In his current role Herwig is heading Corporate Responsibility for the Merck Group. This includes our Corporate Responsibility Reporting, driving Sustainability and Science & Technology Relations. Herwig joined Merck in 1996 and has held various positions with rising responsibility within several businesses of the Merck Group. Starting in Business Development Fine Chemicals, followed by heading R&D in Life Science Businesses, Cosmetics and Pigments, Herwig then successfully embarked in 2006 on the exciting journey of advancing OLED technology from its early developments to the current OLED business. Today, Merck OLED is among the top innovators and suppliers to the OLED industry. Herwig is also experienced in taking innovations from the academic and start-up level to fully developed businesses.
Prior to his appointments in Merck Herwig worked from 1991 for the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, where he is a Fellow still today. Herwig holds a PhD in Chemistry from University of Hamburg, Germany, and studied chemistry and biology in University of Oldenburg, Germany, University of Oslo, Norway, and University of Southern California, Los Angeles.
Furthermore, Herwig is voluntarily involved in several academic and nonprofit institutions in the US and Germany, and thus contributes also externally to Merck’s reputation as a leading science and technology company. This includes also a Professorship at the University of Oldenburg, Germany, his service on the Board of the GDCh, the German Chemical Society, and on advisory boards of several academic and private institutions including Fraunhofer Society.
