Lonza, the world's leading contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), has announced the appointment of Samanta Cimitan as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), Senior Vice President and Member of the Extended Executive Committee, effective by 1 January 2027. This newly created role is a key component of Lonza's One Lonza strategy, designed to streamline how customers interact with the company's full end-to-end offerings across its three business platforms.
Cimitan brings extensive business leadership experience in the CDMO industry, currently serving as Chief Executive Officer of the Celonic Group. Her previous tenure at Lonza spanned nearly 13 years, where she held commercial and strategy leadership roles, including Vice President of Lonza Group Operations Strategy. In that position, she developed and led transformation programs across commercial, R&D, and operations, giving her firsthand knowledge of Lonza's capabilities and culture.
In her new role, Cimitan will lead Strategic Enterprise Account Management, Global Marketing, and Commercial Excellence. She will have direct commercial responsibility for Lonza's strategic accounts and will work to harmonize the go-to-market approach across the organization. This move is expected to make it easier for customers to access Lonza's comprehensive services, from early development to commercial manufacturing, regardless of the business platform involved.
Wolfgang Wienand, Chief Executive Officer of Lonza, commented on the appointment: "Samanta's appointment to the new role of Chief Commercial Officer is another important step in building One Lonza and making the full power of the Lonza Engine work for our partners in the pharmaceutical industry. Our ambition is clear: Every customer should benefit from the unique breadth of our science, technology, and manufacturing capabilities, helping them translate their breakthrough innovations into viable therapies for patients worldwide." He added, "Samanta brings deep CDMO expertise, commercial leadership experience and first-hand knowledge of Lonza. She understands what it takes to build trusted partnerships, execute with commercial discipline and create value across the full development and manufacturing journey."
The creation of the CCO position underscores Lonza's commitment to strengthening customer engagement and commercial delivery. With Cimitan's leadership, Lonza aims to enhance its ability to serve pharmaceutical and biotech clients, ensuring that they can navigate the company's offerings with ease and benefit from its integrated capabilities. This strategic move is likely to have significant implications for Lonza's competitive positioning in the CDMO market, as it seeks to differentiate itself through a more cohesive and customer-centric approach.
Lonza, headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, operates across five continents with a team of approximately 20,000 colleagues. The company generated sales of CHF 3.4 billion with a CORE EBITDA of CHF 1.2 billion in the first half of 2026. Cimitan's appointment is expected to further drive Lonza's growth by aligning commercial strategies with its scientific and manufacturing strengths.
