Elke Dittrich-Wengenroth

Vice President @ Bayer Pharmaceuticals | Ph.D., Life Sciences, Head Scientific & Competitive Intelligence

Cologne Bonn Region

About

I am a senior leader in the pharmaceutical industry with a strong background in Research & Development and a proven track record in several leadership positions. With a Ph.D. in Biology, I bring in a deep understanding of the scientific and competitive landscape from early research up to proof of concept in the clinic. I am passionate about a motivational leadership style, conveying a visionary mission and strategy with a clear focus on outcomes. Throughout my career I led teams in a matrix organization or as a supervisor in a hierarchical set-up, always enjoying co-create with teams, peers or customers in an agile and trustful environment, while being a strong believer in the power of collaborating with accountability. As the Vice President and Head Scientific & Competitive Intelligence at Bayer Pharmaceuticals, I am responsible for leading a team which license & provides scientific data globally, runs data retrieval & analysis and consults R&D product teams from target identification & validation incl. protecting intellectual property, along development of clinical trial strategies, up to informing on competitor strategies. All insights are substantiating data-driven business decisions on project & portfolio level. As Head of External Innovation Therapeutics at Bayer Pharmaceuticals prior to my current role, I played a key role in fostering external partnerships based on scientific excellence, mutual trust, and successful alliance management. My mission was to ensure early access to breakthrough innovation, enabling a sustainable, value-creating pipeline of innovative products and the management of strategic partnerships with academia, hospitals and biotech companies. In addition, I held the position of Global Program Head within Drug Discovery at Bayer HealthCare, where I led global, multi-cultural, cross-functional teams in various therapeutic areas such as Cardiology, Hematology, Ophthalmology, and Gynecological Therapies. I started at Bayer Pharmaceuticals R&D as a Lab‐Head identifying new targets and lead compounds in cardiovascular indication areas. During that time, I spent several months in the US at Bayer's former R&D site in West Haven, Connecticut.

Experience

  • Bayer Pharmaceuticals (11 yrs 9 mos)
    • Vice President, Head of Scientific & Competitive Intelligence
      Nov 2019 - Present · 6 yrs 8 mos

    • Vice President, Head of External Innovation Therapeutics
      Oct 2014 - Oct 2019 · 5 yrs 1 mo

      Alliance Management of international strategic collaborations with worldleading institutes in therapeutic research focus areas

  • Bayer HealthCare (18 yrs 1 mo)
    • Director, Global Program Head
      2012 - 2014 · 2 yrs

      Project Management, Women's Healthcare- and Ophthamology Development Project Portfolio

    • Director, Global Project Leader
      2010 - 2012 · 2 yrs

      Project Management, Hematology Development Projects, Biologics

    • Global Project Leader
      2007 - 2010 · 3 yrs

      Project Management, Cardiovascular Development Projects