Germany’s chemical manufacturing sector sits at the intersection of advanced materials, global supply chains, and highly automated production environments. With deep reliance on OT systems, intellectual property, and regulated international operations, cybersecurity leadership in this industry must balance resilience, risk governance, and business enablement. The following leaders are shaping security programs inside some of Germany’s most influential chemical manufacturers, bringing experience from consulting, technology, and industrial environments into complex enterprise settings.
Tobias Wahl — Head of Cybersecurity & Risk Advisory (Senior Vice President), Heraeus
Tobias Wahl leads cybersecurity and risk advisory at Heraeus, overseeing enterprise security strategy for a global specialty materials and technology group. With more than seven years at Heraeus, he has progressed through senior leadership roles including Head of IT Security and Head of Security Operations Center, reflecting deep institutional and operational knowledge. His background spans industrial cybersecurity, security operations, and governance, supported by earlier experience at Infineon Technologies, Ernst & Young, and the Fraunhofer Institutes for secure information technology. Wahl brings a strong blend of research, consulting, and hands-on enterprise security leadership to a complex manufacturing environment.
Unal Kocabas — Head of Business Information Security, Umicore
Unal Kocabas is a seasoned information security leader with over 18 years of experience across cybersecurity, cryptography, and governance for both IT and OT environments. As Head of Business Information Security at Umicore, he leads corporate security initiatives with a strong focus on enterprise security architecture, including cloud environments. His role spans strategy development, operational security processes such as secure development lifecycle and security operations, and managing risk and compliance across multiple regulatory frameworks. Kocabas is known for a hands-on leadership style and a results-driven approach to advancing cybersecurity maturity in industrial and materials-focused organizations.
Jesse Sonne — Chief Information Security Officer, Symrise AG
Jesse Sonne serves as Chief Information Security Officer at Symrise AG, where he leads global information security across the organization. His progression at Symrise includes roles as Global Information Security Officer and IT Compliance & Security Manager, reflecting long-term involvement in building and maturing the company’s security function. Sonne’s background also includes IT risk management and compliance experience at KPMG Deutschland, along with earlier roles in corporate quality and business functions. His career reflects a strong governance and compliance foundation applied within a global chemical and flavor manufacturing environment.
Markus Schmall — Chief Information Security Officer, Covestro
Markus Schmall is the Chief Information Security Officer at Covestro, bringing extensive experience from telecommunications, financial markets, and industrial environments. Prior to Covestro, he served as CISO at Deutsche Börse Group and held senior cybersecurity leadership roles at Deutsche Telekom, where he led application security, red teaming, bug bounty programs, and security tooling initiatives. His background includes deep involvement in security engineering, automation, and developer enablement. At Covestro, Schmall applies this broad technical and leadership experience to strengthen cyber resilience within a global materials and chemical manufacturing organization.
Timo Kukuk — Chief Information Security Officer, LANXESS
Timo Kukuk is the Chief Information Security Officer at LANXESS, responsible for leading the company’s information security program within a global specialty chemicals group. Prior to joining LANXESS, he held senior roles in corporate digital risk management and information security at ista International GmbH. Kukuk also brings extensive consulting experience from KPMG Germany, where he worked on ISO/IEC 27001 certification services and security consulting engagements. His career reflects a strong foundation in risk management, governance, and certification-driven security practices applied in complex industrial enterprises.
Securing Germany’s Chemical Manufacturing Backbone
Chemical manufacturing remains one of Germany’s most strategically important and operationally complex industries. As production environments become more connected and globalized, cybersecurity leaders in this sector play a critical role in safeguarding operations, intellectual property, and regulatory compliance. The CISOs and security leaders featured here demonstrate how strong governance, technical depth, and industry-specific experience are essential for protecting the digital foundations of German chemical manufacturing.