Aalen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Over the past 15 years, I’ve had the privilege of working in diverse roles across product development, and today I lead the global process development team at ZEISS Vision Care. I’m proud to work alongside world-class experts, driving innovations that make a real impact in the market and deliver exceptional value to our customers. My passion lies in developing high-performing teams and fostering collaboration across borders. Having lived and worked abroad, and now leading a department with teams on four continents, I’ve learned how to transform cultural diversity into a powerful advantage for the company. Every day, I focus on advancing our organization and making the most of our global footprint to provide outstanding service to our stakeholders.
As Head of Product Innovation Development at ZEISS Vision Care, I lead a global, multidisciplinary team of scientists and subject-matter experts, fostering a culture of passion, excellence, and customer impact. I am responsible for driving product innovation in the highly complex and specialized field of prescription lenses, translating advanced science into meaningful customer value. I oversee teams across four continents, advancing our product roadmap through strong execution and cross-functional collaboration. A core focus of my role is organizational development—building high-performing, agile teams and enabling effective collaboration at scale. I work closely with a broad range of stakeholders, from product management through manufacturing, and contribute to the strategic development and expansion of our global innovation footprint.
As Head of R&D – Process Development at ZEISS Vision Care, I led a global team of outstanding experts in the field of process development, enabling them to execute projects that delivered exceptional value to our customers.
As Head of the Global Lens Design team, I was responsible for the development of both branded and non-branded prescription lenses, leading a group of internationally recognized experts in lens design, optical calculation, and myopia control. In this role, I set the strategic direction for the team, overseeing task prioritization and ensuring effective internal knowledge sharing. I valued and actively leveraged the diversity of backgrounds, expertise, and perspectives within the team — knowing that such variety enriches discussions and sparks innovative solutions. Under my leadership, the team played a pivotal role in enabling the successful launch of multiple products, including ZEISS SmartLife and ZEISS ClearView lenses.
As Team Manager Rx Calc – Australia, I led the local software development team responsible for delivering solutions for spectacle lens calculations. This included providing manufacturing data to both internal production sites and external customers. In addition, the team developed innovative algorithms that enabled new technologies, enhanced product performance, and reduced manufacturing costs.
ZEISS provides solutions for the semiconductor and mechanical engineering industries, biomedical research and medical technology, as well as eyeglass lenses, camera and cinema lenses, binoculars and planetariums. I am responsible for digital-optical distortion correction of virtual reality devices and for working with external software development teams on corresponding ideas and IP generation. I oversee system and sub-projects for the development of adjacent market products in optical metrology with component and IP responsibility for optics and cameras. I also determine error budgeting, failure and risk analysis, and assure system accuracy through iterative and clear communication with mechanical, electronic design, and laboratories. In addition, I oversee image and sensor simulation for measurement accuracy validation using MATLAB and ZEMAX. I am responsible for optical design studies in the R&D department for high-quality dSLR lenses and objective lenses for photo and video. I conduct cost tracking and resources planning and serve as R&D contact with the internal photo lens division. I conduct optical design studies, tolerance and polarization analyses at the R&D department for space and defense applications, and cost tracking and resources planning while serving as the R&D contact to external customers. Systems are validated by developing and using ray- and wave-based simulation methods for products in lithography, microscopy, metrology and medical technology.
Led R&D initiatives in advanced optics, from developing digital-optical distortion correction for VR devices to pioneering illumination methods for next-generation fluorescence microscopes. Managed global collaborations with software and hardware teams, generating valuable IP in optics, cameras, and optical metrology. Delivered innovative solutions such as angle-of-view–dependent pre-distortion correction for head-mounted displays, and conducted optical design, tolerance, and polarization analyses for space and defense applications. Oversaw major projects end-to-end, including cost and resource planning, while serving as a trusted R&D partner to both internal and external stakeholders.
I contributed to the development, simulation, and testing of mechanically and electronically stabilized binoculars, including the design of the control loop for measurement and stabilization. This work generated intellectual property for a bimodal control system with pan detection, resulting in the U.S. patent application US61/586344. I also applied wavelet-based methods to optimize optical design, enabling innovative freeform optical surfaces. Additionally, I analyzed surfaces in a lithographic optical system using wavelets and developed wave-optical propagation techniques in inhomogeneous media — the central focus of my Ph.D. thesis.
I supported market and competitor analyses, designed and conducted a customer survey, and created unified business communication presentations for both internal use and customer engagement.