Mr. Fibig joined our Board in 2011 and has been our Chairman since December 2014 and Chief Executive Officer since September 2014. Previously, he served as President and Chairman of the Board of Management of Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, the pharmaceutical division of Bayer AG, from September 2008 to September 2014. Prior to that position, Mr. Fibig held a number of positions of increasing responsibility at Pfizer Inc., a research-based pharmaceutical company, including as Senior Vice President of the US Pharmaceutical Operations group from 2007 through 2008 and as President, Latin America, Africa and Middle East from 2006 through 2007. Mr. Fibig’s prior work experience with various pharmaceutical companies has provided him with extensive experience in international business, product development and strategic planning, which are directly translatable to his work as our Chairman and CEO. 

Mr. Fibig was appointed to the board of Bunge Limited in September of 2016 where he served through 2018. Currently, Mr. Fibig is chairman of the German American Chamber of Commerce, Inc. New York, a position he has held since May 2018, and has been a board member of Novo Nordisk since March 2018.
 

Anne Chwat was appointed Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary in April 2011. In this role, she is responsible for IFF’s global legal, regulatory, and corporate governance affairs. In addition, Ms. Chwat leads the Company’s global compliance and ethics initiatives.

Ms. Chwat most recently served as Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Burger King Corporation. She also created and managed the company’s philanthropic and community affairs efforts and was the president of the Have It Your Way Foundation — the charitable arm of the Burger King system. While at Burger King Chwat oversaw all legal aspects of Burger King’s initial public offering in 2006 and its sale in 2010 to the Brazilian private equity group 3G.

Prior to joining Burger King, Ms. Chwat was Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer of BMG Music, the music division of media company Bertelsmann AG. In this capacity, she led BMG’s worldwide legal and business affairs department and executed all legal aspects of BMG Music’s merger with Sony Music.

Earlier in her career, Ms. Chwat served as Associate Corporate Counsel for Joseph E. Seagram & Sons, Inc., the parent company of Universal Studios, Universal Music Group, Universal Theme Parks and the Seagram Spirits & Wine Group. Her primary responsibilities at Seagram were corporate transactional and governance matters.

Previously, Ms. Chwat practiced M&A and project finance with the New York law firm Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton.

Chwat is a member of the national advisory board of The Posse Foundation and was the Chairman of its Miami advisory board from 2009 through 2011. She is also a member of the International Women’s Forum, a global organization of preeminent women working to advance women’s leadership across careers, cultures and continents.

Ms. Chwat holds a Bachelor of Arts in Politics from New York University and a Juris Doctorate from New York University School of Law.

Francisco Fortanet was appointed Executive Vice President, Operations at International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) in February 2012. In this role, Mr. Fortanet has broad-scale responsibilities for IFF’s global operations ranging from procurement through outbound logistics.

Mr. Fortanet’s career with IFF began in 1995 as Plant Manager in Mexico and he has served in roles of increasing scope and responsibility over the years. Most recently, he was Vice President, Global Manufacturing Compounding. Earlier roles included Regional Director of North America Operations, Project Manager in Ireland, and Plant Manager in Hazlet, New Jersey.

Mr. Fortanet holds a degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey in Cuernavaca, Mexico. Mr. Fortanet is based in IFF’s headquarters in New York City.

Matthias Haeni was appointed to lead the Flavors division of IFF in April 2014. As Divisional Chief Executive Officer, Taste, he is responsible for the business unit’s global strategy, commercial and creative execution, people development and profit and loss.

Mr. Haeni joined IFF in 2007 in the role of Regional General Manager, Flavors, Greater Asia, based in Shanghai, China. In 2010, he transferred to Hilversum, the Netherlands where he served as Regional General Manager for Flavors Europe, Africa, and the Middle East (EAME) until he was named to his current position.   

Prior to joining IFF, Mr. Haeni was based in Singapore as Givaudan’s Vice President of Commercial Flavors, Southeast Asia Pacific. Earlier in his career, he held similar positions in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. He has worked and lived in Zurich, Istanbul, Warsaw, Vienna and New York. 

A global leader, Mr. Haeni holds an Economics degree from Switzerland's University of Applied Sciences and completed extensive programs at the Institute of Applied Psychology in Zurich and The Wharton School in the US. Currently, he serves on the board of the International Association of the Flavors Industry. 

Mr. Haeni is a member of IFF’s Executive Committee and is based in Hilversum, the Netherlands.
 

Nicolas Mirzayantz was appointed to lead the Fragrances business unit in October 2006. As Divisional Chief Executive Officer, Scent, he is responsible for the business unit’s global strategy, commercial and creative execution, people development and profit and loss.  

Mr. Mirzayantz joined IFF’s Creative Center in Paris in 1988 and has held positions of increasing responsibility throughout his 30-year career with the Company.

Prior to his current position as Divisional CEO, Mr. Mirzayantz held the dual roles of Senior Vice President for IFF’s Fine Fragrances & Beauty Care unit, and North America Regional Manager. He was responsible for IFF’s Global Fine Fragrances Group, including Beauty Care, as well as the general management of the business development and operations activities in North America, including flavors and functional fragrances. Additionally, he oversaw the integration and development of IFF’s Creative Centers in New York and Paris.

In 2002, Mr. Mirzayantz served as Vice President of Global Business Development for Fine Fragrances and Toiletries after holding the position of Fragrances General Manager, IFF France. He also held the position of Vice President, Commercial and Creative Director.

Mr. Mirzayantz serves on the board of the International Fragrance Association (IFRA), the official representative body of the fragrance industry worldwide. He is also a board member of the  Industry Advisory Board for the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) Master’s Program. He holds a Master of Economics from the University of Paris II ASSAS and completed the International Executive Program at INSEAD in Fontainebleau in 1998 and the Executive Program at Singularity University in Palo Alto, California in 2018.

Mr. Mirzayantz is a member of IFF’s Executive Committee and is based in New York. 
 

Dr. Gregory Yep was appointed Executive Vice President, Chief Global Scientific & Sustainability Officer in June 2016. He guides the Company’s global R&D strategy, leading and developing IFF’s efforts in innovation, technological development and external collaborations, furthering IFF’s legacy of pioneering firsts.  He is responsible for the Company’s global sustainability efforts, a key enabler of our Vision 2020 business strategy.

Dr. Yep joined IFF after holding the position of Senior Vice President of Research, Development & Applications with The Kerry Group, where he was responsible for strategy creation and implementation of technical platforms in the taste and nutrition, food and beverage and the biotechnology industry. Previously, he held the role of Senior Vice President of R&D at PepsiCo, where he created long-term science-based strategies for core ingredients and their impact on food, flavor, metabolism and nutrition. He was also responsible for the Gatorade Sports Science Institute - a facility aimed at expanding knowledge on sports nutrition and exercise science to enhance the performance and well-being of athletes. Prior to this, Dr. Yep was Global Vice President, Application Technologies at Givaudan Flavors and Fragrances. While there, he led a diverse global technology group and was responsible for R&D of taste and flavor delivery technology worldwide. Earlier in his career at McCormick & Company, he held executive roles of increasing responsibility in food science.
He was appointed to the Board of Directors for CP Kelco in April 2018 and currently serves on

multiple advisory boards, including the United States Tennis Association National Sports Science Committee and the Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Dean’s Council. Dr. Yep is a recipient of the Apex for Youth Inspiration Award in recognition for serving underserved youth in New York City; and is also a Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association Excellence in Flavor Science awardee.

It was while at the University of Pennsylvania that Dr. Yep’s 30-year journey in taste, scent and nutrition began. While studying for his bachelor’s degree in biology and chemistry, he worked as a researcher in the University’s Smell and Taste Center. Dr. Yep holds a master’s and a PhD in organic chemistry from The Johns Hopkins University. 

He is a member of IFF’s Executive Committee and is based in New Jersey, US.
 

Mr. O’Leary’s career spans more than 30 years in key finance leadership roles where he was responsible for driving financial processes and controls to support growth, profitability and return on investment goals. Most recently, since July 2015, Mr. O’Leary has served as Senior Vice President, Controller and Chief Accounting Officer, where he led a diverse global team overseeing all accounting functions. Previously, he served as IFF’s Interim Chief Financial Officer from November 2014 to July 2015; Vice President and Corporate Controller from May 2009 to November 2014; Interim Chief Financial Officer from July 2008 to May 2009; and Vice President, Corporate Development from July 2007 to May 2009.

Before joining IFF, Mr. O’Leary spent 21 years at International Paper Company where he held finance leadership roles of increasing responsibility with assignments in Brazil, Belgium, France and the United States. Prior to International Paper Company, Rich was a Senior Auditor with Arthur Young & Co. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Manhattan College.

Ms. Susana Suarez Gonzalez was appointed our Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer in November 2016. Based in our New York headquarters, Ms. Suarez Gonzalez is responsible for championing the growth and development of IFF people. She leads the creation and implementation of the IFF global human resources strategy across the business lines and works to build talent and organizational capability through IFF’s established Human Capital platforms.

Prior to joining IFF, Ms. Suarez Gonzalez spent 25 years at Fluor Corporation, where she held leadership positions across several business groups and functions including construction, marketing, sales, project engineering and human resources. Immediately before her current role at IFF, Ms. Suarez Gonzalez held the position of Senior Vice President Global Operations, Human Resources with Fluor, and was responsible for the global execution of HR services as well as all corporate HR functions, encompassing global benefits, compensation, talent development, recruiting and human resources information systems.

Recognized as a strategic thinker and results-driven multilingual executive, Ms. Suarez Gonzalez is a proven global leader. Expert in developing and implementing innovative solutions, she is adept at delivering a competitive advantage by leveraging international HR service delivery efforts in a cost effective manner.

Having published two books and authored or co-authored numerous industry articles, Ms. Suarez Gonzalez has been recognized throughout her career for her professional achievements. In addition to her work in human resources, she is a United Way Tocqueville member who volunteers on special projects and events that focus on children. Ms. Suarez Gonzales holds an executive MBA from the IUDE University and a doctorate in psychology from the University of Oviedo in Spain where she graduated summa cum laude.

Vic Verma was appointed IFF’s Vice President and Chief Information Officer (CIO) in February 2016 and named Senior Vice President in April 2019. In his role, Mr. Verma is responsible for delivering on the Company’s global information technology strategy, the digital technology transformation program and overseeing infrastructure, data, application delivery and end user services across the enterprise. 

Before joining IFF, Mr. Verma served as Vice President of Global Infrastructure Operations at American Express from 2010 – 2016 where he was accountable for global infrastructure operations across the full breadth and lifecycle of technology products.  Prior to that role, Mr. Verma held several other leadership positions at American Express as well as Vice President, Division CIO and management consulting roles with GlaxoSmithKline, Bristol Myers Squibb and PricewaterhouseCoopers. 

Mr. Verma holds an MBA from The University of Southern California, a master’s degree in chemical engineering from Marshall University and a bachelor’s in biochemical engineering from Rutgers University. He currently sits on the advisory board at Rutgers University’s Center for Innovation Education.  

He is based in the Company’s office in Union Beach, New Jersey, USA, and is a member of the IFF’s Executive Committee.