Lufthansa chief
executive Christoph Franz is set to become chairman of international
pharmaceutical company Roche.
The Swiss drug company
announced this morning that Franz would succeed Franz Humer next year.
Lufthansa confirmed
Franz was not available to renew his contract when it expires on May 31, 2014.
Franz commented:
"After a total of nearly 15 years in the Lufthansa Group, this was not an
easy decision for me to make. I am proud of Lufthansa and its people and it
gives me great pleasure to work for this company.
"However, for
professional reasons, I have decided to call time on my activities for the
Lufthansa Group once I have completed my contract in May 2014."
Chairman of the
supervisory board of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Wolfgang Mayrhuber, said: "I
regret Christoph Franz's decision to develop his career in a different
direction, but I respect his decision."
Franz has been a member
of the Roche board since 2011.
"Roche is getting
a chairman with outstanding personal qualities and an impressive record as head
of a major global company. I am sure that his extensive experience, exceptional
global network and strong links to Switzerland
