Kavaler Award 2023 Press Release
Matthias Zachert awarded The Chemists’ Club 2023 Kavaler Award
| New York, February 9, 2023 – The Chemists’ Club 2023 Kavaler Award, sponsored by Piper Sandler, was awarded to Matthias Zachert, Chairman of the Board of Management of the German specialty chemical company, LANXESS AG, as voted on by his peers in the global chemical industry. This prestigious award honors the exceptional performance of innovators and disruptors of the status quo in the sector. |  Matthias Zachert
Chairman of the Board of Management
LANXESS AG |
The 2023 Kavaler Award was presented to Matthias Zachert at a black tie dinner ceremony on Tuesday, April 18, 2023, at the historic Metropolitan Club of New York, in New York City.
“I am extremely honored to be recognized with the Kavaler Award, especially since nominations are made by the leading minds and connoisseurs of chemistry,” said Matthias Zachert, LANXESS CEO. “I dedicate this award to our entire LANXESS team. We are very proud of the journey we have made with LANXESS in recent years towards becoming a true specialty chemicals company. We are all the more pleased when our efforts are also recognized in our industry.”
To select the winner, the 125-year-old Chemists' Club invited a large and diverse array of chemical industry leaders around the world to vote from a ballot of 16 nominees. These nominees were selected based on a wide range of criteria, including organic growth, innovation, diversity and inclusivity, safety and health, operational excellence, share price performance and M&A activity. There was also a special focus on ESG actions that have been meaningful and visible both from within the industry and more broadly in society. Matthias Zachert was nominated and selected based on excelling against this set of criteria.
“His selection is extremely well deserved, and we are proud to honor him as the 2023 Kavaler Award winner,” said Dr. Roland Stefandl, President of The Chemist’ Club.
“Matthias has massively transformed the company in a very short time - away from being an undifferentiated mass producer and towards the higher end of the specialty spectrum. Even in the dynamic chemical industry, the speed and dimension of this transformation is exceptional. LANXESS has a completely different profile today than when he took office,” noted Ariel Levin, a Managing Director in Piper’s Chemicals team.
“Additionally, he has built on LANXESS' long-standing commitment to ESG with the goal to become climate-neutral by 2040. In a very tangible action, for example, LANXESS has linked one-third of variable compensation on its Board to the company’s sustainability performance.”
Matthias Zachert joins an illustrious group: the most recent Kavaler honorees have been Lori Ryerkerk, CEO of Celanese; Amin Nasser, CEO of Saudi Aramco; Bob Patel, CEO of LyondellBasell; Kurt Bock, CEO of BASF; Jim Ratcliffe,
Chairman of INEOS; and Andrew Liveris, CEO of Dow Chemical.
For more information on the Kavaler Award and Gala, please contact Dr. Roland Stefandl, President, The Chemists’ Club, at RolandStefandl@thechemistsclub.org, +1 (201) 888-0440.About the Award The Chemists' Club Kavaler Award, sponsored by Piper Sandler, is a revival of the Kavaler Award presented by
Chemical Market Reporter to leading chemical CEOs from 1990-1999. The award was revived in 2013 with 1
st Kavaler Award of the new era going to Charles Bunch, CEO of PPG.
The Kavaler Award is granted in honor of Arthur Kavaler, who served for 46 years as reporter, editor, and eventually publisher and editor-in-chief of
Chemical Market Reporter. As Andrew Liveris of Dow said, "he was a probing reporter and editor with unwavering conviction," who had a major positive impact on chemical industry journalism for many decades. Kavaler passed away at the age of 91 on January 18, 2012.
About The Chemists’ Club Founded in 1898, The Chemists' Club's is a 501(c)3 nonprofit educational organization whose membership is open to anyone with an interest in the chemical sciences, including: chemists and chemical engineers, chemical industry management, consultants, financial analysts, attorneys, academics, and students (dues-free). It provides networking opportunities for members to mix and meet with others in the chemical process sector, such as biotech, chemical, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, paper, and similar industries. The Club also supports the growth of the chemical industry by working with college students and introducing them to the range of career opportunities available in the chemical industry today. For more information about The Chemists' Club:
www.thechemistsclub.orgAbout Piper Sandler Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE: PIPR) is a leading investment bank and institutional securities firm driven to help clients Realize the Power of Partnership®. Securities brokerage and investment banking services are offered in the U.S. through Piper Sandler & Co., member SIPC and NYSE; in Europe through Piper Sandler Ltd., authorized and regulated by the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority; and in Hong Kong through Piper Sandler Hong Kong Limited, authorized and regulated by the Securities and Futures Commission.
Asset management products and services are offered through separate investment advisory affiliates.
www.PiperSandler.com About LANXESS LANXESS is a leading specialty chemicals company with sales of EUR 6.1 billion in 2021. The company currently has about 13,200 employees in 33 countries. The core business of LANXESS is the development, manufacturing and marketing of chemical intermediates, additives and consumer protection products. LANXESS is listed in the leading sustainability indices Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI World and Europe) and FTSE4Good. For more information about LANXESS and its product offerings, visit
www.lanxess.com.
For media inquiries:The Chemists’ Club
Noel Namuco
NoelNamuco@thechemistsclub.org LANXESS
Claus Zemke
Claus.Zemke@lanxess.comW: +49 221 8885 2666
M: +49 151 7461 2666
For further information:Dr. Roland Stefandl, President, The Chemists’ Club
RolandStefandl@thechemistsclub.org+1 (201) 888-0440
