Juergen Eckhardt

Background

About Juergen Eckhardt

Since 2016, I have been leading investments for Leaps by Bayer, the impact investment arm of Bayer that builds and invests in companies working toward fundamental breakthroughs in health and agriculture. Our investment approach focuses on ten huge challenges facing humanity. In health, we aim to shift the paradigm from treatment of disease to prevention and cure. In agriculture, we envision moving from more to better use of resources, ensuring that we can provide sustainable, comprehensive nutrition for our growing population. With my background in venture capital and medicine, I am deeply aligned with the Leaps vision. I see tremendous potential in emerging technologies that could reverse the course of climate change and enable people to lead healthier lives. As the EVP of Pharma Business Development, Licensing & Open Innovation, I also oversee Bayer’s end-to-end external innovation, fostering partnerships and collaborations with outside stakeholders, such as academia, biotech companies, start-up incubators, and more. I lead in-and-out bound licensing collaborations, alliance management for >70 collaborations, potential mergers & acquisitions, and the governance of arm’s length companies in the Pharma division. I am honored to work with some of the brightest minds in life sciences and to be part of Bayer's Executive Committee, contributing to the company's vision of Health for all, Hunger for none.