operations, human resources, legal and compliance, and information technology, as well as ecological, environmental and social sustainability. In addition, it is important for the composition of the Executive Board to ensure a good balance of members from within and outside the company. Our Diversity Policy seeks to derive inspiration and innovation from outside the company and to identify the latest trends of relevance to the core businesses of the company while ensuring sustainability and continuity in line with our corporate culture.
The current Executive Board fulfills both of the aforementioned objectives: All required aspects of the profile of skills and expertise are covered by at least one member of the Executive Board. Likewise, several members of the Executive Board possess multiple years of corporate experience both within and outside the Group prior to their appointment to the Executive Board. This is also true for the Supervisory Board.
Industry knowledge
To efficiently lead and manage the Group, the Executive Board must have in-depth knowledge of the key industries and business sectors in which the company operates. In accordance with the Diversity Policy, there should be at least one member of the Executive Board with in-depth expertise in the Healthcare, Life Science or Electronics business sectors.
Our Boards cover the full range of the necessary industry experience.
Educational background
In order to translate the tremendous innovative potential of a science and technology company into sustainable business success, interdisciplinary educational backgrounds are a key element of our Diversity Policy both for the Executive Board and for the Supervisory Board. The current composition of both boards illustrates this interdisciplinary aspect to a very high degree.
Furthermore, half of the members of the Executive Board and seven Supervisory Board members are university graduates and hold doctorates.
1 Our company also employs people at sites of subsidiaries that are not fully consolidated. This number refers to people employed in fully consolidated subsidiaries.
2 Each country with at least one active employee is included as a separate country.