Roche has picked the chief executive of Lufthansa, Christoph Franz, as a replacement for chairman Franz Humer.

Mr Franz will be nominated to replace Dr Humer at the Swiss major’s annual shareholders meeting in March 2014. He has chosen not to renew his contract as CEO of the airline, which expires at the end of May next year.

Speaking about his successor, Dr Humer said that Roche is getting a chairman “with outstanding personal qualities and an impressive record as head of a major global company. I am sure that his extensive experience, exceptional global network and strong links to Switzerland will be great assets”.

Mr Franz, 53, is no stranger to the Basel-headquartered major, as he has been a board member since 2011. In this role, “I have had ample opportunity to get to know and admire its strong business performance and corporate culture,” he said adding that “Roche is in very good shape, and I am looking forward to taking on this opportunity”.